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It does seem like instead of taking lessons about understanding the value of design and design process, manufacterers have latched onto whatever aesthetic Apple

It does seem like instead of taking lessons about understanding the value of design and design process, manufacterers have latched onto whatever aesthetic Apple has gone to recently. Just look at the latest crop of MacBook Air knock-offs. It's tragic in that there are certainly plenty of talented designers out there with the skill and vision to make something just as well designed as an Apple product, but taken in a different direction. In software at least, both Microsoft and Google seem to be taking minimalism in a different direction from Apple's penchant for skeuomorphis, which I think is great. In hardware, there doesn't seem to be any such thing. I did like the aesthetic of the CR-48: flat, matte, dark gray, soft-touch plastic. Understated, unassuming, and functional. And now that it seems like Google has got religion about design, maybe they can exert some of that onto Motorola, their new hardware branch. A guy can dream, can't he?

mattgreenrocks 15y ago
The tech industry doesn't understand a damn thing about aesthetics, and until it does, Apple will dominate. Too many people making decisions are afraid to let the designer come out with anything approaching novel. Too many engineers are too mired in nerdy product specifications to realize nobody cares about how many processors are in a phone. Too many designers are too afraid to stray from the archetypical Web 2.0 site. This is not cause for despair; rather, it's a giant opportunity staring you in the face. The industry needs people with vision, taste, and the balls to push back on everyone else that would get in their way.
- joebadmo 15y ago
  I think it's partly a failure of designers to communicate what they can do. I do understand how hard this can be; my wife is a product designer, sometimes for tech products. As I said before, I'm hopeful about both Microsoft and Google. They both seem to have gotten more serious about design, at least on software. Google is notoriously data-driven, and a designer who understands how to speak Googlese, with design theory backed by data, could have a serious impact. All the Google re-designs and especially Android 4 ICS have me very hopeful.
  - jroseattle 15y ago
    I'm less bullish on Google. They are very data-driven, which works until it doesn't. I can't imagine what data anyone at Google would have provided in 2001 that could have convinced them to build an iPod. Google doesn't seem so much paralysis-by-analysis, but more paralysis-until-analysis. I'm not a googler, but have several friends who are. The stories of designers who have come and gone from their teams aren't well published, but I guess frustration is a norm in those circles when it comes to design. Apparently, design vision doesn't lead a product -- it follows. I know they have made managerial changes there (I was told the move of Meyer out as head of product management had something to do with design), but the culture of data-first seems to be holding them back.

mattgreenrocks 15y ago

The tech industry doesn't understand a damn thing about aesthetics, and until it does, Apple will dominate. Too many people making decisions are afraid to let the designer come out with anything approaching novel. Too many engineers are too mired in nerdy product specifications to realize nobody cares about how many processors are in a phone. Too many designers are too afraid to stray from the archetypical Web 2.0 site. This is not cause for despair; rather, it's a giant opportunity staring you in the face. The industry needs people with vision, taste, and the balls to push back on everyone else that would get in their way.

joebadmo 15y ago
I think it's partly a failure of designers to communicate what they can do. I do understand how hard this can be; my wife is a product designer, sometimes for tech products. As I said before, I'm hopeful about both Microsoft and Google. They both seem to have gotten more serious about design, at least on software. Google is notoriously data-driven, and a designer who understands how to speak Googlese, with design theory backed by data, could have a serious impact. All the Google re-designs and especially Android 4 ICS have me very hopeful.
- jroseattle 15y ago
  I'm less bullish on Google. They are very data-driven, which works until it doesn't. I can't imagine what data anyone at Google would have provided in 2001 that could have convinced them to build an iPod. Google doesn't seem so much paralysis-by-analysis, but more paralysis-until-analysis. I'm not a googler, but have several friends who are. The stories of designers who have come and gone from their teams aren't well published, but I guess frustration is a norm in those circles when it comes to design. Apparently, design vision doesn't lead a product -- it follows. I know they have made managerial changes there (I was told the move of Meyer out as head of product management had something to do with design), but the culture of data-first seems to be holding them back.