In the last entry we looked at the Talon gesture control ring, whose public reception will, we feel, be hamstrung by poor presentation. In contrast we think another smart ring we saw at the World’s Fair Nano in San Francisco, called the Motiv Ring, is going to do well for both the value it offers to end users and the clear way the company presents its product; the company’s approach ought be studied by any designer hoping to debut a new product on the market.

What is it?

The titanium Motiv Ring is a fitness, heart rate and sleep tracker ideal for those who’d like to run/swim/spin/do yoga/work out without having to bring their phone along on an armband or wear a smartwatch. The Motiv contains both sensors and two days’ worth of memory, allowing you to leave your device in the locker while you get your sweat on; once the Motiv is back in proximity with your phone, it automatically syncs the data it’s stored via Bluetooth. It’s also meant to be worn overnight as a sleep tracker.

What does it do?

Motiv’s development team has also done a far better job than Talon’s in presenting what the product does and how, precisely, it would fit into your life. In fact, this might be one of the best presentations of a new product we’ve ever seen. First off, the teaser video, so that potential customers can quickly decide whether they’re even interested in the first place:

How do I actually interact with it?

The ring is presented in context along with some snippets of its attendant apps. If the viewer is interested enough to learn more, a better look at the app is presented in short, easy-to-digest snippets. This demonstrates the Activity Detail feature:

That shows you precisely what data is captured and presented to you, and how you’d interact with it. The following vid shows the Sleep Detail feature:

How does it work?

Here’s an explanation of how the company tracks active minutes, as opposed to “empty steps:”

Sizing

Okay, so up to this point, everything looks fine and dandy; but how would you actually get started? First off it’s a ring, and all of us have differently-sized fingers, so how does that work?

The first thing the company does is send customers a sizing kit and have you try the following:

Set-Up

Once your appropriately-sized ring has been delivered, this is how you set the thing up–and note the very clever design of the charger:

I say the design of the charger is clever because being gravity-based, there’s no doubt as to whether your ring has formed a good connection. If the magnets were not engaged, the ring would fall off. Smart.

The Design Approach

That the company has taken all of these steps to present their information is a testament both to their thoroughness, and the fact that they “get it” when it comes to explaining a new and unfamiliar product. Unsurprisingly the design of the ring itself started with a user-focused approach, as explained here by Motiv co-founder Curt von Badinski; he points out that he started with the UX and forced the technology to fit it, rather than the other way around:

The Customer Service

And, if this video is any indication, the company’s customer service appears to go above and beyond:

The Takeaway

Motiv’s approach really should serve as a lesson to designers seeking to launch a new product. It’s not enough to just have a good idea and overcome the physical challenges of getting it manufactured; you need a team of people working together to think through every aspect of the user experience, from mulling over whether they want to buy it or not, to how they’ll first engage with it, then how they’ll interact with it on a daily basis. My hat’s off to the guys and gals who made this product happen.

One of Italy’s oldest and most prestigious mills, Loro Piana’s not one to bask in their history. Rather, they continue innovate with technologies like the story system wool that’s now made its way to high-top sneakers. Water-repellant but breathable……

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Artist Sterling Ruby has designed the paint-splashed interiors of Calvin Klein‘s new Paris headquarters.

Located in the city’s seventh arrondissement, the Paris HQ will largely be used to display Calvin Klein’s seasonal runway collections.

Chief creative officer Raf Simons tasked artist and longtime collaborator Ruby with the space’s design, asking that he create an “immersive floor-to-ceiling environment”. Structural decisions were charged to US practice Architecture Research Office.

Ruby has already transformed a handful of spaces for Calvin Klein, including their flagship store on New York’s Madison Avenue where he introduced vivid yellow scaffolding and a host of Americana-themed art pieces.

The 1,400 square-metre space is entered via a “monochromatic yet rich” reception area finished with royal blue upholstered walls and fabric cushions.

A similar-hue curtain draws back to reveal the main room, which is centred around a dramatic mobile hanging composed of pompoms, drooping lengths of fringe, as well as shiny elements like chrome buckets and engine blocks.

Pale grey floors and peripheral walls act as a neutral backdrop for a red and blue splattered canvas that covers the columns, balustrade and ceiling of the mezzanine level.

Ruby – who often employs paint splashes in his own works – wanted the patterned surfaces to appear as a “bold monolith” within the space.

Thin, teardrop-shaped sculptures have also been dotted throughout.

Upstairs, deep blue carpets contrast against chunky, geometric display stands that have been completed in white, green, and bright yellow. The building’s vaulted ceiling that dates back to the 1880s has also been preserved.

Last year Raf Simons teamed up with renowned graphic designer Peter Saville to redesign Calvin Klein’s iconic brand logo, changing the founder’s name to all capital letters to create a subtle but recognisable difference.

Photography is by Elizabeth Felicella.

The post Calvin Klein opens Paris HQ with interiors created by Ruby Sterling appeared first on Dezeen.

Philips Lighting, the world’s largest lighting company, has announced its move into the emerging technology of LiFi – LEDs that can transmit broadband.

The Dutch lighting giant has become the first major manufacturer to offer the new technology, which allows light waves to be used to transmit broadband from LEDs to computers and tablets.

“As the lighting company for the Internet of Things, Philips Lighting is the first global lighting company to offer LiFi-enabled luminaires from its existing office lighting portfolio,” said a statement from the company.

LiFi is a way of transmitting data that using light waves instead of the radio waves used by Wi-Fi. The technology was developed at the University of Edinburgh and introduced to the world by Professor Harald Haas in a TED Talk in 2011.

The first commercial LiFi system was unveiled in 2014, but the technology has yet to move into the mainstream.

LiFi has “enormous potential”

The technology will reportedly allow data to be transferred at rates up to 100 times faster than Wi-Fi, as the light spectrum is 10,000 times larger than the spectrum used for radio waves.

“LiFi has enormous potential for today’s digital age and, as the world’s leading lighting company, we are proud to pioneer new and innovative services for our customers,” said Olivia Qiu, chief innovation officer at Philips Lighting.

“While radio frequencies are becoming congested, the visible light spectrum is an untapped resource with a large bandwidth suitable for the stable simultaneous connection of a vast array of Internet of Things devices,” she added.

Philips Lighting’s LiFi-enabled LEDs can transmit data at rates of 30 megabytes per second between the LEDs and a LiFi-enabled dongle attached to a computer of tablet.

“Each luminaire is equipped with a built-in modem that modulates the light at speeds imperceptible to the human eye,” said the statement from Philips Lighting. “The light is detected by a LiFi USB key/dongle plugged into the socket of a laptop or tablet. The LiFi USB dongle returns data to the luminaire through an infrared link.

Trial taking place in French office 

Philips Lighting’s LiFi-enabled LEDs are currently being installed in real-estate company Icade‘s office in La Defense, Paris.

Emmanuelle Baboulin, head of the company’s commercial property investment division said: “LiFi has the potential to be a real game changer in offices. As the leader in our market we wanted to explore the possibilities of this technology for existing and future clients.”

“We plan to showcase the technology in our smart office in La Defense, so aside from stable connectivity, light quality is crucial to us,” he added.

Philips Lighting has been pushing the potential of LEDs for some time. The company recently installed a system of LED lights at an office in Prague, which can give people a caffeine-like energy boost.

The post Philips Lighting announces move into LiFi appeared first on Dezeen.

We are delighted to have Leo Babauta of Zen Habits as a guest columnist today. Please give him a warm welcome and check out his awe-inspiring website afterward.

How minimalist is your workspace? An uncluttered workspace is a thing of beauty.

I write a lot about minimalism on Zen Habits, including guides to creating a minimalist home, minimalist housework, and beating clutter entropy.

On Unclutterer, my favorite feature is the Workspace of the Week, with its cool setups.

Today, I thought I’d share my pretty minimalist workspace, and share some thoughts on how to go about creating one of your own.

What’s a minimalist workspace?

That question will have different answers for each person. There can be no single definition. The ultimate minimalist workspace, I think, would be to have no desk or papers or computer or anything of the kind — just yourself. You’d think, and talk, and maybe sit on the floor.
Of course, that won’t work for most of us, so it’s more useful to look at our minimum requirements, and focus on creating a workspace that addresses these essentials and nothing more.

So the first step is for you to consider your requirements for working, and what’s essential to your workflow. If possible, streamline and simplify that workflow and those requirements. Then, once you’ve got that down to a minimum, see what the minimum setup would be for those essentials and your workflow. Eliminate everything unnecessary.

What are your requirements?

It’s interesting to note that what you think your requirements are might not be the minimum. They might just be what you’re used to doing.

Taking myself as an example: I used to work with tons of paper, files, sticky notes, and all the usual office tools (pens, pencils, notebooks, pads, stapler, hole puncher, whiteout, calendar, personal organizer, etc.). But then I realized that it’s possible to work without paper, and I’ve eliminated the need for all that stuff. In fact, as I’ve eliminated paper, I’ve eliminated the need for drawers.

Now, you might not have that luxury, and I’m not saying you need to go that extreme. Your needs may be different than mine — but the point is to see if it’s possible to change the way you work, so that you still get the essentials done, without all the same requirements. It’s worth some thought at least — and if you make changes, as I did, you might find that changing things in small increments is better. I didn’t do away with paper altogether. I did it in steps, eliminating different needs for paper one at a time.

My Minimalist Setup

Basically, I have an iMac and a table. No need for papers, files, drawers, other tools.

I work from home these days, and I do everything online. I do have a phone (elsewhere in my house, so it doesn’t disturb me) and a cell phone (also elsewhere), but I don’t have a PDA, an iPod, a printer (though my wife has ordered one for her needs), a scanner, a fax machine, or anything like that. I don’t print anything and I don’t use fax (an outdated technology).

On my computer, I mostly just use Firefox, as I do nearly everything online. I also use text programs for writing (TextEdit, WriteRoom mostly) and a couple other utilities such as CyberDuck for uploading files, Quicksilver for everything, and GIMP for photo editing.

All my organizing needs are taken care of on the computer: Address Book, Gmail, text files for to-do lists and errands and ideas and projects, Gcal for scheduling.

Tips for Creating Your Own Minimalist Workspace

You won’t need to have my setup, but once you’ve determined your minimum needs, here are some tips for making your workspace as minimalist as possible. Not all tips will work for you, so pick and choose which ones will work best for your workflow.

1. Have one inbox. If paper is a part of your life, keep an inbox tray on top of your desk and make sure ALL papers, including phone messages and sticky notes, go into this tray. You might have to train your co-workers if they’re not already used to this. Don’t leave papers scattered all over your desk, unless you’re actually working on them at this moment. You might also have a “working file” folder for papers you’re working on but not at this moment, but put this working file in a drawer, so that it’s out of the way. Clear out your inbox each day — nothing should go back in there after you process them. It’s not a storage bin, but an inbox. Read more on clearing your inbox.
2. Clear your desktop. Aside from your computer, your inbox tray, your phone, and maybe a nice photo of a loved one, there should be nothing on top of your desk. No papers (again, unless you’re working on them), no notes, no stapler or pens or other junk. Clear as much of it off as humanly possible. If you want to include a couple other essentials, you should, but be sure they absolutely must be there. Keep it as clear as possible, as a clear desk is a relaxing workspace.
3. Get rid of knick-knacks. This goes with the above item, but many people don’t even think about all the little trinkets they have on top of their desk. They’re usually unnecessary. Toss ’em!
4. Clear the walls. Many people have all kinds of stuff posted on their walls. It creates visual clutter. Get them off your walls. If it’s a reference guide, put it on your computer and set up a hotkey so you can call the guide up with a keystroke when needed.
5. Clear your computer desktop. Many people also have tons of icons on their computer desktop. It’s the same principle as a real desktop — clear it of everything unnecessary, so you can have a nice simple workspace. Keeping icons on your desktop is usually inefficient. It’s hard to find them among a jumble of files. If they’re necessary to open many times a day, file them away and use a hotkey to call them up. Quicksilver for Mac or Autohotkey for Windows are my favorite programs for this.
6. Re-examine your paper needs. I started doing this a little over a year ago, and one by one, I realized I could eliminate my different needs for paper. I stopped printing stuff out to read (duh!) and just kept it on the computer. Yeah, that’s obvious. I also stopped keeping paper copies of files I had on the computer, as they just took up more space. Also fairly obvious, perhaps. I also asked people to stop faxing me stuff, and to email it instead. That should be obvious, but I think a lot of people ignore this step. I also asked people to stop sending me paper memos, and use email instead. Stop circulating documents by paper. I stopped bills and notices coming in by paper that I could get online. I stopped catalogs and newsletters coming in by mail. I still get some mail, but for the most part I toss it. You might not be able to eliminate paper, but you can probably reduce it.
7. Eliminate unnecessary tools. Think about each tool you have in your desk, in your work area, and even in your office. Do you need a stapler and hole puncher? Do you need all those pens? Do you really need a fax machine? Or a scanner? You might not have control over all these types of tools, but if you do, eliminate the ones you don’t really need, maybe one at a time.
8. Simplify your filing. As mentioned above, it’s unnecessary to keep paper copies of files you have on your computer or can access online. Back stuff up online if you’re worried about losing them. Having stuff digitally makes them searchable, which is much better than filing. Just archive, and search when necessary. If you do need paper files, keep them alphabetically and file immediately, so that you don’t have a huge “to be filed” pile. Once every few months, weed out unnecessary files.
9. Go through each drawer. One drawer at a time, take out all the contents and eliminate everything you don’t need. It’s much nicer to use drawers if you can open them and see order. Have a designated spot for each item and make sure to put those items back in that spot immediately, every time.
10. Use a minimalisk desk. As mentioned above, I just use a table, as I don’t need drawers. While you might not want to go to that extreme, you can find desks without too many drawers or contraptions or designs. Simple as possible is best.
11. Clear the floor. There should be nothing on your floor but your desk and chair. No files, no boxes. Keep it clear!

This post has been updated since its original publication in 2008.

Post written by Erin Doland