Having designed everything from jetpacks to furniture and clothing to restaurant interiors prior to joining Apple’s industrial design team, industrial designer Marc Newson had one more product to get off his chest before signing up for the Cupertino all-star team: a modern 21st century shotgun for Beretta. Revealed at an event in London last night…
After much speculation and internet chatter, it has been confirmed by Apple that “yes”, their phones do bend. While they have said that only nine cases have been reported, there’s no saying exactly what Apple’s definition of ‘reported’ is nor why the phones are actually bending. Apple opened up their ‘iPhone Torture Lab’ to various…
Already the creator of one of the most successfully funded projects ever on Kickstarter—the Elevation Dock—Portland, Oregon-based industrial designer Casey Hopkins is pushing to create an even more seamless workspace environment with his new Elevation Stand Kickstarter campaign. With 38 days left in his campaign, the Elevation Stand has already more than tripled it’s $25,000…
When it comes to the iPhone, we have seen some crazy things happen in the past. Right from technology blog Gizmodo daring to toe the line with the mighty Steve Jobs, to the latest rumors on the iPhone 6. Predictably, the industry is abuzz with speculations and as reliable sources from MacRumor and MacFan spill…
Those who thought wearable technology will be limited to watches and glasses are in for a big surprise. Promising to make you the next Harry Potter of our generation, the Nod is a ring that touted as the most advanced gesture control ring. The technology behind it is to promote an interactive experience with your…
It almost seems as if mobile device screens will crack under any circumstances, from the lightest tap to accidentally stepping on the device. This notion is inherently true for iPhone users who, according to Square Trade, spend roughly $1-billion a year to fix cracked screens as well as other ailments such as water damage. Companies…
Having been criticized about their contribution to e-waste in the past, Apple has been working tirelessly to reverse their image and set themselves more in line with what is the environmental equivalent of their design ethos. Released by Apple in honor of Earth Day today, ‘Better’ aims to show Apple’s commitment to putting the Cradle…
The 2014 Geneva Autoshow is in full swing this week and one of the most hyped announcements is that of Apple integrating their user experience into a variety of cars starting later this year called CarPlay. So far we’ve only seen the UE in pictures, but as part of the announcement for their new XC90…
Have you ever fought with gravity in order to get your iphone into a hands-free position where you watch the screen and use your hands for more important tasks like cracking lobster shells or defusing bombs? Now you can! with Breffo’s new Gumstick smartphone stand you can support any smartphone on the market with a…
For those who watched Apple’s Developer Conference back in June, you might have remembered Apple CEO Tim Cook inviting out a CEO of a new toy car company that utilized Apple’s iOS devices as a ‘steering wheel’ of sorts to drive physical cars. For those who might not have seen the keynote presentation, these aren’t…
As the Cupertino City Council gets ready to cast their final votes for letting Apple build their ‘Spaceship’ headquarters that was the subject of Steve Jobs’ final public speaking appearance shortly before his death, the rest of us get to see a glimpse at what the initial rendered images couldn’t completely convey: the sheer massiveness…
Founded in 2006 by Bono and Bobby Shriver to engage the private sector in raising both awareness and funds to help eliminate global diseases such as AIDS, (RED) has been a popular fundraising model that allows companies to offer unique products within their own brand that also help support the initiative. It would take a…
It’s no secret that ex-Apple designer Tony Fadell has found great success in his revolutionary Nest Thermostat design. The device has simplified the room temperature adjustment experience for thousands—and was one of the first smart home products that showed us a glimpse into the future of home living when it first came out. Riding on…
While the iPhone 5S shares many similarities as the iPhone 5 (as expected), the iPhone 5C is an entirely different manufacturing ballgame. In the announcement keynote, Apple’s VP of Design Jony Ive confidently noted that the iPhone 5C is ‘unapologetically plastic’. Those two simple words are still burned into my brain over a week later…
BMW just announced that their new i3 electric car was heavily inspired by the latest in tablet and smartphone designs. Given that the automotive industry is usually on the forefront of trends that trickle down into other facets of design, does this mean that the frosted overlays, thin typeface (Helvetica Neue), flat graphics, and gradients…
It’s been exactly a week since the much-anticipated release of the Jony Ive-designed iOS 7 was revealed at Apple’s WWDC in San Francisco, and already there is a Tumblr parody on par with the popular Hipster Branding Tumblr. I vividly remember back in design school when fellow industrial design students ‘branded’ their projects with mixed…
Back in early 2012, Nike introduced FuelBand to rave reviews and a wide spectrum of users…those who actually use it and those who consider it a fashion accessory. Around that same time, Google had announced the Glass Project — which resulted in what we are seeing today with the Google Glass…effectively creating the Wearable Technology…
It’s been a topic of speculation as of late and while Apple is known for having multiple patents and not doing anything with them, this one appears to be different. The timing couldn’t be any more perfect for stirring the pot of next-gen smart device competition.
Apple’s recent Q1 Earnings report showed two things: First, iPhone and iPad sales are up (surprise!), while overall Mac sales are down. Second, the company saw record sales. The posted revenue of US$54.4 billion and net profit of US$13.1 billion shows that revenue rose 17.7 percent from last year’s Q1 performance. “No technology company has…
While the world may be coming off the latest caffeine buzz surrounding the iPhone 5, something even bigger and more important just happened: Jony Ive is now king of hardware AND software design at Apple. In a press release issued Monday, Apple announced ‘Changes to Increase Collaboration Across Hardware, Software & Services’. Is this finally…
Kickstarter is awash with iPhone, iPad and other Apple paraphernalia – it speaks the website’s yuppie creators and contributors – not that it’s a bad thing (Apple user here). After going through the website to make a long-overdue edition of Solidsmack’s ‘Wisdom of the Crowd’, I discovered that many of the best, most funded projects…
Steve Jobs – (1955-2011) 1985. An awesome year. Goonies, Cherry Coke and my Dad brought home our first computer. It was a Mac. I play my first computer game (Dark Castle) where, instead of punching each other, my lil’ brother and I would sit down and play it together – I on the keyboard, he…
Apple doesn’t let its biggest seller just hang out with any ol’ accessory, it makes them go through the full father-cleaning-his-shotgun interview before a device can woo the heart of iOS and its customer base. So perhaps it was in response to the Android Accessory Development Kit (ADK) announced at Google IO that Apple decided…
In the amazing world of all things oozing Apple, a ripe, pasty white “industry-leading offer” was announced during today’s WWDC. Apple is launching iTunes Match, a service that, get this…matches your music library with that of iTunes, and makes it all available online via their new iCloud mass storage service. The cost? $24.99 per year…
Well, blow my everloving mind out of the water. You won’t see the PR till Tuesday, but the New York Times just scooped the whole CAD industry on the news. AutoCAD for Apple Mac is here. Not only that, the scaled down version, AutoCAD WS, is here for the iPhone and the iPad. We’ve not…
Do you see those three words? Cloud, Mac, and Sketch? The triumvirate of contemporary CAD computing, those are by golly, and if you’re CAD slappin’ 3D code pro or have a little marketing and management panache, SolidWorks is hiring. What’s more interesting, and also no big surprise, is what job titles these lie under. There’s…
If your nerves, family or free-time have been affected by the frenzy of the shiny new iPad from Apple, you’re not alone. In less than a month Apple sold over 1 million of the 10″ touch-screen tablets. However, only a small percent of those people are obsessed with getting a 3D model of the iPad…
Oh yes, it’s here party people. Apple released their iPad on Saturday, so I picked one up to toss around and see if it stacks up to all the hype. Personally, it tastes awful, but when you hit the little button on the front the screen lights up and makes you wonder if it will…
What if you could stick suction cups on your oculars and move models around on the screen with your eyeballs? Yeah, and, what if you could stick suction cups on your chest, hands, neck and elbows to do the same thing? Oh yeah. Well, what if… you didn’t need suction cups… BOO.YAH. We’ve talked about…
I’m sure of it. Your ankles are swelling with excitiment at the thought. SolidWorks on a Mac? Is this another post teasing of the possibility? Totally. Yes. But this time, you get to find out a little more about what’s going on in the mind of SolidWorks. Particularly, it’s CEO, Jeff Ray, courtesy of a…