You are what you eat, they say… surely the Bean Coffee Machine eats a whole lot of coffee beans, am I right?! A clever visual redesign of the standard coffee machine, this particular appliance by Juliana Juleva tries to make the ubiquitous coffee-brewer instantly recognizable. The way she does it is by making the machine look like a giant bean from afar. Look at it and even if you’re not a coffee drinker, chances are you’ll recognize exactly what it is and what it’s used for. The intuitive design is further complemented by an intuitive user interface, which employs a simple yet large touchscreen to help you brew the perfect cup of coffee ever. Place your empty mug, tap a button, and wait for the giant bean to give you a cup of pure bliss!
Designer: Juliana Juleva
The Bean Coffee Machine doesn’t try to be too fancy. It doesn’t look overtly industrial, or too high-tech like something Apple would have designed. Instead, it tries to opt for visual familiarity by taking inspiration from the shape of a coffee bean. The machine comes with an oval shape, sporting broad and gentle curves that make it look as smooth as a roasted coffee bean. It’s propped up vertically on four legs, and comes with a relatively simple front surface that has the interface on top, and a dispenser at the bottom.
Using the Bean machine is incredibly intuitive too. A transparent window on top lets you look into the machine’s coffee storage, letting you know if it has enough supply of roasted beans. If not, all you do is load fresh beans in, and you’re ready to brew. Right underneath the window is an interface that has the simplicity of a menu card. Tap the kind of coffee you want Bean to brew and it gets to work. The coffee gets dispensed right into your cup below, letting you choose from multiple options from the classic flat white or americano, to even more eclectic options like a decaf.
The Bean comes in 5 colors – black, white, bronze, silver, and our favorite, metallic brown. Sure, everyone’s entitled to having a coffee machine that complements their tastes and interior decor, but the metallic brown Bean just plays to the visual metaphor perfectly, and it kind of does look like an instant classic too, if you ask me personally. The machine was designed for a Russian coffee brand, although it hasn’t hit the market yet.
They say that algae, not trees, help produce a majority of the breathable air around us. Covering large parts of land and sea, this wonder-organism does a remarkable job of purifying the air and enriching it with oxygen… so imagine being able to harness nature’s purifier and have it in your home. Unveiled at Milan Design Week, the AIReactor by EcoLogicStudio is a sleek, three-foot-tall structure with a recycled birch plywood frame. At its heart lies a glass photobioreactor containing a vibrant green liquid teeming with microalgae cultures.
Designer: EcoLogicStudio
Through photosynthesis, algae naturally convert carbon dioxide and pollutants into clean oxygen. The AIReactor continuously pumps air into the bioreactor, mimicking natural water currents for optimal algae growth. As the algae perform their photosynthetic magic, they filter out harmful pollutants, leaving behind cleaner air.
“In addition to capturing pollutants, the microalgae cultivated in AIReactor can be harvested and utilized to produce biopolymers for 3D printing products,” said the studio. “After harvesting, the algae biomass can be dried and then undergo further processing to produce biopolymers, which are natural polymers derived from renewable plant-based sources.”
The biomass generated by the algae after it has filtered the air becomes a valuable resource. EcoLogicStudio harvests this biomass and uses it to create biopolymers, natural polymers derived from renewable sources. The studio recently unveiled the PhotoSynthetica collection, comprising the AIReactor, along with a stool and a ring made from the biopolymers generated during the air filtration process. Building on their 2018 research project, the PhotoSynthetica collection incorporates biomass, a waste material harvested from microalgae, into a series of everyday objects. This innovative approach expands upon the project’s initial exploration, which saw the creation of a large-scale tree sculpture.
The PhotoSynthetica collection is on display from 15 to 21 April as part of Isola Design Festival 2024 during Milan Design Week.
With an aesthetic reminiscent of Arya Stark’s sword, the needle, in Game Of Thrones, the CRKT Flat Out is best described as ‘functional art’. It’s small, and deceptively thin, yet packs an absolute punch with how sharp and spry it is. In short, it’s the kind of knife you underestimate the first time, and trust blindly every time after that.
Designed by veteran blade artisan Matthew Lerch, the Flat Out has a silhouette that feels instantly iconic. While most knives are made to be fairly broad (because nobody wants a flimsy blade), the Flat Out is exceptionally thin. Sure, vertically, the knife has a 4.42-inch handle with a sizeable 3.57-inch blade… but horizontally, it’s just about as thin as your finger, which makes it feel slim, and weigh less than most, at about 3.6 ounces or 102 grams.
The slimness, however, is just the first thing you notice with the Flat Out. It still sports a wonderfully ergonomic stainless steel handle, letting you firmly and reliably hold the knife during use, and an 8Cr13MoV steel drop-point blade that feels almost like a needle-point with how slim it is. The blade’s 3.57-inch edge puts it well in the ‘mid-size’ knife category, while still looking and feeling small… and is sharp enough to get any job done, whether it’s cutting, slicing, shearing, or carving. That pointed tip makes it absolutely lethal for piercing too, turning the EDC into a worthy opponent against everything from delivery boxes and envelopes to even wood and leather.
Trained initially as a jewelry designer, Matthew Lerch found himself with a penchant for knife design rather soon in life. Working extensively with CRKT, the Wisconsin-based designer has been honored with some prestigious awards for some of his EDC designs. Slim yet hard-working, understated yet powerful, Lerch’s Flat Out knife for CRKT is a beautifully badass paradox.
The Flat Out is slim yet grippy, giving you a long handle to hold comfortably onto. The assisted flip knife sports a frame lock that holds the blade in place, and some rather beautiful-looking jimping (serrated texture) on top of the blade to comfortably rest your thumb while using the knife for a perfectly dependable grip while cutting and maneuvering. Fold the knife shut and it easily slides into your pocket, with a clip that securely holds the EDC in place for you to easily retrieve whenever you need… whether it’s for cutting open boxes, slicing branches in the outdoors, defending yourself, or just admiring from time to time.
Looks like automobiles are yesterday’s news because Lexus is making waves (literally) in the world of luxury yachts with its newly unveiled luxury yacht – the LY 680. This new vessel builds upon the success of its predecessor, the LY 650, offering even more space and innovative features for those seeking the ultimate in on-water relaxation and entertainment.
The LY 680 embodies Lexus’s “Crafted” design philosophy, seamlessly blending exquisite aesthetics with cutting-edge technology. Built by the Horizon Group, a leader in crafting exceptional yachts, the LY 680 promises to be a luxurious sanctuary at sea. Think unparalleled comfort, signature Lexus performance, and a design language that echoes the brand’s renowned attention to detail.
One of the most striking enhancements is the expanded flybridge. Stretching over a meter and a half longer than the previous model, this space now boasts a spacious lounge sofa – perfect for lounging under the sun with a cool drink. But that’s not all. Imagine whipping up delicious meals for your guests on the integrated barbecue grill, all while taking in the breathtaking ocean views. For those who crave adventure on the water, the swimming platform has also been significantly extended by 700 millimeters. This translates to more space for launching water toys like jet skis or paddleboards, or simply relaxing closer to the water’s edge.
Twin Volvo Penta IPS engines, available in two configurations, ensure the yacht handles beautifully. Expect stable maneuvering, a smooth ride, and remarkably quiet operation – all contributing to a truly luxurious experience at sea. No matter the conditions, the LY 680 promises to deliver a comfortable and enjoyable journey.
Clocking in at over 20 meters in length and nearly 6 meters wide, the LY 680 offers ample space for up to 15 passengers. Three luxurious cabins provide comfortable sleeping arrangements for six guests, making this yacht ideal for extended getaways with family and friends, or spontaneous weekend escapes. Imagine waking up to the gentle rocking of the waves and the sound of the ocean breeze – pure bliss.
Lexus has partnered with the Horizon Group, renowned for their advanced yacht-building expertise, to create the LY 680. This luxurious yacht, available for order in Japan through Toyota Marine starting March 21, 2024, promises to be a haven at sea. Deliveries are expected by spring 2026.
Apple’s budget iPhone is due for a refresh and for the first time ever, it’s getting a major design upgrade that does away with the TouchID, finally putting the technology in the rear mirror for the smartphone industry. Leaked images from China (you can see them at the end of this article) show dummy units of an upcoming iPhone SE with a refreshed design that now features the notch and FaceID system, along with a flat body reminiscent of the iPhone 12 and 13. Chances are that Apple’s probably repurposing older iPhone 12 chassis for the new 4th Gen SE that’s rumored to drop along with Apple’s iPad refresh next month.
With four straight years of the iPhone SE having the same design (both Gen 2 and Gen 3 models used the same chassis as the iPhone 8), the iPhone SE 4 finally gets the upgrade we’ve all been waiting for. Now that the notch is pretty much history for the flagship iPhone, which has adopted the dynamic island, it makes sense for the technology to finally arrive to Apple’s budget line. The new SE 4, as indicated by pretty credible leaks at this point, uses the same body as the one used in the iPhone 12 and 13, sporting what leakers indicate is a 6.1-inch display on the front, a single-lens camera on the back, a FaceID system for facial unlocking, and a mute slider as opposed to the Action Button which Apple unveiled with the iPhone 15.
The 4th Gen iPhone SE is rumored to be a pretty big upgrade for budget customers, allowing Android users to make the iPhone shift with zero compromises. The large screen and thin bezels look just as gorgeous as the iPhone 14 from 2022, and the new SE is rumored to have 5G too, along with what I can only hope is USB-C, because of strict EU regulations that kick in at the end of the year. It’s still conceivable that Apple sticks to their guns and keeps the lightning connector on the SE, while just limiting sales within the EU, which isn’t really its budget market anyway.
Notably the new iPhone SE 4 has a pretty large camera, which may make up for past models not having great photography capabilities. While details are scarce on what this new camera will be, the big sensor is probably rumored to be an all-purpose lens WITHOUT ultrawide capabilities to keep costs lower.
The above renders, created by Yanko Design, are based on leaked images from a Weibo user, showing case designs for the upcoming iPhone. The dummy model, which clearly reads iPhone SE 4, comes with a notched display, a single-shooter primary lens along with a flash, a flat aluminum frame, and all indications that the mute slider will still remain as a detail in the SE 4. As far as colors go, there’s really no concrete indication that Apple plans on adding any new colors to the range. The existing SE range has only 3 colors – black, white, and Project RED. For visualization purposes (and also because of an initial render found on the internet), we’ve also added a Forest Green color variant.
You may not be familiar with Dutch painter Johannes Vermeer’s entire body of work, but chances are you’ve definitely seen one of his paintings. About as iconic as Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, Van Gogh’s Starry Night, or Munch’s The Scream, ‘Girl with a Pearl Earring’ is just one of those paintings that’s entered the hall of fame for being one of the most memorable paintings ever. The artpiece features a chiaroscuro-style artwork of a girl in a headgear and a pearl earring, with dramatic lighting from one side that creates dramatic contrast and highlights/shadows. It’s a remarkably captivating painting, and an impressive one at that, considering it was painted in 1665. After getting its own Scarlett Johansson movie in 2003, the iconic painting gets its own fan-made LEGO set! Designed by LEGO builder ‘alanboar’, this MOC (My Own Creation) features roughly 1600 bricks, and comes with a Vermeer minifigure to match!
Designer: Alanboar Cheung
Built from precisely 1619 LEGO bricks, the set wonderfully replicates the painting, bringing it to life by giving it actual depth too. Of course, the use of LEGO bricks results in a lack of fine details, but therein lies the charm! The girl in the LEGO set mimics her inspiration beautifully, with the same blue and yellow headscarf, contemplative expression, and that gorgeous pearl earring that is easily a highlight of both the painting as well as this set.
Alanboar’s little brick mosaic utilizes LEGO’s art bricks, which allow making intricate colored artpieces without those studs getting in the way. The final set measures 17.6 inches tall, and 15.1 inches wide, and even features a uniquely baroque frame to go with the painting. I’m not entirely sure whether LEGO manufactures silver hemispherical bricks, but it’s possible that Alanboar took a few liberties with the pearl earring part.
The entire set comes with a plug-to-assemble design, and even features a miniature replica of the painting along with the Vermeer minifigure and a tiny pedestal that aptly labels the mini diorama. The LEGO Girl with a Pearl Earring is currently a fan-made submission to LEGO’s Ideas forum, an online platform for LEGO enthusiasts to build and showcase their own unique creations or MOCs. Users can then vote for their favorite MOCs, which LEGO then reviews and turns into box-sets that anybody can buy. If you want to vote for Alanboar’s entry, visit the LEGO Ideas website here!
With less than a week till we experience one of the most prominent total solar eclipses in probably decades, you’ll surely want to make sure you’re well prepared for the moment. That means not just wearing safe glasses that let you observe the eclipse, but also making sure that your expensive smartphone camera doesn’t get damaged by the sun’s rays too. Yes, you heard me, your camera’s sensor, much like your eyes, is vulnerable to the sun… and prolonged exposure can quite literally burn the sensor the same way solar rays could damage your eyes. So if you’re all equipped with eclipse-friendly glasses, why not prepare your smartphone with some appropriate protection too? After all, you’re definitely going to want to take photos of the eclipse, right??
The VisiSolar Smartphone Photo Filter is a card-shaped filter that’s designed to help you capture the magic of a solar event safely on your smartphone. Whether it’s the partial phases, the breathtaking diamond ring effect, or the ethereal totality, this filter guarantees the best shots of the cosmic phenomenon, without worrying about any damage to your phone. Quite literally the size of perhaps a credit card or a table coaster, the filter sits right in front of your camera lens, blocking out harmful rays from hitting your phone’s sensor. You can still take great photos of the eclipse, just without the potential harm. Think of it as protective glasses for your phone.
Available in a two-pack for just under $13, the VisiSolar filters feature a stiff paper outer border, and a specially coated solar-imaging film in the center. Place the film right in front of your camera lens, fire up the camera app, and zoom in on the sun without worrying about anything. The filter automatically blocks out the intense harmful rays, letting you observe the eclipse in glorious fashion. Just make sure you zoom in as much as possible for the most incredible footage ever! And when the eclipse has passed, you can use the filter to take regular photos of the sun too! If your phone (or DSLR) has a great zoom, you’ll even see a few sunspots on the surface of our nearest star!
I’m not a golfer myself, but I imagine that for people who DO golf, carrying your equipment around can be quite an elaborate affair… given that you’re constantly moving from one spot to another. Golf clubs usually have their large bag that you transport them in, but as far as golf balls go, I’m not entirely sure I’ve seen any well-designed container for them. For designers at superkomma, that sounded like a perfect design opportunity – meet the Attomax Golf Pouch, a spiral hard-case that lets you store as well as deploy golf balls with ease.
The GIF above explains everything you need to understand about the Attomax Golf Pouch. Two spiral-shaped containers thread into one another, allowing you to expand or contract the case simply by twisting and turning the lower element. Use the case to store golf balls, and every time you need a new one, simply twist to make the case shorter, allowing the golf ball at the bottom to rise to the top. It’s a simple, yet delightful user experience that serves its purpose well, is memorable, and will probably have your fellow golfers asking you where you got the pouch from!
Simplicity is the name of the Attomax pouch’s game. Its form is deceptively rudimentary, relying on a basic geometric spiral that catches light beautifully, along with a two-tone container design. The pouch is compact, yet big enough to hold probably 4 golf balls at a time, although you’ll still need to carry your tees separately (those tiny skewers you perch your golf balls on before swinging). The Attomax comes with a lid to hold the balls in place (obviously), but also has a nice leash that your caddy can string around their leash so they always have the next ball ready for when you need to take a shot.
The pouch was designed for Attomax, a reputed golf brand known for making the world’s first high-density golf ball using amorphous metal alloy. superkomma pointed out that the idea of using two different colors for the container’s separate halves wasn’t just an aesthetic choice, it also helped users intuitively determine how many golf balls were inside the case simply by seeing the ‘ratio’ between the two colors based on how expanded or contracted the case was. For example, if the purple half is just as long as the blue half, the case has 4 balls. Any shorter and you’re down to three balls. If the purple half has been turned to its maximum point (where it’s barely visible), the case has anywhere from 1 to 2 golf balls.
Think of Prelaunch.com as a ‘Shark Tank’ for ideas… but without hungry investors asking difficult questions. The world’s first ‘Market Validation’ platform was designed to help creators better understand what their designs needed to become million-dollar success stories – but now the website is launching an ‘Idea Validation’ feature that lets you understand if your idea has any potential. Thanks to a community panel of more than 200 million people, Prelaunch tests your concept in the marketplace of ideas to see whether it’s ready for the world, helping you fine-tune your design in its nascent stages, so you don’t end up spending all your money on R&D only to realize your product had a flaw, or was targeted at the wrong audience, or worse, was too ahead of its time.
Did you know Apple launched a game console in 1996 called the Pippin? Or that they also launched a touchscreen tablet with a stylus in 1992 called the Newton? How about the fact that Nintendo had its own VR headset back in 1995 called the Virtual Boy? Surely you knew about TwitterPeek, the microblogging platform’s first (and only) hardware device designed for only tweeting, which was launched back in 2008? Chances are you haven’t heard of these products for a good reason – they went as fast as they came, as the companies worked extremely hard to bury these massive failures. Some of these products weren’t well thought-out, others were just a little too early for their time. Most large companies can survive such setbacks… but smaller ones (like the startup Juicero that charged $400 for a device that simply squeezed bags of juice) usually collapse when their products fail. Prelaunch helps mitigate that possibility by allowing you to vet your ideas before you end up walking into a Shark Tank where you get shredded for your product, valuation, or sales. The Prelaunch website helps you get consumer feedback before you even get consumers, so you know whether an idea is worth spending hundreds of thousands (or potentially millions) of dollars into.
The “Idea Validation” feature steps away from the traditional, often tedious process of market research and surveys. Instead, it offers a streamlined, three-step approach for creators to bring their idea to life: describe your product, highlight its killer features, and then flesh out the specifications. The platform then harnesses the power of AI to generate a product landing page, complete with images and descriptions, in mere seconds. Prelaunch has integrated multiple survey panel providers, unified and standardized their processes, and as a result, now has access to 200 million people who are ready to give feedback.
Prelaunch’s entire process takes mere minutes, as opposed to the months (or even years) and financial capital it takes to develop a proof of concept.
Why is this revolutionary? Well, analysis from Prelaunch.com suggests that projects with prototypes stand a significantly better chance of validation and success. This new feature doesn’t just level the playing field; it virtually eliminates it, allowing creators with nothing more than a concept to compete with those who have tangible prototypes. The platform leverages the power of AI to help flesh out the idea, so it can be rapidly tested with a target audience to check for viability.
The platform offers the following metrics to creators:
Interest rate: Percent of visitors who liked the idea. It measures how many users clicked the ‘Like’ button or reacted positively to the webpage’s content. A higher rate implies greater audience engagement and appreciation for the content.
Survey completion rate: Percent of people who completed the survey out of all people who started the survey.
Saves rate: Percent of visitors who provided their email. It measures the number of users who chose to save the webpage for future reference, indicating an intent to revisit the content. A higher rate signifies greater user commitment and interest in the content compared to simply liking it.
Rating: Rating of the product from the “Rate this product” survey question.
Price: Average, Minimum, and Maximum results from survey questions like – “How much would you like to pay?”
Concept Idea Score: Calculated based on a formula that contains several components of interest rate, saves rate, etc.
Demographics: Data based on country, age, and gender.
For a limited time, Prelaunch.com is offering this feature for free—a gesture that speaks volumes about their commitment to nurturing creativity and innovation. Prelaunch CEO Narek Vardanyan’s vision is clear: to empower creators to bring their ideas to life by providing valuable feedback as early as possible.
On a lighter note, imagine if famous inventors and creators had access to something like the “Idea Validation” feature. Would Edison have had an easier time convincing people about the light bulb? Would Da Vinci have gotten immediate feedback on his flying machine designs? While we can’t rewrite history, Prelaunch.com is ensuring that the future of innovation is brighter, bolder, and validated by the very people it seeks to inspire. Welcome to the future of creation, where your next big idea doesn’t just have to be a dream.
There are some people who still buy the iPhone 13 Mini in bulk because it’s the last small smartphone Apple ever made. In the pursuit of ‘bigger and better’, smartphone companies have abandoned the very concept of ergonomics, and phones nowadays are so large and heavy, people quite literally have indented pinky fingers as a result. The iPhone 13 Mini and perhaps the Asus Zenfone 9 were perhaps the last ‘small’ phones before the concept was retired – so Nothing decided to do something about it. Or rather, poke fun at it at least.
Meet the Phone (2a) Micro – an alternative to the Plus and Max phones of today’s world. Announced as a rather fitting April Fool’s Prank, the Phone (2a) Micro is functionally miniscule, measuring probably no larger than a Zippo lighter. However, it still manages to hold up rather well considering its size. The prototype (although we’re 99% certain it’s CGI) features a rather usable (yet tiny) screen that still somehow manages to be usable. The video above is a tiny (no pun intended) demonstration of the phone in action… and it also takes aim at major smartphone companies for abandoning the relatively large (again, no pun intended) audience of people with small hands!
Roughly 3 inches tall, the Phone (2a) Micro comes with the same design as its predecessor, albeit scaled down. It ditches the dual camera on the back for a single one (there’s really no real estate for 2 lenses), but still retains every aspect of the phone’s design including even its Glyph Interface (which apparently works, in the video demo). Flip the phone over and you’ve got a virtually bezel-less screen (clearly even the tiniest of bezels weigh heavily on a phone that size), but the lack of bezels is made up by a whopper of a front-facing camera, which eats into a significant portion of the display. I guess good selfies are an important part of owning a phone, right?
I’ll be honest, April Fool’s Day jokes have all but died down ever since the pandemic, when corporates decided it just wasn’t worth the effort. Sure, sometimes a company like Volkswagen DOES crack a joke about rebranding to Voltswagen, sending economies and stock markets into a flurry, but overall, larger companies have sort of lost their sense of humor (Google used to crack elaborate jokes every year before Sundar Pichai took the reigns). However, it’s good to see newer companies taking things in their stride and trying to engage with their fans and communities using humor. Whether it’s Nothing’s tiny phone, or Razer’s chair with robotic arms, a good corporate joke just makes large brands feel more human, allowing people to resonate and connect with them on a deeper level… but as far as the Phone (2a) Micro goes, does it have a 3.5mm audio jack, though??
