Will there ever be a perfect design?

There will never be a perfect design. If there was there would never be a need for anyone to buy anything new. This can be seen with many products and as we first use them we think they are amazing but as time dwindles on we start to see the flaws. This is the case with the 3 gadgets that have taken over the market by storm and have now made us take a second look.  The 3 gadgets I will talk about below are the latest Mac book pro, amazons kindle and the razor 2. Reading these names must have quickly caught your attention if you are indeed a user of any of these products and if you are not experiencing any issues below you can see that the product design we may see as perfect is not flawless.

While not all of us have experiences writing on the latest Mac book pro there are some flaws that were not found in the design and production of the laptop. It was made so that it can be light and thin and taken anywhere. While that is great the lower edges of the medal casing are so sharp that after typing for more than a short period you may start to see deep indentations in your skin. Most users who work long hours on these machines say that the redness and sensitivity may last hours until their arms are back to normal. Something this easy to correct should have been seen when they were testing the laptop out and can now potentially be very costly.

Unlike the Mac book pro above the problem with the kindle has been addressed and corrected already. The very first kindle on the market had buttons that were very sensitive. Without even touching down on the button the device would change the page or start typing. While this design defect was corrected in the newest version, the old kindle is now selling online for a quarter of what it first sold for.

The third gadget we should all be familiar with is the razor 2. Being one of the original  flip phones it definitely came with things that needed to be changed. The purpose of having a touch screen on the outside of the flip phone was supposed to be to quickly get to your contacts or play music. What they did not suspect was that when people sat on their phones or hand it in their pockets it was playing music and calling the contacts that were so readily available.  Although this issue has not been fixed yet it is something that razor lovers want addressed.

As you can see from the examples above, there is no such thing as a perfect design. The designs of these goods should have been tested further before being introduced into the market but have lead the way for new product opportunities. What opportunities do you think can arise from the above?

 

http://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/gadgets/news/4307736

8 thoughts on “Will there ever be a perfect design?

  1. Design and aesthetics will never be perfect I agree. Aspects of business like these change constantly could even be a weekly to monthly basis. Consumer’s desires change because they don’t really know what they want so the products must change to their needs or to anticipate future wants. Additionally, flaws will arise due to a company trying to rush and meet consumer demands as soon as possible. Companies have a choice to come out with a product late that will be nearly flawless and have the possibility a competitor will take the reigns. On the other hand, companies can come out with a product in a rushed fashion and have some flaws some customers won’t even notice. This, is the most common way of doing business. My recommendation would be to wait a few months after release and then purchase.

  2. Your three examples do a fantastic job of highlighting your point. I think further discussion could be focused on how companies can use consumers to test for flaws before they are released. Apple is notorious for eschewing market research and a result is the flaw you mentioned. Also, some flaws of products are simply a difference in consumer tastes (although that doesn’t seem to be the case with your examples).

  3. I love these three examples for products that are constantly being improved. You can definitely apply this to any good product in the market. As consumers, we are looking for the latest and greatest, and as soon as the hype fades, so does our interest for that product. Therefore, there will never be a perfect design. I like the idea from the above comment of how companies can use customers as testers. I think this would eliminate a lot of waste and inefficiency in the design process, resulting in a bigger profit margin.

  4. I like your examples, I definitely agree that the Macbook has the problem of leaving indentations in your arms from the sharp edges. Also, design can always be improved but never complete. These little innovative ideas are what sparked great ideas in that marketplace. It’s kind of like the smartphone industry, Palm and BlackBerry were already established but once the iPhone came out it completely reinvented the smartphone. The Android OS was released to fill the gaps that the iPhone had. Consumers will never be content with design and aesthetics, it will always be tweaked and improved.

  5. Great post. Companies that come out with products that they know will have issues sometimes do it due to the time issue. Apple, for example, has been known for coming out with the iPhone 4 then the 4s to fix the original 4’s problems. Recently, the iPhone 5 came out and now talk about the 5s has already been buzzing around. I believe this company uses this as an advantage but it certainly has some disadvantages. I, for example, don’t want to buy anymore iPhone because I know a new version will be out within the next 6-8 months.

  6. If a design was perfect, then we would never need another device again. We always get the best gadgets of the “time” but as we all know technology changes that, and nothing stays perfect, it could only become classic. Only things that comes to mind i for staying perfect for me is cars. There are some cars that have been made into perfection, but its because of the craft, look, engine, speed, and how it drove. When we refer to gadgets; todays gadget become old news months after buying because of competition. Knowing your consumers and their loyalty plays a huge role as well. Nothing stays perfect, not even us!

  7. I agree with the poster spr13110fateh, If a product was made to be perfect, why on earth would you ever buy another one. Apple is the master of creating products like this. Apple has the technology to blow every other phone out of the water but if they did that, we would never buy another one again. They slowly feed us the technology and when we demand more, they simply add another feature that could have been implemented into the original design. When it comes to design quality companies need to assure that the product will not harm the user. If my laptop hurt my arm while using it, I would get rid of it in a heartbeat. Companies need to focus on R&D before a product even becomes a concept.

  8. It’s really beautiful work. Thanks for this kind of stuff. I mean I am totally impressed. Hope to see more updated work here. I have to say, it is very informative.

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