I recently made a short video describing how, and why, we created the texture for our latest ThinkPad touchpads. I wrote a detailed blog on this topic a few months ago. I hope you enjoy this behind the scenes look at the inspiration and detailed thought that goes into a Thinkpad.
David Hill
We’ve been working on a really cool ThinkCentre all-in-one that will be announced in the very near future. Sorry I can’t give you an exact date. Like all good design, the journey starts and ends with the customer. Here is a sneak peek video about the final design and how we created it. Enjoy!
David Hill
It’s been five years since the monumental acquisition of IBM’s personal computer business by Lenovo. I can still remember the day it was announced. High powered IBMer’s were struggling to explain the deal with charts so complex that only the person who made the presentation could possibly decode the actual content. As only IBM can do, they made up inexplicable code names for the two companies to veil the true identities. Isle and Lanai, the actual code names, were embedded in all the charts explaining the deal details. Who in the world came up with that? It was complex enough without this added communications cloaking bonus. Some saw doom and gloom, I saw opportunity. We could finally bring to market some of the cool ideas we had been working on. I think I was right.
In honor of the 5th anniversary, I thought it would be interesting to poll Design Matters readers about their top 5 innovative ThinkPads since the Lenovo deal closed. Here is the list. Please cast your vote and add you comments.
I have my views on this topic, I’m sure you have yours.
David
My last blog, about pulling the pin, certainly generated lots of interest and ideas on how to solve the monitor set-up problem. It’s great so many people share my passion for solving these kinds of design dilemmas. After sorting through the comments, I asked my team to study alternate pin ideas. We would base the designs on the feedback from my blog, and any other source of appropriate inspiration. I’m determined to fix this once and for all. I just can’t stand seeing another monitor with clipped wings.
The two most important themes from blog comments centered around the following :
1. Make the pin ridiculous looking so that it doesn’t blend into the monitor
2. Make the pin highly visible from the front
Using these themes, we went to work making sketches of ideas that would fill the bill. As with any brainstorming exercise, there were lots of ideas. Many of them were quite funny. We had ideas for pins that were molded to look like a daisy, a lucky 4 leaf clover, a miniature hand, and even a striped neck tie. One of my favorites was designed to be an actual molded plastic fork. When removed, it could be used as an ordinary eating utensil. The fork concept had a nice environmental respect angle, but I’m not sure everyone would see it, or pull it out.
Of the nearly 50 ideas we generated, the two best candidates are what we nicknamed the “pull starter” and the “remove before flight” ribbon. I think both are spot on in terms of passing the two most important criteria we established. The “pull starter” is a combination of several ideas. I like to think of it as a life jacket, lawn mower, and silly straw mutation. The pull handle shape is right off an inflatable life jacket. The “remove before flight ” ribbon concept clearly has a military heritage. We’re thinking it would be printed with arrows indicating the need, and direction to pull the pin.
In the spirit of collecting feedback on this topic, I decided to add a quick poll for my readers to cast a vote for their favorite soloution. Thanks for all the feedback on this important topic. I think we have some good ideas.
David Hill
I’m sure everyone has seen those cliche complaint department signs that ask you to take a number so that your displeasure can be registered, heard, and acted upon by the appropriate corporate complaint owner. Just to be funny, the number is connected to the pin of a simulated hand grenade. I can certainly sympathize with the concept, nobody really wants to deal with bad news for a career. There isn’t much of a wait, unfortunately, at the happy line. I think it’s fairly safe to say that happy customers have a tendency to be much less vocal than the disgruntled. Oddly enough, I have a complaint that just won’t go away that also involves a pin.
All ThinkVision monitors, that include height adjustment, ship with a small blue pin that disables the useful feature for shipment. This is important because collapsing the height adjustment allows the carton to be much smaller and far less expensive to ship. We also need to secure the monitor in the lowest position so that when you pull it out of the package it doesn’t unexpectedly sproing into the fully extended mode. This would be a surprise that no customer would want. My complaint is that I often see our monitors installed with the shipping pin still in place. This means someone paid more money for the ergonomic feature and the ultimate user isn’t aware that their monitor adjusts. In the field we have even seen these monitors placed on phonebooks to raise the viewing height. That’s right, with the shipping pin still in place. It just kills me.
We’ve tried everything to fix this problem. There is a special section in the wordless set up poster showing how to pull the pin. We changed the pin color from black to bright blue to draw more attention to the culprit. We changed the shape to be easier to pull. Nothing seems to work. We have discussed adding the word “pull”, but in what language? How about a big arrow shape? We thought of blocking the power connector with the pin, but the power connectors are never in the same place twice. Nothing is easy.
We haven’t given up on solving this problem, but in the meantime, please pull the pin. It will make all of us happier. I for one, will be pulling the pin on the monitor in the Lenovo lobby tomorrow morning.
David Hill
Nearly 20 years before Richard Sapper created the simple black box that would become ThinkPad, he had already made design magic with a very similar idea. It too was a simple black box, but for a totally different company and product category. The design was created for Jack Heuer back in 1974 for their classic Microsplit digital stopwatch. The Heuer company felt that the time had come for them to enter the digital age. Digital clocks and watches were just starting to emerge, but nobody thought to produce a digital stopwatch. Most early digital wrist watches were more of a technology novelty than a stunning revolution in design. Heuer wisely avoided sticking a glowing red digital display in the center of a traditional round watch case and calling it a day. Instead he selected Sapper to create a design concept because he wanted something special. It was an amazing corporate decision, design and market success. No longer in production, the best place to see one today is at the MoMA.
Here is a excerpt from a great interview conducted by Stephan Ott, that was published by the Goethe-Institut, where Richard talks about his Heuer design experience:
“I designed the first digital stopwatches for Heuer years ago. Of course they were a revolution back then. Heuer liked the model that I presented to him personally. When he then showed it to the sales managers, about 25 of whom were present, he suggested that each of them should comment on it as they passed it around. The first one said immediately, “I can’t sell this!”. He explained this by saying that the stopwatch was completely different from the usual devices. All the others at the table agreed with him – I already thought that I had been working in vain for half a year. When the stopwatch finally came back to Jack Heuer, he said “Your comments were all very interesting. We’ll sell this stopwatch nevertheless. YOU will be selling them!” End of discussion.
Six months later, by the way, Heuer was making a third of his turnover with this stopwatch. That means that Heuer and I were right, his sales bosses were wrong. But I don’t blame the marketing people at all, they’re just not trained for something like this. A designer works in and for the future. An entrepreneur, too, can be expected to have an eye for the future. But marketing and sales people have to concentrate on what they have on the table, they are guided by what they have already sold. Marketing has no basis at all for a new, revolutionary project, there you can’t make a well-founded sales prognosis. You have to rely on pure instinct.” Richard Sapper
For well over a decade, I personally have been on the hunt to purchase one of these wonderful stopwatches. Of course I wanted one because of the striking design, but I also wanted one because of the aesthetic connection to ThinkPad. I love the simplicity of form that reveals a more richly detailed and lively interior when you choose to open and use it. This is a hallmark of much of the work Sapper creates. I’ve scoured junk shops in the US and Europe, flea markets, the Internet, and of course eBay looking for the elusive prize. The hunt has finally ended. I located one on eBay a few weeks ago and was determined to buy it no matter what. I found myself in a bidding war just minutes before the auction ended, but when the smoke cleared, it was mine. It would be interesting to know who I was bidding against? Another ThinkPad fan perhaps?
It arrived last night in a rather anonymous cardboard box neatly wrapped in pink bubble wrap. Certainly not the trappings worthy of such a design classic. I was thrilled to find the Microsplit to be in perfect condition. There was not even the slightest scratch in the beautifully finished matte black case. The Swiss craftsmanship was so evident. I gently slid the power switch to the on position and immediately discovered it was fully functional. I hadn’t even bothered to ask the seller if it worked. Honestly, it would not have mattered to me, working was just a bonus. The only thing amiss on my newly acquired design treasure was the the lack of the original neck lanyard. I’m not too worried, however, I can easily fashion one myself. I excitedly called Richard on his cell this morning to inform him of my find. He was more than delighted to learn that I had rescued it from an uncertain home. He also generously volunteered to send me a photo of the lanyard from one in his personal archive to ensure I got it right. He’s a great friend, as well as designer.
I hope you enjoyed the comparison of this Heuer design classic to our own iconic ThinkPad. I just can’t seem to stop looking at mine. If you admire design like I do, it’s possible that you now have a new quest. In case you’re curious, mine is not for sale.
David Hill
If you’re a power user like me you never seem to stray too far from your ThinkPad. I use mine for more hours a day than I honestly care to admit. Battery life is of great importance to me.
I’ve never been a big fan of the extended batteries we offer, not because of the function they provide, but because they make my ThinkPad look less elegant. They certainly do deliver on better battery life, and some people may not mind the bump. Being a design centric kind of person, I prefer my ThinkPad to be bumpless. Enter the bay battery.
It neatly replaces the optical drive for my T400s and gives me a huge bump in battery life without the physical bump. I just recently made the transition from onboard optical to the bay battery and have not regretted the move. I rarely used the optical drive other than to show someone it had one. I am probably not the typical user. I really like it. Yes it makes my system a bit heavier, but that’s a tradeoff I’m willing to make. I haven’t measured the exact battery life I am experiencing, but our marketing claim states that adding the bay battery may take total battery life up to a impressive 8.5 hours for a T400s. Your actual battery life depends highly on actual CPU use, screen brightness, fan speed, etc. etc. etc. Suddenly I feel like a lawyer.
If you are hungry for battery life, but don’t like extended battery bumps, I suggest you strongly consider this option. It works for me.
David Hill
Lenovo made a huge splash at CES with great new ThinkPads, IdeaPads, and award winning paradigm shifting products that turned heads. The IdeaPad U1 and SkyLight smartbook are wonderful examples where Lenovo invented new computing categories. But this wasn’t just a Lenovo technology prowess show, our design innovation was everywhere.
Making such an impression at CES, however, is more than just announcing super products. The design of the venue, in our case the Aquaknox restaurant, was a critical component of setting the stage. Lenovo literally transformed the place into a product exhibition space/nightclub. We wanted to create a lasting and positive impression for everyone who attended. The design of our event was led by Rebecca Welles from our corporate identity team. It was demanding work for her and the others who chipped in, but it paid off with an event to remember. One of goals we established early in the project was to avoid the urge to “out-Vegas” Vegas . There is just no point in throwing more flashing lights, spinning plates, fake gold leaf, dangling tinsel and glitzo patterns at the problem. Such an approach would only blend into the existing Vegas environment. We wanted to attract attention. The idea we chose was to design dramatic monolithic forms bathed in pure white to contrast the visual explosion around us. Colors would be minimal and restricted to the brand palettes. The architectural monoliths would stand above the crowd and draw attention to the featured products we wanted to showcase. We also created brand specific zones for more intimate demonstrations and hands-on use.
For the Idea products zone ,we used all white classic modernist furniture to suggest a futuristic home setting. Maybe everyone doesn’t own a bubble chair, but I bet they secretly wish they did. They look like they’re right off the set of a vintage James Bond film. Even the Corbusier lounge chair looked right at home in white leather. The space was accessorized with stark white objects such as chunks of coral, rhino sculptures, and an occasional, although somewhat disturbing, all white slice of pizza. It was hard to pry people out of the comfy white chairs. Wooden stumps served as end tables and conversation pieces.
ThinkLand was all business, but rich and sophisticated in design. Smoked mirrors etched with the brand signature, regal red carpet, and modernist seating that reminds me of a giant TrackPoint cap adorned the environment . A few people said the chairs reminded them of molars, too funny. The red dots on the signatures illuminated in a show of respect for the Vegas heritage. The products themselves were showcased on glowing white pedestals. An animated video wall showcased many of the design and technology features ThinkPad enjoys. It really looked impressive, and so “on brand”.
The handheld products such as Skylight and the Lenovo smartphone were displayed using pure white 3D hands that were molded from real people’s extremities. Very interesting process with great end result. There seemed to be a strange magnetic attraction to them. By the end of the event, they had all mysteriously disappeared. How do you suppose they smuggled them out of the venue? I would love to know what people are going to do with them.
The design was conceived using pencil sketches, scale paper models, detailed computer renderings, and traditional sample boards. The scale model turned out to be very useful in visualizing the space and planning final graphic and product placement.The final renderings are very similar to the actual built space. Computers are wonderful tools for this sort of thing. Sadly,the days of magic marker renderings are all but over.
I hope you enjoyed seeing some of the thinking that went into creating an event like this. Few people understand the magnitude of effort that goes into creating such a creative, but temporary, space. It was hard work, but also fun.
David Hill
Back in November of 2008, I first learned of the Lenovo super secret project that would eventually become the Skylight smartbook . It sounded fascinating to me that we would attempt to create an entirely new offering category in the computer space. I could only imagine a device that would behave similar to a smart phone, but be of a size and scale that would make it more suitable for viewing or typing data. The design goal was also to create something that would turn heads. It could not look like just another miniature notebook computer.
I thought it would be a great project to get Richard Sapper, our long time design guru, involved with. After all, Richard has specialized in turning the ordinary into the extraordinary for decades. I’ve seen him do it over and over again with things as seemingly mundane as a desk lamp, cheese grater, tea kettle, kitchen timer, transistor radio, television set, and of course our own ThinkPad classic. When I first proposed the idea to the executive team I was asked by several if Sapper had ever designed a consumer product. Not such a surprising question if your view to Sapper and his work has been through the restricted lens of business computers, but I knew better. I quickly made a Powerpoint slide show of Sapper’s work, to make it clear what he was capable of. It worked. Everyone was intrigued enough to brief him on the project immediately.
On November 12th of 2008 Sapper was in town for a design work session where we took the opportunity to brief him on the super secret project. Sorry I can’t share the code name with you. He had many questions about user scenarios, screen sizes, technologies, and other such design-related details. Sapper was clearly interested in breaking the mold with us. His enthusiasm dimmed, however, when he was informed of the deadline for completing the design concept. The design had to be locked before the Christmas holiday in order to maintain the very aggressive schedule. I think the words Sapper used were “you must be joking, I need time to design such a thing” . The worst part was that it had not been formally decided if Sapper would be retained to create the design. That wouldn’t happen for yet another two weeks at the next Lenovo senior leadership meeting. The timeline issue would only become worse if he had to wait two additional weeks before he had the approval to start working.
The meeting adjourned as promises were passed around the room to speed the process and get more technical details. Of course, Sapper was asked to hang in there with Lenovo and wait for the next decision point. It was later in the day that Sapper, with a gleam in his eye, proposed to me that he would begin designing it immediately, on speculation that he might be retained to do so. For Sapper, there was no time to waste for the final Lenovo decision. How could anyone argue with that? If Lenovo liked his idea, we would compensate him for the work. If they didn’t like it, nothing was lost for Lenovo. The risk was all on Richard’s back. He was confident that he could create something revolutionary, and was willing to bet his own time and expense on doing it. The Sapper plan was quickly agreed to by Lenovo. Now it was up to Richard to deliver his idea by December 18th.
Richard flew to New York City late that evening. The following morning he would travel to Gloucester Massachusetts to visit with close friends. Immediately after the Gloucester visit, he was off to Los Angeles to be with his wife and son for Thanksgiving. How would he ever design anything if he was in hotel rooms, friend’s houses, carving turkeys, and riding airplanes? Designers need tools and time to create design. Sapper clearly understood the dilemma he was faced with. The next day he called me from New York City to describe the sleepless night he had endured as he imagined the design solution. His news was that he had been “kissed by Aphrodite” the night before. For Sapper, that means having the genesis of an idea. How poetic. He had spent the night drawing simple sketches in the hotel to refine his initial idea. He later described the concept verbally as a very thin and sculpted flowing form but not a “glob of pudding”. It had direction and clarity. He also talked about an articulated “stick” that would swing into view for various functions such as storage or a possible telephone handset. For me, that was the icing on the cake. Now all Richard needed was a model to validate his idea in 3 dimensions. Tall order if you are not in your normal work environment.
Two days later, I received yet another call from Richard. Now he was in Los Angeles. There was very little chit chat, he went straight to work. “Do you know what I have in my hand?” he questioned. I really had no idea how to respond to that one. “A model!” he declared, instantly answering his own question. How could that be possible I thought? He must have just arrived in California. He told me of being at a cocktail party while in Gloucester, where he mentioned to a friend that he was working on a secret design project. He described how interesting the project was, but that he was frustrated by not being able to get a model built of the idea he had conceived the night before. He was in desperate need of a model. What followed is one of the most incredible strokes of luck ever. His friend suggested that he discuss his need with one of the guests at the party who amazingly enough makes violins and other such instruments. It was reported that he had an elaborate woodworking shop and the skills to match. Surely he could make such a model. After a brief introduction, Richard met him at his shop the next day where he masterfully directed the shaping of a raw block of olive wood into what would become the first model of Skylight.
Using the kitchen table at his son’s house and old-school drawing tools, Sapper then created a series of cross sections that were sent back to his studio assistant in Milan. His goal was to create computer generated 3D data and a highly accurate stereo lithography model for his immediate review when he returned to his studio. His plan worked. Once in Milan, he made several revisions to the form and interior leaving just enough time to create a more detailed model for the final review that was now scheduled for December 19th. There was little margin for error.
On December 15th Sapper again called to say that the model would be finished as promised but that he had no idea how to get it to Raleigh in time for the meeting. There was even some concern expressed about having adequate time for the paint to cure. More on that later. We immediately exercised all various options to get the model from Milan to the meeting but none were very promising. The final solution was to send Robert Enochs to Milan on the 18th to hand carry it back the following morning. Robert, who actually wrote the original marketing requirements document, eagerly agreed to the plan as though he had a choice. After landing in Malpensa, Robert took a taxi to his hotel in Milan, freshened up, and then headed to Sapper’s studio a few blocks away. Richard met him on the street in front of his studio, where he suggested they head to La Torre di Pisa for a nice Risotto dinner before visiting the model maker’s shop. It was nearly 9:00 PM Milan time.
Once at the model shop Robert saw the models, yes there were two, one a beautiful shade of red and the other black. Black was eventually replaced by a nice rich blue. We had enough black computers. Enochs was immediately impressed by how unique the design appeared and equally by how sticky the paint was. It seems there was a paint compatibility issue that never allowed the paint to fully dry. Sapper’s normal painter was already out on holiday. Richard had to scramble to find someone to paint the model. He ended up hiring a rather inexperienced painter that he had never used before. I seem to recall that Richard even had to buy him the paint gun at a local hardware store. I guess that should have been a warning sign. The models were placed into a clever box of Sapper’s design and Robert headed back to the hotel for a few hours of sleep before catching the morning flight to the states. I called Robert when he returned to the hotel to get his impression of what he saw. He was at a loss for words but groggily described it as “well…VERY unique”. It was well after midnight when Robert called it a day.
On Friday evening in Raleigh the executive team anxiously awaited the arrival of Robert Enochs and the model. His plane was about an hour late due to weather issues and people were getting rather anxious. Once Robert landed, he called us on his cell phone to give us a turn by turn status of his continued progress towards Lenovo headquarters. At about 7:30 PM his car was spotted from the design center windows pulling into the parking lot. We were more than ready to see it. Sapper was standing by on the phone to discuss any of the details concerning his work. It was well past midnight Milan time. The cleverly designed Baltic birch box was carefully opened and the models were revealed. Immediately, the reaction was extremely positive, people loved what they saw. Sapper had delivered on the challenge beyond any of our expectations. The most immediate issue was how we were going to remove the bubble wrap texture that had now become impregnated into the forever-sticky paint. The finish looked a lot like a well worn alligator. It was pretty clear that the only alternative was to photograph the models and remove the alligator pattern in Photoshop. Since this all had to take place before Monday we needed a photographer and Photoshop expert the next morning. Not easy to get that done unless your son is a photographer home for the weekend. Who else do you call at midnight to do a photo shoot the next morning? He was more than willing to help and did an expert job of saving the paint disaster. Thanks Eric.
There was far more to do following this pivotal meeting, but the most important hurdle had been crossed. We had a really marvelous design concept. We still needed to design a keyboard, make everything fit in the envelope, move the speakers around, finalize the touchpad, meet all the schedule commitments, and of course, design a totally new user interface. It makes me dizzy just thinking about it. For me, it’s incredible to see the real thing and compare it to the original Sapper concept model. I’m not sure anything we have ever made has ended up this true to the original idea. In the end, this was a great achievement for all of Lenovo. We had a fantastic team of people from Beijing, Raleigh, Yamato, and of course Milan. I think we truly delivered on the promise of our corporate tagline… New World. New Thinking.
David Hill
Two of my favorite leadership ThinkPad offerings have been the X300 and the T400s. We used our best technology, engineering, and design talent, to create some of most amazing ThinkPad’s ever made. Even though one is called an X and the other T, they are in some ways quite similar. They both have an onboard optical drive, for example. Of course there are also many key differences between them such as processor speed, docking capability, hard file capacity, battery life, thickness, weight, and of course keyboard design. The T400s was the first to sport the big escape and delete keys. One significant difference that is often discussed and debated is screen size. The X300 models use a 13.3″ screen and the T400s uses a 14.1″. It’s amazing how a difference of about an 1″ can get people talking.
I thought it would be interesting to poll my Design Matters readers to understand your preference for screen size. Lets assume we are talking about a hypothetical 2 spindle machine where everything is equalized except for screen size. There is a very slight difference in DPI and of course the 14″ version would be a bit heavier. The increased glass size adds about a half pound of system weight.
Thanks for your continued interest in helping us shape future ThinkPad offerings. I’m looking forward to seeing the results of the poll.
David Hill
The Lenovo IdeaPad U160 
The Lenovo IdeaPad V460 
The Lenovo IdeaCentre K320 
Lenovo Meet the Modder Dean Liou 
