Good design you love to have

How solid are those wheels ?

In my experience no matter how much you spend the wheels are never strong enough to survive some baggage handlers and are always the first thing to go. If they did get smashed do you think they would be replaceable ?

I have to resurrect this thread to talk about a recent purchase that was really unexpected. Many things these days, consumer electronics especially, are so cheaply made that they bring no satisfaction apart from their utility and quite a lot of them barely even satisfy their function. So imagine my surprise when I bought an electric toothbrush from Philips that not only turned out to be well built (so far), but also well designed and came with a bunch of equally high quality accessories:

The first accessory is the glass, which appears to be very thick! I know that glass blowers appreciate thin glass to show off their craftsmanship, but thin glass screams fragile at you and broken glass screams danger, so that affects the way you handle it. This feels as if you can drop it on a tiled bathroom floor and it won’t break.

The second accessory is the stand that goes under the glass. This charges the toothbrush via induction, through the glass. Engineering wise, that’s probably not terribly impressive, but it feels impressive. The way the stand and glass are shaped so that they seamlessly fit into each other is also very nice.

The third accessory is the travel case. This is also made with quality detailing, for example the way they have symmetrically stretched the fabric of the case so that the pattern in the weave actually creates pleasant shapes, even around the corners. It also has slots for an extra brush head, hidden magnets to close it and a mini-USB port for charging on the go, again via induction.

And then there is the toothbrush itself. As with the rest, it feels like a well designed quality item, with for example brushing program indicators which are invisible when the brush is off, but glow white when active. The battery indicator is also invisible unless active, and pulsates in green and orange. The chrome details around the brush head mount and especially the bottom where it receives the charge are also nice, in that they are the only details in another material and they highlight the places where the brush receives external input, if you follow me.

I don’t know, maybe it’s post-decision dissonance, after all I’ve only owned it for a few months, but this feels so far like the best thing I’ve bought in a long, long time. Oh, and it brushes really well too. :slight_smile:

With products like this, I would have loved to work at Philips design. Too bad I read that they’ve sold off all of their consumer stuff except the lighting. :frowning:

EDIT: I actually just noticed that the main toothrush volume transitions from a square at the base to a circle at the top, while the glass transitions from a square at the top to a circle at the base. Perhaps not just for looks either, since it provides a slightly larger area for the toothbrush to stand on and also nice corners in the glass for the brush to lean on. So far, this design just keeps getting better the more I look at it!

I think you mean agree to disagree! I dispise the round-stick. So cheap and flimsy, parts slip off all the time. The Crystal is a quality, solid, pencil-style grip! If your round stick ever kills off the crystal, it will be a 1st-world design tragedy of epic proportions. =)

Just got me a Sonicare DiamondClean too, awesome toothbrush. But I’ve been so busy using it I haven’t had time to check out the accessories yet. The glass is bigger than I thought.

Ahh, the simple things…this little lid is so simple, does its intended job so well, works just long enough and is a BIG improvement over earlier versions of products like it. Even the Starbucks lid, seemingly more designer-y, can’t touch it.

http://www.dart.biz/web/products.nsf/pages/optimalid

The original Audi flip key. When that came out it '99 or 2000 it was pretty crazy and it is still awesome. I love playing with it. Great pocketable talisman of the brand, I know they used it for VW too, and then Mazda and everyone else did one before it all switched to push button keyless, but I still love it.
audi_flip_key.JPG

Not sure if the key was Audi or vw first. I had one on my (?) 1997 or 1998 new beetle.

R

Someone popped this up on here a while back, urged me to run out and buy one straight away! It doesn’t peel off your keyring and is near indestructible. Quite a sexy wee number too!

Eames Splint. Picked one up recently on craigslist. Very inspiring Good Design.

In one simple object, it shows-

  1. Low cost/high volume doesn’t have to mean compromise.
  2. Simple can be smart. A lot of built in functions for “free” reduces complexity and need for additional parts/fasteners.
  3. Material innovation. Use of new wood molding techniques can drive all the above.
  4. Functional can be beautiful. As great as it functions, it is also sculpturally beautiful.

R

How come I never see an Eames splint in use or with straps on it? Just an observation…

What are you going to do with it Richard? I hope your legs are OK!

I think the straps were part of the Army field kit or a stock item and not part of the splint itself. Splint was wrapped in paper and then in boxes. Funny thing is actually that those that are wrapped and sealed cost more, but you ruin the value if you open it, so all you can see is a bulky thing wrapped in paper.

I actually had the opportunity to buy one still wrapped as well, but seemed like overkill to have 2.

I’ve got it hanging on the wall as a sculptural piece.

R

That was the only 'in-use" photo I could find on Google too. Strange.

I did see a bunch of images of it wrapped. It reminds me of when I was a kid collecting comic books. I’d buy two every time they had one that came sealed. One to read, one just in case it became valuable.

Well, I’ll say one thing, it’s certainly big; you wouldn’t find it in a field corpman’s kit. Perhaps never seen with “straps” because cravat bandages were everywhere.

Another Eames product manufactured by Evans.

1945

and still around

What happened to the Flair pen?

For the first time in a long time, I bought a 5-pac the other day at Office Max expecting the old stand by. But they don’t feel right; the body is a bit “flexy” and hard to hold onto and the longitudinal grooves on the body, that made the original so positive to control, are gone, replaced by a matte finish. Different plastic compound perhaps; PP instead of ABS?

@LMO:

I can vaguely remember seeing the top kind in stores recently too but can’t be sure. IIRC it had a smaller nib too, like a ultra-fine Sharpie, so maybe they sell both?

Products I love are:

  1. Starck Puma Paris V shoe (in dark gull grey/yellow)
    I owned these once and after 5 years of quite intensive wearing they were done with. Best shoes I ever had, I love the style (yes it’s European but so am I) , the look and feel of the rubber sole, the durability and the ease of slipping in and out of them.
    Unfortunately they’re out of production, if anyone knows where to get a pair, size 10 please :slight_smile: and I will pay a good amount.
    Starck puma.jpg
  2. Lamy Vivo pen
    Quite an iconic design for a pen by Konstantin Grcic. He minimized the amount of parts needed and it’s a very robust and affordable pen. My favorite pen by far. I personally thoroughly dislike Bic pens, especially the ‘crystal’ type shown by someone else here, for the main reason that I tend to bite pens when I’m thinking, so it cracks and the sharp stuff gets into my mouth and I can throw the pen out as well :slight_smile: usually after a few hours already. So it’s metal pens for me.
  3. iPod Nano 2G
    The late great design professor Kees Overbeeke gave it to me as a gift in 2007, I’ve been using it a lot and it still works besides 1.5 rows of pixels having died, and I had to replace the top cover with some Sugru so I can’t lock it any longer. But other than that I love its simplicity, durability, and the tactility of the wheel and button.
    nano-2g.jpg

Nothing like the classics………

Just recently taken up DE (Double Edge) “Safety Razor” shaving (“shaving how your grandfather used to do it”). I’ve now literally got my grandfather razor.

A gold plated Gillete Executive 1958, D-3 Dated TTO (Twist to Open) Adjustable DE Razor. I’m in the process of getting it refurbished by these guys (http://razoremporium.com) with new 24K Gold plating and full mechanical going over, lube, etc… They even repaint the recessed numbers on the adjustment dial!

Can’t wait to use it. Supposed to be one of the best DE razors ever made, was good enough a design to last for almost 50 years (predecessor is the Aristorcract c. 1934) and with refurbishment should last for another 50, easy. Not to mention ~$1/blade, none of that $30/pk/4 Mach5 stuff. 9 step adjustable for more/less aggressive shave, flip open to mechanism to change a blade. And looks awesome.

…of course paired with a Silver Tip Badger brush and some good Prosraso cream. Varying blades to start. Have tried Personna red, Merkur, Wilkonson Sword, and Feathers on Deck.

R

(pics are from a similar ebay listing, but mine should be even better after replating).





Richard: That is beautiful.

What’s with the numbers?

It’s adjustable.

Turning the dial adjusts how much of the blade is exposed and the gap between blade and guard. This gives you a more or less “aggressive” shave. Pretty smart system. Haven’t tried it yet, from what I hear allows you to really customize the shave experience. For example, more aggressive on a face shave with the grain, and less on a neck shave against the grain.

R