what are your industrial design favorites?

[mhardy6647]

Better yet, IMO, the Leica M3. I briefly owned one: an exquisite all-mechanical, all metal camera.
.

My son has a taste for the vintage -- as a quick perusal of his (now sadly somewhat un-tended) photoblog will confirm.

 

[Dmitri]

My son has a taste for the vintage -- as a quick perusal of his (now sadly somewhat un-tended) photoblog will confirm.

My father shot with the top Kodak Retina for years, and I now have it. I think it finally died and he bought a Nikkormat, which...though I believe was kind of a budget Nikon...still a beautiful camera.
What’s the website? I’d love to peruse.... ; )

 

[Dmitri]

And speaking of vintage, I always thought my Dad’s old straight 8 Bell and Howell projector a thing of beauty...with the fins for heat dissipation and the exposed shutter/ lens mechanism. Family movie night = fond memories....

 

[mhardy6647]

My father shot with the top Kodak Retina for years, and I now have it. I think it finally died and he bought a Nikkormat, which...though I believe was kind of a budget Nikon...still a beautiful camera.
What’s the website? I’d love to peruse.... ; )

oh, I think I've posted it before: http://icouldbeahero.blogspot.com/
His math prof site, conversely, is: https://doctorhardy.wordpress.com/

 

[Dmitri]

oh, I think I've posted it before: http://icouldbeahero.blogspot.com/
His math prof site, conversely, is: https://doctorhardy.wordpress.com/

Thanks! Now that I think of it, I might have seen it somewhere in the photography section...Cheers!

 

[Vini darko]

My favorite thing on two wheels.

 

[eddantes]

Well - if "two wheels" is a factor - we must mention Vespa GS 160

 

[pavuol]

1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR “Uhlenhaut Coupé”

 

[JeffS7444]

This Nikon SP is one of my luckier scores, sold to me cheaply by a collector who knew exactly what it was, but who wanted it gone. Shot on film using Bronica ETRSI medium format camera.

 

[JeffS7444]

I paid about $100 for this Leica 3F camera body, but repairs cost considerably more! Though the design was dated by the late 1950s, I think it's ergonomics compare favorably to prewar and early postwar 35 mm cameras and it remains a pretty good compact shooter.

 

[JeffS7444]

Nothing much to tell you here: Modern product currently available from Feestyle Photo (I like the packaging).

 

[mhardy6647]

I told you guys this story, right?
I use this in the grad school biotechnology course I teach to illustrate my idea of "innovation" (a buzzword which I dislike vigorously, due to its embrace and misuse by businesses and industries who, at their cores, are as anti-innovation as can be).

https://www.theverge.com/2016/9/25/13048668/vanmoof-shipping-damages-dutch-bicycle-design

To reduce shipping damages, a Dutch bike company printed a television on their boxes

 

[Wes]

 

[JeffS7444]

I told you guys this story, right?
I use this in the grad school biotechnology course I teach to illustrate my idea of "innovation" (a buzzword which I dislike vigorously, due to its embrace and misuse by businesses and industries who, at their cores, are as anti-innovation as can be).

View attachment 95106

https://www.theverge.com/2016/9/25/13048668/vanmoof-shipping-damages-dutch-bicycle-design

Not sure where the I-word came from, but If that packaging actually does reduce instances of shipping damage, I'd say it's a brilliant design because it works by changing people's behavior without added cost beyond designing the package graphics and printing.

I was under the impression that innovations were common, but killer solutions to people's needs and wants, far less so.

 

[Count Arthur]

View attachment 95124

Fat driver.

 

[Blumlein 88]

1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR “Uhlenhaut Coupé”

I'm kind of torn on this one being great design. I've never gotten to drive one, but did get to sit in one.

It is beautiful. I have to imagine it would drive nicely and be very interesting to have and use. OTOH, as a car for use on the public highway it really is not a good design. Rather than form following function it is more of a function following an impractical form design.

The gull wing doors are the worlds worst idea for a door on a car. For multiple reasons. Then the extra high barrier to entrance and exit is pretty awful ergonomically. Maybe not a big sacrifice once you are in or out, but not great design either.

Now if anyone owning one of these has seen how badly they were duped on the idea, and need to dispose of such an impractical car, just PM me and I'll help you out.

 

[Blake Klondike]

I think you have to go some to beat this…

I love the way they sort-of suggest that it will work without all those ugly bits of wire…

What is this?

 

[Dmitri]

Fat driver.

I’m gonna take that personally....

 

[pavuol]

I'm kind of torn on this one being great design. I've never gotten to drive one, but did get to sit in one.

It is beautiful. I have to imagine it would drive nicely and be very interesting to have and use. OTOH, as a car for use on the public highway it really is not a good design. Rather than form following function it is more of a function following an impractical form design.

The gull wing doors are the worlds worst idea for a door on a car. For multiple reasons. Then the extra high barrier to entrance and exit is pretty awful ergonomically. Maybe not a big sacrifice once you are in or out, but not great design either.

Now if anyone owning one of these has seen how badly they were duped on the idea, and need to dispose of such an impractical car, just PM me and I'll help you out.

Originally it was a problem solver with racing desing at Mercedes, so in this case it was form following function actually.
The fact this model never got to racing and instead rumours claimed Mr. Uhlenhaut used to race it on public highways is another story.

And for civil cars, first wiki link says:
"The design is a very practical one in a tight urban parking space. When properly designed and counterbalanced, they require little side-clearance to open (about 27.5 cm, or 11" in the DeLorean)[4] and allow much better entrance/egress than conventional doors."
..so when you had a problem with some civil version, maybe there is some issue with your body anatomy/flexibility..

 

[Pluto]

What is this?

Look here.

@Frank Dernie can tell you more as he admits to dribbling over these, back in the day

Bottom line: aesthetically innovative design, also quite decent sonically but considered expensive to manufacture and, ultimately, unreliable. Here's some interesting history from Stan Curtis.