Hasta La Ideas

It is rocket science and it is earthshattering and YES it is innovative engineering. Ha! I have always wanted to say these lines to the skeptics out there who tend to crush form and function kinda ideas. For the Dash7 Pocket-sized Portable Wireless Soundbar by Soundmatters it took the creative genius of nuclear physics, astronomy, physical chemistry graduate and NASA Project Manager – Dr. Godehard Guenther! Bottomline: with the Dash7 Soundbar, you are assured superior sound quality teamed with Good Design.

I had a chance to talk with Dr. Guenther about his passion for technology, design and the Dash7, and this is what he had to say…

Me: You are often called a Renaissance man, can you elaborate why?

Dr. G: Well I do have many passions – music, problem solving, art, cooking, sailing, piano, photography and I guess I’m a bit unusual in that my training, experiences and passions drive me to develop some rather unique product solutions.

Me: We read your tag line on Soundmatters: Simply. Better. Can simple be better?

Dr. G: Our products are typically pretty sophisticated on the inside, as far as circuitry but we strive to make them as simple as possible to use and produce.

Me: Can you tell us about how Soundmatters came about?

Dr. G: The products we did at my previous companies, a/d/s/ and Braun, looked and sounded wonderful but were targeted to the affluent audiophile. I felt that with some of my patents, there was an opportunity to shrink the size and lower the cost of great sounding speakers – especially in the personal/multi-media space, where poor quality audio was the norm. So I started up Soundmatters, initially strictly as an R+D firm, then adding our own brand to pioneer our new designs in the market.

Me: Your education background is very radically different from a typical Industrial Designer, how has that helped you with the processes in your company?

Dr. G: Well I don’t really consider myself an Industrial Designer… just an engineer with what I hope is a strong sensitivity to what makes a product enjoyable to use. We have maintained strong relationships with a number of great traditionally trained Industrial Designers, whom we work with on our projects.

Me: What makes Soundmatters different from the other products out there in the market?

Dr. G: The patented technologies for our acoustic drivers, and the years of experience in utilizing them in a synergistic manner with state-of-the-art electronics and enclosure materials to create customer friendly audio systems sounding much, much better and larger than other similarly sized products.

Soundmatters didn’t invent the Bluetooth speaker, just the ones that sound good.

The Dash7 combines the most advanced highest performance version of Soundmatters legendary Twoofers (tweeters that also woof). Designed to be pancake-flat, these ultra power neodymium drivers provide a uniquely wide frequency range. The patented rechargeable BassBattery not only delivers up to 12 hours of playback but augments the powered Twoofers by ingeniously doubling as a passive bass woofer.

Specs:

• At just 3/4″ height and 7.1 oz., Dash7 goes anywhere – using patented state-of-the-art audio technology to turn your tablet, phone or laptop into a personal amphitheater
• With extended Bluetooth range, Dash7 streams stereo music/movie soundtracks, also providing clear speakerphone/conference call capability with it’s built-in echo/noise canceling microphone
• Recharges via USB or included high-power international charger with US/EU/AU/UK adapters

Designer: Soundmatters [ Buy it here ]

–
Yanko Design
Timeless Designs – Explore wonderful concepts from around the world!
Shop CKIE – We are more than just concepts. See what’s hot at the CKIE store by Yanko Design!
(Rocket Science and Dash was originally posted on Yanko Design)

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They say that it’s more than a speaker, handset or speakerphone, and if you ask me honestly then the Monocle is a radicle style statement tech. I love the quirky fact that daisy-chain up to 10 Monocles to create the best
listening experience. As a smartphone companion, I think this is a cool design that promises form and function.

Designer: Native Union

–
Yanko Design
Timeless Designs – Explore wonderful concepts from around the world!
Shop CKIE – We are more than just concepts. See what’s hot at the CKIE store by Yanko Design!
(Single Speaker Asset was originally posted on Yanko Design)

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3. Cut from a Single Piece of Wood

The latest version of this app by creative collective The Morpholio Project enables images in a digital portfolio to be annotated and drawn on, as if sketching on a sheet of tracing paper laid over the top.

The Morpholio Project is a collective of architects and designers founded in 2011, which develops tools that artists, architects, designers, photographers or anyone involved in creative business can use to present, update and share their digital portfolio.

Its Trace app was originally launched in September 2012 and is designed to allow sketches to be executed on top of existing drawings, photos or custom templates using a stylus and a mobile device, such as a tablet. Updated images can then be shared with friends or colleagues using Morpholio’s online platform.

Trace 2.0 provides new functions including layers like pages of tracing paper that users can flick back and forth between, making changes where required.

“The goal of the app was to embrace and enhance the fast paced and messy process of idea building, bringing back hand drawing to a culture no longer beholden to the desktop computer,” explained Morpholio co-creator Anna Kenoff.

“The first word we thought of with Trace 2.0 was workflow,” added co-creator Toru Hasegawa. “Drawing in layers was already linking workflow and drawing in interesting ways, but 2.0 unlocks the potential for you to dive back into your drawing’s history for rediscovery.”

Once the user has sketched something they can choose to apply colour from a series of palettes dedicated to specific genres. The automotive design palette, for example, features shades commonly used for brake lights or indicators, while fashion designers can select from various options suitable for skin tones.

They can also quickly add a filter to their artwork, creating effects such as cross-hatching or pixellation to give images greater interest or clarity.

“Software design is not simply about presenting the best digital version of an analog process, it should also create an opportunity for something that was not previously possible,” explained co-creator Mark Collins. “The filters fuse drawing and technology in a way that seeks a bit of serendipity, enhanced beauty, and even whimsy in the creative process.”

“Drawing isn’t just drawing anymore – it is discovery,” Collins added. “This hybrid of drawing and rendering opens up a vital pathway to inspiration unleashing enormous potential on the image driven world.”

Morpholio’s suite of apps also includes the original Morpholio portfolio app, which allows users to upload, organise, alter and share images of their work, as well as perform tasks like creating business cards and send notes by email.

Here are some more details about Trace 2.0:

Morpholio Launches Trace 2.0

Trace 2.0 Introduces New Tools for the Creative World

The Morpholio Project announces the launch of Trace 2.0. Originally released in September of 2012, Trace explores the role of technology in the conceptual phase of the creative process through a digital version of “canary yellow” trace paper. Sketching, is now made easier, faster and more intuitive with Trace, allowing users to instantly draw on top of imported images or background templates, and layer comments or ideas to generate immediate, intelligent, and beautiful drawings that are easy to circulate.

“The goal of the app was to embrace and enhance the fast paced and messy process of idea building, bringing back hand drawing to a culture no longer beholden to the desktop computer.” says Co-Creator Anna Kenoff. Design process works iteratively, as our thoughts build and expand upon one another. Trace 2.0 attempts to put this process in hyper drive with the introduction of three game changing tools for the creative world.

Sketch + Filter

Trace 2.0 reimagines the drawing process, placing thought before beauty. It now offers 12 vibrant filters such as ink, marker, and perforation that allow a simple hand drawn sketch or photo to take on new life. “Similar to the revolution in digital photography that allowed us to select the film after the photo was taken; Trace 2.0 repositions the medium within the drawing process.” says Kenoff. This allows the priority to remain on the thought and idea. Once you have developed a sketch, Trace filters can add beauty, clarity, or appeal, making your idea more powerful. By hybridizing drawing and rendering, the process still embodies the rapid, unencumbered evolution of creative thinking that sketching by hand is best for.

“Software design is not simply about presenting the best digital version of an analog process. It should also create an opportunity for something that was not previously possible. The filters fuse drawing and technology in a way that seeks a bit of serendipity, enhanced beauty, and even whimsy in the creative process.” says Co-creator Mark Collins. “Drawing isn’t just drawing anymore – it is discovery. This hybrid of drawing and rendering opens up a vital pathway to inspiration unleashing enormous potential on the image driven world.”

Your Ideas…in Color

What is the role of color in the design process? How does color establish meaning, hierarchy or direction? Morpholio teamed up with acclaimed graphic designer Glenn Cummings of MTWTF as well as multiple representatives from a diverse group of disciplines to research process and color. The result is a series of thoughtful color palettes curated for both beauty and intelligence.

These sophisticated palettes remove color selection agony from the creative process and allow a user to assemble a sketch with a choice of predefined sets of colors that work beautifully together. Examples include automotive design palettes that feature reds and oranges as “break lights on and off,” photography palettes that bring back the classically bright rainbow of “grease pens”, landscape versus site planning palettes, fashion templates that distinguish warm, cool, skin and accent tones, and many more.

Layers: Past, Present & Future

In the design process going in reverse can be as valuable as going forward. We often find that going back to the core of an idea is essential, thus that moment must be preserved. In Trace 2.0 users can now go back and forth between all layers of a sketch and add, edit or remove information as necessary.

Editing and comparison are now possible as you literally peel through iterations of a drawing. “The first word we thought of with Trace 2.0 was “workflow.” Drawing in layers was already linking workflow and drawing in interesting ways, but 2.0 unlocks the potential for you to dive back into your drawing’s history for rediscovery.” says Co-creator Toru Hasegawa.

Sketch Futures

Trace 2.0 seeks to be the unique sketch utility that allows you to easily develop ideas in layers, communicate via drawing markup, and connect fluently with your global network. Designed to be beautifully simple, clean and familiar, it seeks to disinhibit through freedom and flexibility.

The Morpholio team is made up of architects and designers with the hope of building serious tools for a creative world. Trace is part of the Morpholio suite of apps, which also includes Morpholio, for building and sharing your portfolio, Morpholio Exhibit, for kiosk display, and Morpholio Board which is currently in beta for layout and collage.

The post Digital portfolio app features layers
that behave like tracing paper appeared first on Dezeen.

Ten years ago it was tough finding Wi-Fi, even here in NYC. But now it emanates from every Starbucks, McDonalds and Dunkin Donuts, not to mention many of our homes and public spaces like Bryant Park. No one can deny the convenience of Wi-Fi. But as it continues to proliferate, a group of five ninth-grade females in Denmark have conducted a study that reveals a potential downside.

The girls didn’t set out to study Wi-Fi specifically; what prompted the study was that the students reported they occasionally had trouble sleeping, and concentrating the next day, if they slept with their cell phones next to their beds. They wondered if their phones’ radiation was mucking with their bodies, but their school lacked the equipment to measure such things. So instead they substituted wireless routers for cell phones (presumably because they sit in a fixed position) and plants for human bodies, placing one next to the other for 12 days. As described by Canada’s Global Research website,

The students placed six trays filled with Lepidium sativum, a type of garden cress into a room without radiation, and six trays of the seeds into another room next to two routers that according to the girls calculations, emitted about the same type of radiation as an ordinary cellphone.

What they observed over the next 12 days was disturbing: The seedlings in the non-Wi-Fi room grew normally, whereas the ones in the Wi-Fi room “turned brown and died.”

(more…)

Topshop a une nouvelle fois fait appel au Studio Neon pour imaginer la vitrine présentée pour les fêtes de fin d’année à la boutique d’Oxford Circus à Londres. Proposant une installation de plus de 150 pétales en mouvement, cette création du plus bel effet appelée Bloom est à découvrir en vidéo dans la suite.