DM_2020

Apple Pencil

An addition to the ever-evolving apple ecosystem, the apple pencil is a sleek writing implement to be used with Apple iPads. As with most new Apple products, the pencil benefits from the high-culture

Texting Gloves

As the technological capabilities of our devices grow so too does the list of places and situations in which we call upon them for assistance. Texting gloves almost seem like an improvement on the hum

Mechanical Pencil

A pencil, but better. What do we like about pencils? They create easily erasable marks… that is pretty much it…. yet we put up with a litany of cons (breakable, constantly need to be resharpened, mark

my.harvard Course Search

With every new semester comes the renewed dread of having to use my.harvard to search for classes. It is slow, often illogical, and aesthetically clunky. For such a basic need of students I would expe

Tobacco Fig Scented Candle

The immediately salient pleasure of this candle is the physio-pleasure experienced by the soothing aroma this candle diffuses. It makes me feel cozy and warm. On deeper reflection I realise that this

Turbo Tax

Turbo Tax’s success is largely due to the psycho-pleasure derived from the ease of doing one’s tax returns via the straightforward online interface; especially when compared to the manual alternative.

Kendall Square Cinema

The movie theatre is an interesting case study. They are increasingly losing business as online streaming services increase their domination of the long form entertainment media market. There is a hig

Roku Remote

What I think sets this remote apart from others is the location of the volume control buttons. They are located on the side of the remote, roughly where your thumb rests, but not in a way that would m

Kindle App

The pleasure points of reading via the kindle app can be broken down into the following: Psycho-pleasure: It is (mostly) so easy to use and includes functionality such as highlighting, and notetaking

Amazon Wishlist

The Amazon wishlist functionality is a way for friends and family to find out what things you want/need. Knowing what to get someone without having to ask them is a problem that is encountered quite o

Red Wing Boot Oil

Red Wing boots sell Red Wing boot oil. It is no better than any other boot oil, but owners of Red Wing boots might prefer it over others simply because they already buy things from Red Wing. This is a

Victoria’s Secret (post-Challenge1 revamp) Featured Piece

One of the additions we made to out Challenge 1 revamp of Victoria’s Secret was the addition of a monthly “Featured Piece” designed in collaboration with an artist or celebrity. The piece would change

Crimson Bikes

The Crimson Bikes shop in Cambridge provides free to use sturdy bike pumps at its front door. I believe that this is a good example of Cialdini’s reciprocity concept as a potential customer is getting

The Coop Textbooks Service

The Harvard Coop book shop has immediate access to all prospective and current Harvard students’ email addresses. This along with the proximity of the store to campus, the word “Harvard” in the store’

Eames Lounge Chair

I do not own this chair, but I have had the opportunity to sit and read in one several times. For some reason it is an almost addictive experience for me. The chair is comfortable and an ideal shape f

FitBit

FitBit is a health and wellbeing hardware software package designed to track biometrics such as heart rate along with your health focused activities, like jogs. I personally think that FitBits are a l

SONY 1000MX3

Sony’s flagship consumer headphones entered the market as a supposed rival to Bose’s famous QC around ear noise cancelling headphones. Unfortunately, Sony’s bulkier headphones did not quite manage to

Floor to Ceiling Windows

My temporary home during this COVID crisis is a friend’s small apartment. A small apartment that appears much bigger than it actually is thanks to a wall of floor to ceiling windows. Every morning I w

Vertical Spine Bookshelf

I really prefer these bookshelves over the traditional longer, blockier bookcases .I think they make the books seem more accessible; in the sense that they are more inviting to pick up when stored on

Silicone Sponge

It is true that often products that have been around a long time have prevailed because they are excellent solutions to the problems they are designed to tackle, but sometimes they’re only still aroun

Apple MacBook TouchBar

Apple prides itself the simplicity, elegance and functionality of its products– things that make up my own design sensibility. However their Touchbar for MacBooks, while superficially fulfilling the a

Toothpaste Roller

I have a special appreciation for cheap, unobtrusive solutions to little problems we face daily. Getting toothpaste out of a mostly empty tube of toothpaste is a common struggle for me, at least it wa

Couch arm cup holder

With a focus on products that solve the little insidious problems, this product came to my intention. While I am admittedly not a fan of the appearance of this product I am a fan of the recognition of

Pot side spoon holder

Having tried to put a finger on the design perspective I hold, I have come to the conclusion that simple, but effective solutions to little problems really excite me. This spoon holder is the perfect