Design Matters

On Monday we'll stop the polling for TrackPoint cap preferences; so this is the time to place your vote in if you haven't already.

David Hill

What do you do when you're asked to design a new line of notebook computers that are not ThinkPads?  Targeted at small business and individuals, these notebooks would expand the reach of our notebook range to a whole new market. Very exciting.

One of the designers in Lenovo's Yamato design center (birthplace of the ThinkPad), Nariaki Mieki, once said he has worked on the design of ThinkPad so long "my hands have turned black." Here was a chance for the design team to invent a notebook family with a different personality and style, but somehow rooted in the same rigorous thought process and quality as the ThinkPad. The final design, crafted in Yamato, Beijing , and Raleigh, embodies a few important ideas that I thought I would share.

First we wanted to have a design that was a contrast to the strict and efficient geometry and pure business attitude of the classic ThinkPad. It wouldn't make a lot of sense to make another black rectangular notebook, we already sell those.

We did, however, choose to give it a unified and clear form. ThinkPad for example is a simple black box when closed. The Lenovo 3000 series also has a unique profile and unified form when closed. Many competitors notebooks appear to have been designed in a very different way. It seems like the display department designs the top, the CPU department designs the bottom, and they meet for the first time in the hinge department. Can you imagine designing a car like this? It would be a disjointed mess. Unification is a core design principle that guides us, and the integration of the screen and base was an important principle behind the Lenovo 3000 concept.

The last time I checked, all the components within a notebook are generally rectangular, with the exception of the cylindrical batteries. if you buy a notebook structured around a "curvy" design it's probably larger than it needs to be … unless the curve is isolated to the back where the batteries are. With this in mind we chose to make the back of the 3000 series round like the batteries, so it felt good in the hand when carried. We used a eye catching warm silver color for the exterior and a contrasting, nearly black-metallic interior to create a juxtoposition between the two. We added a touch of orange to the keyboard and eject buttons just to spice things up a bit. 

We also chose to use the same design concept for all of the models. So whether you have a 12,14, or a 15" version they all have the same design essence. This idea has served us well for the ThinkPad for years. It creates a strong brand impression and unifies the line. The Lenovo 3000 series may be a bit thicker than their ThinkPad cousins,  but making them thinner would cost more. Electronics miniaturization and exotic enclosure materials such as magnesium or carbon fiber aren't free.

Finally, we chose to import the quality of the legendary ThinkPad keyboard into these products. The force curves, rigidity of the support structure, key cap contours, are all the same as ThinkPad. In fact the same engineers and human factors team did the work. The keyboard is one of the most important human elements of a notebook computer and we treat it accordingly. We intentionally did not include a TrackPoint because notebooks within this price category tend to use pads. If you really want a TrackPoint I suggest you buy a ThinkPad. 

It's been interesting to read the comments on the design since it has been introduced. The products have often been compared to our own ThinkPad as a bench mark of quality. I guess this is a problem others would like to have.

Here is one of my favorite reviews of the Lenovo 3000 V100. Oh by the way the name (or should I say number) was intentionally chosen to focus attention on Lenovo rather than another confusing sub-brand. 

David Hill

One of my design favorites is the Mondaine Official Swiss Railways Watch. Inspired by the famous Swiss railway clock, it's a classic of modern design. I was first introduced to this watch by Richard Sapper many years ago (it's the watch he wears). It reminds me of the ThinkPad with the bright red dot second hand. The perfect watch for you ThinkPad loyalists out there.

Over the years it has become a staple of the Lenovo design team. The design center in Raleigh has a series of the wall clock version with times displayed for Beijing, Yamato, Milan, etc. If you ever are in London you can get into the Design Museum there for free if you are wearing this watch. The Mondaine website includes their motto. I love it.    

"The world's best watch is useless, if you can't read the time."

David Hill

If you have ever tried to use a notebook computer outside in bright sunlight you know it simply can't be done. The notebook's screen backlighting is so strongly overpowered by the sunlight that you are quickly forced back indoors if you want to see something. With our wireless technology and nearly all day battery life it's a shame to waste a nice sunny day indoors. I thought I would share share a unique invention my team created that addresses this problem.

At the Summer Olympics in 1996 many officials complained they were frustrated trying to read their notebook screens in bright sunlight. Makeshift shade devices created from trash bags and discarded cardboard boxes were the only fix available. Not exactly the most sophisticated or stylish design. As the 2000 games drew closer my team immediately went to work on a more elegant solution.

Inspired by the clever crank powered Mutoscope movie machines of yesteryear, we had a solution that not only fully shaded the screen but still provided a view down to the keyboard. A few quick studies with foam core and we had the basic idea working. The biggest issue was how to attach the unique looking hood to the screen. What we finally ended up with was a device very similar to an athletic sock. Slip the stretchy black fabric "sock" over the back of the screen and you are good to go.

The lightweight structure is made from sewn fabric with a rigid plastic insert that folds flat for storage or travel. The patented "sock" structure accommodates a wide variety of screen sizes. One size truly fits all.

The final shade was widely used by Olympic officials and offered for sale briefly as part of the collection of Olympic branded merchandise. Needless to say it was much better received than trash bags over the head. No longer available for sale, I have one of the few left that I am aware of. Is it time to bring this clever device back and offer it for sale again to the general public? I'd love your feedback on this. 

David Hill

Could Lenovo be sexy? – Little Red Blog – Blogs – CNET Asia

Will Moss, a PR pro in China, has long been one of our favorite China bloggers at Imagethief. He also blogs at CNET. He had some nice things to say about us today.

"Lenovo is beginning to acquire an aura of–dare I say it?–sexiness."

Other external discussion about us:

Ed Moltzen, blogging at CRN, picked up on our TrackPoint poll:

"If you listen to or read PC executives lately, you'll likely hear them talk more and more about the importance of design. It's as if they believe the "killer design" is replacing the "killer app" as a key differentiator in the marketplace."

And the faithful at Thinkpads.com are discussing Design Matters.

"I read through the entries last night as well as some of the blogs linked to it and am quite impressed with what I've seen so far. Finally, it appears that a company "gets" it (and that the TrackPoint is safe!)! I hope the awareness shown in the blog entries is spreading throughout Lenovo and am eager to see what comes in the future."

Thanks to all. Keep your comments coming.

David Churbuck

It occurred to me yesterday, given some of the recent blog traffic regarding TrackPoint preference, that there are many people who aren't aware of one of the coolest options we make. The external ThinkPad-like keyboard, which includes a TrackPoint. In fact we offer two versions, one with and one without the numpad. The numpad-less version comes with a matching slip case for convenient travel. Don't leave home without your favorite keyboard!

Here is the web link where you can buy these great keyboards.

David Hill

Several years ago my team spent considerable energy inventing the perfect TrackPoint cap. What we learned from this exercise is that there is no such thing. Choice is what's important. People's fingers are as unique as the task they are trying to accomplish. We are interested, however, in which cap or other pointing device is gaining favor. Please take the poll at the left and be counted. 

Here are the TrackPoint cap images and names just to make this easier.

 David Hill

Often designers, or others, think that it's easy to create a design classic. Like you can order one up at will, follow the tried and true formula, pick the right colors, materials, and forms, and out comes an instant classic. This is simply not true. This didn't work for Dieter Rams of Braun fame or for that matter Charles Eames and his famous furniture for Herman Miller. Design classic status is earned not created. The dictionary substantiates this claim with this fundamental  definition:

Clas-sic (kla-sik) adj.

Belonging to the highest rank or class

Serving as the established model or standard

Having lasting significance or worth; enduring

Formal, refined and restrained in style

Simple and harmonious; elegant like the classic cut of a suit. 

What is important is that the classic status is earned based on the quality of execution, enduring qualities, and restraint. You don't just declare it so.The other quality that design classics have in common is that changes to them must be highly considered. Even the slightest change can wreak havoc amongst loyalists. Can you imagine what would happen to these brands if the following scenarios became real?

• Harley-Davidson stops production of the V- twin engine. Whisper quiet replacement in the works!
• Chrysler cancels production of the boxy-utilitarian Jeep in favor of low slung aerodynamic model.
• Fender to discontinue Stratocaster guitar and replace it with obelisk-like minimalist design.
• Levi Strauss to retire blue jeans from line up in favor of more trendy colors  

John Swansey, a Lenovo designer who suggested the subject of this post, recently described his favorite classic design, the Tizio lamp, to me:

"I can remember very clearly when I first discovered one at a friend's house. It fascinated me: the infinite effortless positions enabled by the pivoting counter-balanced arms and the marvel of a bright light with no wires. In design school I made a convincing non-functional replica of balsa wood and paper from memory – just to have it to look at. Now my work day begins and ends with a flip of the red switch of the one on my desk. The Tizio embodies an emergent technology in a spare, memorable form, enabling extraordinary usefulness with an element of magic. When I saw that first one I couldn't have dreamed that I would one day work closely with its originator trying to create design classics of tomorrow."

The Wikipedia has a great listing of products that have attained the status of design classic. 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Design_classic

Included are some of my own favorites: The Wassily chair, the GEM paperclip, the Vespa motor scooter, and the Thonet bentwood chair I sit on every morning for breakfast. These things not only inspired me as a design student nearly thirty years ago, but they make me feel comfortable today. With so much changing in the world today it's a welcome relief to find a familiar oasis wherever possible.  Lets not forget that new is not always improved.  

David Hill

One of the icons of the 1990s zeitgeist — the Aeron Chair — transformed all previous notions about office furniture by doing away with upholstered, padded seating and placing the user on a mesh "pellicle" stretched over a futuristic, highly controllable frame.

At more than $1,000, it was a more than a desk chair, but became a status symbol,  representing the furnishing gestalt of the first Web boom.

In a column in the Industry Standard, the chronicle of that era, one answer to the question: "How do you know if you work for a web company?" was: "If you sit in a chair designed like a tennis racket."

The Aeron is still produced by Herman Miller. It was designed by the legendary Bill Stumpf, who passed away last week.

I once had the honor of hearing Stumpf speak in Minnesota. My favorite quote:

"Why don't we live on Disneyland's Mainstreet USA and visit parking lots for a vacation?"

Stumpf's Wikipedia entry has this classic quote:

"I work best when I'm pushed to the edge," he said, "when I'm at the point where my pride is subdued, where I'm an innocent again. Herman Miller knows how to push me that way, mainly because the company still believes — years after D.J. DePree first told me — that good design isn't just good business, it's a moral obligation. Now that's pressure."

David Hill

Bad design can happen for a lot of different  reasons. Insufficient time to create the solution, poor market understanding, bad engineering or even bad designers can all lead up to delivering a design disaster. How many times have you seen a product that leaves you wondering, why would anyone buy that? Did you ever see the handheld  appliance that shot molten butter out a brush like nozzel for buttering up a slice of toast? Can you imagine how long it would take to clean this marvel of innovation compared to a simple butter knife? Trust me, the best design in the world can't save these doomed ideas from late night TV liquidations, flea markets, or ultimately the land fill. Gadgets, gizmos, and novelties aren't, however, the only things that suffer from this dilema. Even the highly successful VCR was the victim of one of my favorites, "feature over function". Remember the famous blinking 12:00 on your VCR?  I never even tried to set the clock on the last one I bought. Rich with time shifting record features and other technical complexities, the VCR was in reality used primarily to play rented video tapes. How simple could that have been? Was it worth wading through thick user manuals and frustrating menus just to tape your favorite Gilligan's Island episode scheduled for 9:00 PM next Sunday? You know, the one where they almost get off the island but Gilligan messes things up at the last minute.

There is a great lesson to be learned here for the design of computers. As designers we need to challenge feature creep and turn our focus on what people actually want to do. Don't get me wrong, not all features are bad. They just need to be the right ones and be easy to use. I really don't want to worry about my computer and another 75 useless and frustrating features, I have far more interesting things to consider.

This is one of my favorite websites on the topic of bad design:

http://www.baddesigns.com/

 David Hill