The iPhone is undoubtedly a revolutionary device. It has changed the way we interface with hand held computers. It's faster than the mac I used in college. Oh, and it's also a phone. I think it is safe to say that when the iPhone was announced there was an audible gasp heard around the world. While gesture-based touch-screens are nothing new, (See the Bill Buxton videos from Alias | Wavefront in the mid 90's. He also specifically addresses the iPhone here.) it was the first time anyone has seen this sort of UI on a handheld device. At least something as elegantly designed. This is the type of gadget you would expect to see in a SciFi movie. You couldn't carry that many albums, movies, etc in your pocket just a few years ago.
The iPhone has forced every other Portable Media device maker to "Up" their product lines. As of yet, nobody has come up with a better product. They are currently on Version 2 of the iPhone (iPhone 3G) with rumors of a new model being released this summer. There are also rumors of a larger version of the iPod Touch. Something more like a touchscreen tablet computer. This makes me think that the iPhone was possibly more about laying the groundwork for something bigger. Not just a bigger computer, but more about selling the software to go on it and other Apple devices.
iTunes has sold music and videos for years and allows users to make purchases from their computer. The introduction of the app store has turned this market on it's head once again. In less than one year, Apple sold more than 1 billion applications through the app store. This is an amazing feat considering the current state of the economy. I don't think it will be long before they are selling full blown software packages through iTunes. Not only for the iPhone, iPod Touch and rumored Tablets but also for Mac desktops and laptops. Functionally, this really isn't that different than buying software from a website. However, having a software repository inside iTunes makes for great cross marketing for Apple and the convenience of one-stop-shopping for consumers.
The next few years will be interesting for Apple. With rumors of Steve Jobs waning health, it's hard to say how product development would be affected. By this point, Apple is probably a fairly well oiled machine. Fully capable of continuing to pump out amazing products in his absence. But I do think that we will be once again astounded by Apple's design team. I also think that we will see software sales for Mac laptops and desktops through iTunes by the end of the year.
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Companies are shaking in their boots right now. Between the unstable economy and the rapidly evolving advertising industry they aren't quite sure what to do. One thing is for certain in this age of tech, companies want to seem current. What better way to say "hey, we are changing with the times" than to refresh your company image. Not a full rebrand. Just a refresh. But when a brand is refreshed too often does it start to become desperate like a clingy girlfriend (or boyfriend) who can't take the hint that no matter what they do you still just want to be friends?
This is a design I did for a series of modular iPhone and iPod Touch accessories. I posted this on ipodtouchfans.com and got a lot of interest. Soon after I removed the images and began seeking a patent. Unfortunately I ran out of funds and time to finish it. The German version of Mac|Life published the images in their February, 2008 issue. I never got around to doing illustrations to show all the modules. But they would have included speakers, a keyboard, gaming controls and a higher quality camera among other things. Check out the gallery below to see the progression of the product. Or view the entire set on Flickr here.
Well we got our order of business cards today and they look great! Aside from some minor trim issues I'm pretty pleased. They are made of a synthetic recyclable material, that is water-resistant and virtually tear-proof. We ordered the profile-cards from Zazzle.com because they were based in the U.S. and had similar mini-cards to Moo.com. Of course, the day after I ordered these I get an email from Moo asking if we want to beta test the new U.S. store. Well, we will certainly give them a try on our next order of cards.
When I tell someone the name of our company I either get a blank stare or silence on the other end of the phone. It's almost always followed by the other person asking, "Heavy Giant?". You see, I have this theory about company names. If the name forces the viewer to visualize it then they will remember it. I used to have a company named whiteOrangedesign. I also came up with the name for PinkKoiFish.com. With HEAVYGIANT, someone might visualize a giant on a scale or maybe a giant crushing cars. So why "HEAVYGIANT"? It works on many levels.