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E-scooters are all the rage in current times and most automakers are joining this electrification trend. McLaren is homing in on the mindful rage with its all-in-one electric vehicle which is a battery-powered scooter destined to redefine the complexion of personal mobility.

The British company has created a new offshoot christened Lavoie Electric (much like the Porsche Design label) to take up the rising developments of their EV quest – be it the current ones or the ones destined for the future. As Wertheimer, Lavoie cofounder and CEO rightly suggested that they want to create a vehicle that’s “reliable, faultlessly functional, powerful, stylish,”  having state-of-the-art technology.” TO be precise, built in the same way as any car or motorcycle would.

Designer: Lavoie Electric

McLaren is quite serious about its clean energy ambitions for personal mobility space as Richard Clarke, ex-F1 engineer and electric vehicle expert Eliott Wertheimer and Albert Nassar head the ranks at Lavoie. The first-ever product is going to be the Series 1 folding electric scooter which draws inspiration from the suspension system of a world-class race car. That’s complimented well by the chunky tires to further soak the bumps and uneven driving pavements. So, you can pretty well imagine the ride comfort on this electric scooter in real-life situations.

The real USP of this personal commuter lies in its ability to fold in half thanks to the patented Flowfold mechanism to become the size of an easy-to-carry package – and that too with the push of a button. The magnesium-framed scooter weighs only 36 pounds for urban practicality which is a huge bonus. Series 1 e-scooter has a battery capacity enough to go 31 miles on a single charge. The unit can be recharged in a couple of hours – again a big advantage.

Looks are also kept at a premium here with a sleek aerodynamic shape and funky triangular headlight. Safety is also paramount in this design as the innovative lighting spread illuminates the road ahead and the side lights keep other motorists informed about the ride. The integrated display on the Series 1 provides turn-by-turn navigation and the indicator lights are controlled from the handlebars.

Lavoie promises to unfurl more details about the electric scooter in the coming future and for now, hasn’t revealed any details about the availability or the pricing. However, the design is promising and is backed by closely-knit features that are very useful in daily usage.

The post McLaren unveils e-scooter that folds into an easy-to-carry package first appeared on Yanko Design.

Vinyl records have been revived in the past years, but ironically, the younger CDs seem to have fallen out of fashion almost completely. Not only have streaming services and digital collections (legally acquired, of course) made the limited capacity of audio CDs pointless, the physical medium doesn’t offer any distinct audio flavor as old-school records do. That said, CDs continue to be made and sold, and there are people that still hold onto their library of collected albums in this disc format dearly. It’s definitely possible to still listen to them, but most CD players these days come in large boxes that stay at home or peripherals that connect to computers. This minimalist CD player, however, offers the freedom to listen to that kind of music anywhere you go and also gives you the opportunity to flaunt that CD’s cover, just like album art in music apps.

Designer: km5

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Digital music created the concept of album art as a digital counterpart to the CD cover jackets of old. It’s a visual experience that you lose when you listen to CDs unless you have the jacket in front of you all the time. You definitely can’t display it on the device you’re using to play the CD, especially if it’s a portable CD player that covers everything up to create a compact form fit for traveling.

The CP1 CD Player breaks away from the mold with a device that in itself is a work of minimalist art. The plain, boxy shape of the player looks like a picture frame or an enlarged Polaroid-style photo. The middle of the device is transparent, showing the bed where the CD would lie and spin. As it is, it is already quite striking in its bold transparency, but it is also the perfect place to insert the CD’s cover jacket. In essence, the player lets you create the experience of album art in physical form.

More than just a CD player, this device also becomes a piece of decor, especially when you hang it on walls. It has its own built-in rechargeable battery, so you don’t have to worry about ugly wires until it’s time to recharge it. Of course, that same battery lets you carry it anywhere so that you can listen to your favorite CDs anytime you want. There is a 3.5mm jack to plug in headphones and speakers, but you can also enjoy the music through wireless audio equipment thanks to its built-in Bluetooth support.

This photographic CD player doesn’t really add any advanced features for playing this physical medium. In fact, it even takes a small step back by making you manually insert cover jackets to get the same effect as album art on music apps. It does, however, hone in on how appreciating music also comes with other treats for the senses, and it does so in a very elegant way that puts a CD’s art proudly on display.

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The post This sleek CD player lets you display cover art like a picture frame first appeared on Yanko Design.

Tech companies and visionaries would have us believe that the future of computer interaction will all be either touch screens or holograms floating in front of our faces. Our present, however, is still very much tied down to indirect pointing devices like mice and touchpads. These aren’t the only input methods for computers, though, and some prefer a type that traces its origins even farther back than the venerable mouse. There are some people who still swear by trackballs that may now look alien to our eyes because of the convenience and precision they offer. Kensington is definitely still heavily invested in this market, and it just launched a wireless version of its elegant trackball that eerily calls to mind one of pop culture’s less savory AIs.

Designer: Kensington

Although mice became the predominant computer pointing device, it was hardly the first one. To some extent, the older trackball had an advantage in precision and economy of movement since you won’t have to lift and move the base around. It may look and feel weird to the majority of people who have grown around the mouse, but there is no shortage of professionals that find it more ergonomic and more usable. Kensington was actually one of the first to make the trackball popular with its Expert Mouse, and the new SlimBlade Pro tries to keep it ahead of the game.

The SlimBlade is one of the company’s most recent trackballs, and this new “Pro” model cuts off the cord to help keep your work desk neat and tidy. You can still use it with a USB-C cable if that’s what floats your boat, but its selling point is the wireless and Bluetooth connectivity options. It uses a built-in rechargeable battery that’s advertised to last up to four months on a full charge, freeing your mind of worries as much as it frees your desk of an additional cable.

The Kensington SlimBlade Pro definitely looks classy and refined on your desk without the wire. The base’s black surface contrasts nicely with the shiny red ball that serves as the main control of the trackball, almost like a crystal ball or gem that gives you power over your computer. Seen from the top, though, the trackball is almost like a glowing red eye staring at you, reminiscent of HAL 9000’s iconic and notorious appearance.

A trackball may now be the distant minority compared to even touch screens, but its design offers ergonomic benefits over a conventional mouse. The Kensington SlimBlade Pro even takes that to the next level by providing a finger-operated design that can be used by either the left or the right hand. It will definitely require retraining muscle memory, but for the professionals who have gone through that process, it was well worth the growing pains.

The post Kensington SlimBlade Pro is a stylish wireless trackball with HAL 9000 vibes first appeared on Yanko Design.

Colleen Healey Architecture has revamped a home on a radial lot facing Washington DC‘s Logan Circle, retaining historic details while updating the spaces for contemporary living.

The renovated eight-bedroom house fronts Logan Circle, one of the city’s grand rotaries that connects several major avenues, created as part of engineer Pierre L’Enfant’s original masterplan.

Due to its location, the lines of the building’s plan are subtly radial and therefore none of its walls are parallel to one another.

This proved a challenge for local architect Colleen Healey, who had no choice but to embrace this and incorporate the unusual parameters into the design.

“The effects of the radial lot not only informed design decisions, but provided inspiration for rounded references and other geometric subtleties,” said the studio.

Built in 1883, the home’s three-story front section once comprised an entry hall, living and dining room on the ground floor, an owner’s suite and two spare bedrooms on the first floor, and two further bedrooms on the second.

The rear section is set at half levels and features smaller rooms and lower ceiling heights.

“Much of the original elements and bones of the house were in great shape and our clients desired a mix of historic charm and modern upgrades,” said Healey.

The back portion received the most attention during the renovation, remade as the “heart of the house” where a large kitchen features a U-shaped quartzite counter and a garden room faces the patio.

Skylights were created in the roof, allowing light to wash down original brick walls and through gaps between wooden floor joists exposed above the kitchen.

Since the walls are positioned at angles, wood flooring was laid diagonally in this area.

An arched opening between the two sections of the house was extended to 10 feet, allowing a powder room and storage space to be added behind its plaster surfaces.

“A new finished lower level and existing bathrooms are upgraded with a mix of vintage and industrial charm, blending tastes of both clients and using elements original to the house whenever possible,” Healey said.

The upstairs bedrooms and bathrooms retained their dark wood window trims and shutters, baseboards and ornate fireplaces, but are refreshed with bright white walls and contemporary light fixtures.

However, in the primary suite, the fireplace was removed to make way for a widened headboard and art wall.

In the remaining rooms, items belonging to the clients are combined with mid-century furniture and minimal lighting to contrast the historic details.

“The result is a modern sensibility that unites the old and new spaces and creates a striking juxtaposition with the home’s architecture,” the team concluded.

This isn’t the first time that Colleen Healey Architecture has worked with an atypical lot. The studio previously restored and expanded an early 20th-century carriage house in Maryland, on a site shaped like a smoking pipe.

The post Colleen Healey combines old and new for historic DC house renovation appeared first on Dezeen.

I still remember the days, when I would spend hours excruciatingly building little LEGO block structures, only for them to fall apart as my sister bumped into them. I think we all have wonderful memories associated with LEGO blocks from our childhood, as well as the not-so-wonderful ones of stepping on them with our feet and feeling an absurd amount of pain shoot up through our legs. Pretty fun times, right?! But, LEGO is no more considered child’s play! Master builders, artists, and LEGO enthusiasts all over the world are creating impressive LEGO builds that’ll blow your minds away. They are a result of their hours of dedication, attention to detail, hard work, and creativity. They can be considered works of art, and I love scrolling through these creations, admiring them, and feeling an intense surge of satisfaction at their perfection. From the world’s tallest LEGO set which happens to be the Eiffel Tower to an antique lamp made entirely from LEGO blocks – we’ve curated the best of LEGO creations for you to drool over!

1. LEGO JWST Model

Just like the real JWST, this LEGO JWST model folds into a stowed position for launch, features all of the major moving components, and is roughly to scale with a standard LEGO Minifigure”, reads the project description on the LEGO Ideas forum. The replica even comes with the 18 iconic hexagon mirrors that make up the telescope’s light-gathering reflector module. The miniature LEGO replica comes with every single conceivable component of the JWST, including even the secondary hinged mirror and that layered sun shield at the bottom.

2. LEGO Table Football MOC

Watch as football icons Thierry Henry and Marcus Rashford battle it out on this mini LEGO foosball table in the video above… With its DIY design that lets you even customize the players down to their jerseys, hairstyles, and skin colors, the LEGO Table Football MOC may just be the coolest interactive build of all time! The fully operational tabletop game is made up of 2339 LEGO elements, has 5 players on each team, and even comes with its own dugout that also doubles up as the audience while you play a quick game of soccer… ahem, football.

3. The 10307 Eiffel Tower

The world’s biggest landmark has landed in Legoland, and we are super excited. A colossal 10,001-piece LEGO set has been revealed by the LEGO Group, and it stands close to 5 feet tall when all the pieces are in place. By the way, this is the tallest one from the camp, and the second-best when it comes to the brick count. Quite aptly named the 10307 Eiffel Tower, this scaled model will be on the Wishlist of globe trotters who are fascinated by the Iron Lady, and the charm of the famous landmark.

4. The LED Lamp

Rather simply dubbed the LED Lamp, this creation from LEGO builders Castor-Troy and Max Brich models itself on the Tiffany-style stained-glass lamps from the older days. Originally popularized by Louis Comfort Tiffany (a stained-glass artist from the late 19th century), the lamps are characterized by an Art Nouveau-inspired form and a tinted glass shade that would often fill a room with fragments of colored light. While it would seem impossible to us common folk to make such an intricate lamp out of LEGO bricks, Castor-Troy and Brich rather effortlessly put this beautiful piece together in under 800 pieces… an achievement in itself!

5. LEGO 3D-printed Toy Duck

This small plastic red duck is actually a replica of the wooden toy duck that was created by Lego’s founder Ole Kirk Kristiansen. It’s actually not just an “ordinary” pet duck for whatever minifig you’re using. When you roll it on a surface, its beak opens and closes. This is because it uses a selective laser sintering process that allows it to have functional, mechanical elements. This is hopefully the first phase towards Lego being able to create more building elements in smaller numbers and at a more affordable price.

6. The LEGO Flip Clock

There’s something incredibly satisfying about Sariel’s intricately built LEGO MOC (My Own Creation). The panels, frame, gear systems, and even the motor are all LEGO products. Standing 44 cm wide and 15 cm tall (17.4″ by 5.9″), the LEGO Flip Clock features a 10:1 gear ratio for counting down the minutes, and a 12:1 gear ratio for the hours (allowing it to reset every 12 hours). The only visual flaw here (and this is purely subjective) is the fact that the minute numbers aren’t as close together as you’d expect, which means it’s easy to read the time as 08:5:3 rather than 08:53.

7. LEGO Iron Man Hulkbuster

This towering collectible has movie-accurate features including the cockpit inside the red and gold-plated armor, or the information plate showing the techie data. For those who always trip over the little details, there’s the Tony Stark mini figure in the Iron Man suit which adds a unique touch to the LEGO build when stacked up from scratch. To keep the realism going, there are authentic details such as the 3 light-up arc reactor adorning the chest and also present on the hands.

8. The new LEGO Back to the Future Time Machine

The new LEGO Back to the Future Time Machine is improved, detailed, and better than ever. The jazzed-up build features a Flux Capacitor light brick, gull-wing doors, and printed dashboard dates. You can add the different equipment from the different parts of the movie – including the lightning rod from the first film, and the hood-mounted circuit from Part III!

9. LEGO Razor Crest

The first LEGO Star Wars set of its kind in the LEGO Star Wars Ultimate Collector Series, this collectible building set makes a wonderful gift for all Mandalorian fans: young and old. The build is pretty detailed, but when achieved, it allows a fan to reimagine the Din Djarin’s starship on screen in bricks. The 6,186-piece set measures over 72 cm long and it comes with mini figures to inspire role play, which is enhanced by the detailing and intricacies of the build.

10. The LEGO OLED Brick

The idea for the LEGO OLED brick originally came to Brown while he was sourcing tiny displays to make a keyboard with OLED keys that changed based on different scenarios. As soon as the idea to put an OLED display into a LEGO brick came to Brown, he soon pivoted, focusing all his efforts on making it happen. The result is nothing short of fantastic. To save on cost, Brown used a black and white display for this project, although it’s probably a matter of time before miniature color OLEDs make their way into bricks. Sign me up for that future, please.

The post Mind-boggling LEGO creations by masterbuilders to fulfill the playful inner child in you first appeared on Yanko Design.