Tag Archives: futuristic

Balenciaga high-heel sneakers with fluid 3D-printed design shows what the future of fashion looks like

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Shoes, quite like cars, phones, and all other objects, are limited by the technology available to them. Amazonians dipped their feet into liquid rubber before woven fabric/canvas and processed leather was a reality. The Crocs couldn’t have been possible had it not been for injection molding, and it’s only now that companies like Adidas and Nike are experimenting with 3D printing – a technology that has just recently become an industrial reality. This Balenciaga high-heel footwear concept was designed by OJB Studio keeping potential future technologies in mind. “In this Balenciaga concept, [current] manufacturing boundaries and constraints were excluded, with freedom and imagination leading the way”, Ollie of OJB Studio told Yanko Design. “This process enables a fast and efficient way of experimental aesthetic ideation, providing some rather wild, yet desirable designs.”

Designer: OJB Studio

The brief for the specific concept was to create a Balenciaga high heel for the near future, inspired by elements of a sneaker. It’s purely a visual exercise that aims at determining what the future of fashion in the footwear industry will look like. Although haute couture does tend to stray away from comfort and ergonomics, this particular concept is more of a visual exploration than an actual template. The shoes take on a rather fluid, almost alien-like form that feels like a nod to modern-day shoe design often seen commercially with Yeezy’s line of footwear. Elements of hard plastic are wonderfully punctuated by woven fabric and even what looks like carbon-fiber trims. “Using various materials and textures added contrast to the layering of the heel, allowing for certain features to be distinguished and highlighted, for example, the hard flowing structures against the soft mesh fabrics”, Ollie mentioned.

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This bread toaster concept looks more like a robot that spits out your toast

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Kitchen appliances are undergoing a revolution. It started with ovens and refrigerators, but now almost every cooking tool is starting to look different and become smarter, from cooking ranges to even weighing scales. Even the humble two-piece bread toaster isn’t safe, with some manufacturers trying to put some intelligence that some might deem to be a wee bit excessive. After all, how much AI do you need to toast bread anyway? Regardless of smartness, the toaster is definitely long overdue a redesign that challenges conventions, like this design concept that really goes the distance, presenting an appliance that might look more at home in kitchens of the future.

Designer: Aleena Qaiser

A toaster is a kitchen appliance that embodies simplicity in every aspect. It serves a single purpose and can be operated easily without having to read a manual. You pop in slices of bread, set the timer, start toasting, and wait for the toasted bread to pop up. That nature, unfortunately, has also limited its design to simple forms, most of them in the shape of a box. There is, of course, always room for improvement and changes, both in design and function.

Some new toasters coming out this year try to upgrade the toasting process to make it even simpler and more reliable. Imagine never having to deal with burnt toasts or getting the perfect crispiness you personally prefer, regardless of the state or quality of the bread. This design concept, on the other hand, doesn’t exactly change the functionality that much, but it tries to demonstrate that you don’t have to stick to a boxy design, either.

This futuristic toaster design is supposed to be inspired by rockets, but it also looks like a rocket launcher. Instead of an upright box, the toaster is set at an angle and held up by two legs, one on each side. The main controls are on one leg, mixing analog and digital mechanisms. You have an LCD display that shows the timer or a clock, but you also have a dial for setting the time.

What’s even more interesting is that the body of the toaster can actually tilt down, conveniently sliding your toasts onto a plate. This solves most problems of having to pick up the bread when they’re done, which sometimes leads to accidents and burns. Unfortunately, it doesn’t do this automatically, but there’s a lever you can pivot so that you won’t have to touch the hot body of the toaster.

If that part could be automated, the toaster would probably qualify as a futuristic robot helper in your kitchen. The design admittedly takes up a bit more space than a conventional toaster, but it also adds some character to the appliance in the process. We’ll probably see more unconventional designs in the future, so don’t be surprised if toasters a few years from now finally stop looking like your grandparents’ toasters.

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ASUS ROG Phone 6 design tells the tale of two futures

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Our future could either go cyberpunk or utopia, and this gaming phone’s designs depict these possibilities.

Gaming accessories and peripherals almost have an unspoken rule about what is considered to be standard design rules. Predominantly black chassis is punctuated by RGB lights that shine like neon signage on a dark night. If that has you thinking of cyberpunk settings, it’s pretty close to the aesthetic that most gaming products embrace. Of course, there are other ways to view our future, one that embodies hope expressed in cleaner and brighter designs. This dichotomy of aesthetics is even more pronounced in the ASUS Republic of Gamers’ newest gaming phone, carrying a design that it describes as leaving the phone’s cyberpunk roots to venture further into the future and into the wider cosmos.

Designer: ASUS

The ASUS ROG Phone 6 comes in two main designs split between Pro and non-Pro models. And while ASUS describes both as having evolved styles, it is really evident in only one of the two. The ASUS ROG Phone 6 still bears many of the design marks of the previous generations, especially in its black colorway. Most of the shapes and lines on its back are asymmetrical and askew, creating a bit of visual noise that conveys energy and eccentricity. Its RGB dot-matrix display is also a blast from the past, a trait that’s common in cyberpunk aesthetics.

In contrast, the ROG Phone 6 Pro comes only in a “Storm White” version, and it makes a sharp U-turn from previous aesthetics, heading towards a more utopian and space-centric view of the future. The lines are clean, the geometrical shapes are more balanced, and there is less in the way of distracting noise and details. A new color screen on the side of the phone is capable of displaying full pictures and animations, calling to mind the fancy HUDs in sci-fi props. The phone’s accessories have matching motifs, with mostly white bodies, a few black panels, and maybe a splash of RGB colors here and there.

Despite the futuristic theme, the ASUS ROG Phone 6 is pretty old-school in some aspects, and it’s not actually a bad thing. There’s still a headphone jack that’s all but extinct on high-end phones these days. And instead of a notch or a cutting-edge under-display camera, the phone has plain, narrow bezels, top and bottom. This does also come with the benefit of having some “dead space” for the holder’s palms when playing a game in landscape orientation. Of course, those same hands will also cover the headphone jack, so many gamers might opt for Bluetooth headphones instead at that point.

In terms of hardware, the ASUS ROG Phone 6 is pretty much what you’d expect for a phone designed and built for gaming. Its true test will be in its thermal management, which will determine how long the processor will be able to maintain its performance. Design-wise, the phone could mark a new phase for mobile gaming devices that are adopting cleaner aesthetics, a trend that seems to be growing in the wider gaming market if the latest console and PC designs are anything to go by.

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ASUS ROG Phone 6 design may have a cleaner futuristic vibe

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While almost any high-end phone is really capable of gaming, there are a few that stand out as having been designed specifically for that purpose. These sometimes have “active cooling technology,” which pretty much just means it has a tiny fan spinning inside, almost like a miniature gaming laptop. These gaming smartphones take after PC counterparts in other ways as well, particularly with the generous use of RGB lights, dark finishes, and sometimes asymmetrical forms. Some gaming computers, however, started incorporating newer design languages that give off a different personality. It seems that the next version of ASUS’ gaming smartphone is following in those footsteps, and the ROG Phone 6 could probably be one of the most handsome gaming smartphones in the market.

Designer: ASUS (via Evan Blass)

If you are an avid gamer, the aesthetics of gaming devices and accessories might already be normal for you. The motifs employed by the likes of Razer, Dell’s Alienware, and ASUS’ Republic of Gamers all share similar elements such as those mentioned earlier. While the design language conveys images of speed, vibrancy, and activity, it may also speak of chaos, imbalance, and aggressiveness. Based on images shared by tipster Evan Blass, the ASUS Republic of Gamers Phones 6 might be anything but.

The phone might come in a predominantly white case, which in itself is already unorthodox as far as gaming products are concerned. It probably won’t be the only colorway available, but it will most likely be the most popular, given its novelty. Lines still don’t go straight up and down or sideways, but their appearance is more balanced here, forming a trapezoidal shape right in the middle of the phone. With the cleaner lines and lighter hues, the ROG Phone 6 takes on a more utopian appearance compared to the cyberpunk aesthetic of its predecessors.

There are still plenty of blacks and colors to go around, though they seem to be relegated to accessories. The AeroActive Cooler 6 add-on, for example, brings a dash of that RGB lighting to the phone, while a black DevilCase Guardian Lite Plus case offers a perfect contrast to the phone’s white shell. There is also a pair of white detachable controllers similar to the Nintendo Switch’s Joy-cons to complement and complete the look.

There does seem to be a small trend in the gaming market that is moving away from the stereotypical blacks and RGBs of gaming-related products. Dell’s latest Alienware desktops, for example, employ a similar white and light blue color scheme. The “trophy” PlayStation 5, of course, also aimed for a more futuristic visual with a splash of white and smooth curves. Whether it’s a passing fad or a new movement, we’ll have to see if these products catch on with gamers who can be very particular about the way their gaming gear looks.

As for the specs, the ASUS ROG Phone 6 will undoubtedly be a powerhouse, boasting at most 18GB of RAM, which sounds almost overkill for a phone. It will be interesting how it will perform in the camera department, though, since it is an area that’s often overlooked by gaming phones. The phone is expected to debut on the 5th of July, so it won’t be long before we behold the real thing.

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Landr tablet promises you won’t slosh your coffee when you cut your bread

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When your table looks like a steel bridge or a lunar lander, you definitely expect it to be as tough and as stable as one.

Tables and desks are some of the most rigid and most reliable pieces of furniture we have in our homes, or at least they’re supposed to be. There are times when manufacturing defects make them a little unstable, but some designs simply fail the “coffee and bread” test. These tables tend to jiggle and slide when you are trying to cut up food, causing coffee or other drinks to sway, slosh, or even spill. Taking on such a common problem that shouldn’t exist in the first place, the Landr dining and conference table tries to correct the design mistakes of common tables, promising enough stability that you can even place a lander on top of it to screw a light bulb.

Designer: Felix Monza

Of course, we’d rather you didn’t, but Landr’s designer is so confident in its stability to make such a bold and unqualified claim. Whether you’re cutting bread or standing on top of it, the table shouldn’t budge a single inch. At the very least, it wouldn’t collapse from under your weight, and it definitely looks like it could handle a rough lunar mission. That’s despite having a modular design that is also promised to be trouble-free to assemble.

The Landr’s design is both industrial and futuristic at the same time, owing to the barebones appearance of its steel frame and legs. If the crisscrossing pattern of the legs reminds you of steel cages, you wouldn’t be off the mark. As its name suggests, the Landr is heavily inspired by the legs of the Apollo Lunar Module as well as the roll cages of sports cars. Both vehicles embody stability and durability, and those are the characteristics that the Landr table wishes to convey, but in a more home-friendly fashion.

There is also a pinch of sustainability to the table, though it probably should probably be a long time before the Landr is ready to retire. It is mostly made of renewable or recyclable materials, like the steel frame that’s powder-coated rather than painted. Choices for table tops include ceramic, wood, and glass, with no plastic option in sight. Although the table is indeed recyclable, the designer hopes that owners will refurbish the table when the end of its use has arrived. Given its minimalist and timeless design, it will most likely fit in any context or time.

When it comes down to it, there is really no revolutionary invention or design involved in the Landr’s creation. It’s good old-fashioned research and prototyping, inspired by designs and products that have already been proven to work. That doesn’t make the result any less impressive or less attractive. The Landr’s unassuming yet eye-catching design clearly speaks to its best feature, removing any doubt that this table won’t wobble, topple, or fall down, no matter how hard that piece of bread is.

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Sci-Fi Inspired Computer Terminal With Round Monitor Is Space Ready

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The Mainboard Terminal is the brainchild of computer modder Penk Chen, who drew inspiration from old sci-movies, which imagined a future a lot cooler than it actually is. The all-in-one computer uses a Framework Mainboard (which, unlike a Rasberry Pi, is capable of running x86 operating systems) running a version of Ubuntu 22.04 LT that’s been slightly modified to account for the round display. Commander, an enemy ship just appeared on our radar! God, I love playing space rangers.

The Mainboard, which replaces a traditional motherboard and most other hardware (it’s basically an Intel-powered, single-board computer), sits inside a custom 3D-printed case, which also houses a OLKB Preonic mechanical keyboard, perfect for complementing the computer’s retrofuturistic style. I love retrofuturistic style. Maybe that’s why I spend so much time playing Fallout. Plus, you know, it’s a great escape from real life.

Now Penk just needs to make it run off an onboard battery instead of AC power so it’s portable, and I’ve got myself a new mobile workstation! Are people going to stare at me on the subway? Of course, but is it the computer they’re staring at or my space suit? Who knows!

[via TechEBlog]

This futuristic watch concept combines the aesthetics of spaceships with the precision of analog mechanics

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Space 2081 is a watch concept from Andrey Dalakishvili that combines spaceship aesthetics with analog mechanics.

No matter how it’s worn, a watch is always a statement piece. Wearing a good watch can tie an outfit together or stand out as its own look completely. Russian designer Andrey Dalakishvili looked to monolithic spaceships to source inspiration for his watch design called Space 2081.

Designer: Andrey Dalakishvili

Giving spaceships back their spotlight, Dalakishvili set out to design a watch that encapsulates the futuristic aesthetics and fine-tuned, technical details of spaceships. Space 2081 takes on subtle detailing to hone in on the watch’s futurist look and incorporates an analog display in ode to the mechanical precision of spaceships.

Spurred by the spaceship’s popularity in mass culture, from Hollywood classic films to video games, Dalakishvili scaled-down spacecraft motifs like aerodynamic structuring and rubber coverings to fit around your wrist. The rubber strap is conceived for durability while packing in a whole ton of comfort for everyday use. Coated in army green, the rubber strap instantaneously exudes serious business. The watch face itself is digitally minimal, opting instead for an analog display and inner hardware.

Diagonal etched lines run perpendicular to give the watch face a three-dimensional look, emphasizing the futuristic look of the whole piece. Merging with the diagonal lines, concentric circles define the actual watch clock, which hosts bright green hour and minute hands to compliment the dark green strap and glow in the dark.

Speaking to his choice to maintain the analog nature of the watch, Dalakishvili explains, “Even though we associate space with digital technologies, [the watch] was conceived with analog mechanisms–like a spaceship, it requires precision and filigree in creation and assembly.”

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Designed at Caltech, this bipedal, hybrid robot can walk and fly to showcase the future of locomotive robotics

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Researchers at Caltech designed LEO, a hybrid, bipedal robot, that combines flying and walking to experiment with the future of locomotive robotics.

If you’ve ever seen a heron take flight or land afterward, you’ve probably admired how gracefully they move. Like cats, they seem to always stick the landing. Inspired by the flight and movement of birds like herons, researchers at Caltech created a clever, bipedal robot with a small stature and uncanny knack for balance. In its current form, LEONARDO, as they. call the robot, is strictly experimental. However, future applications could find LEONARDO tactfully sticking the landing on a solo mission to Mars or leading the way to adaptive landing systems for other robots on Earth.

Designer: Caltech

LEONARDO, or LEO for short, stands for LEgs ONboARD drOne and is equipped with a pair of multi-joint legs and propeller thrusters to stabilize its walking gait and allow the robot to hop and jump. Standing only 2.5 feet tall, LEO is lanky in proportions, with long legs and the main body measuring only half the length of them. These proportions aid in LEO’s varied locomotive capabilities, from flying to walking. The researchers at Caltech explain, “The point of LEO is to give unprecedented walking ability and to solve problems posed by hybrid locomotion. LEO is capable of many tricks: tight-rope walking, stair flying, and skateboard riding. LEO is helping engineers rethink how robots could move in the future and could open difficult environments to robotic exploration.”

While LEO is more or less a passion project that serves to experiment with the potential of locomotive robotics future applications could find LEO revolutionizing adaptive landing gear systems, not only for Earth-bound robotic exploration missions but for rotorcraft on Mars. Caltech researcher Soon-Jo Chung, Bren Professor of Aerospace and Control and Dynamical Systems explains, “By using a hybrid movement that is somewhere between walking and flying, the researchers get the best of both worlds in terms of locomotion. LEO’s lightweight legs take the stress off of its thrusters by supporting the bulk of the weight, but because the thrusters are controlled synchronously with leg joints, LEO has uncanny balance.”

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Absolutely wild Porsche Neuro concept shows what racing could look like in the year 2077

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Spherical wheels, a shapeshifting body design that lets cars hit near hypersonic speeds, and drones that follow the car from the back, letting the driver race in ‘third person view’.

The year 2077 is roughly 55 years away, and given the track record of human innovation, I dare even assume how advanced we’ll be by then… but it’s safe to say that a concept that’s wild by today’s standards would probably be pretty commonplace half a century from now. Meet the Porsche Neuro, a radical racecar imagined for an era of metaverses, space-travel, cyborgs, and advanced tech. Quite unlike any car I’ve ever seen (including even the futuristic concepts), the Neuro’s body is divided into three parts – an exterior protective shell, an inner structure that morphs to make the car more aerodynamic, and an egg-shaped interior cabin that sits within the car as a tertiary unit, serving as the cockpit. Moreover, the cockpit is an entirely enclosed structure that provides the driver with a narrow view of what’s in front… so the Neuro also comes with a pair of camera-equipped drones that sit inside the car’s body, popping out and driving right behind the car to live stream a third-person view to the driver, allowing them to effectively choose between first and third-person driving.

Envisioned by Korea-based automotive designer Joon-yeop Bae, the Neuro concept boasts of quite a few radical automotive innovations, the most noteworthy being the car’s body itself. Inspired by the biomechanics of a frog, the car comes with a body that shape-shifts, alternating between different stances. The wheels on the Neuro move independent of the car’s cabin, popping out sideways in ‘frog mode’ or receding inward into the car’s body in ‘tadpole mode’. These two modes allow the car to either cover more ground, making it highly maneuverable on curved roads, or reduce the track width to make the car more aerodynamic on straight roads. The addition of spherical wheels are fairly futuristic too, allowing the car to have multiple degrees of freedom as it races down the track.

Perhaps the most unusual aspect of the Neuro’s design is the inclusion of drones, which follow the car from the back. Docked in special compartments near the rear wheel flaps (which double as spoilers to increase downforce), the drones pop out to offer a ‘multi perspective’ driving experience that allows drivers to view their cars as they would in a video game, offering a unique perspective that makes racing easier and much more thrilling. The drones also unlock the ability for the car to be controlled remotely, allowing the driver to operate the car without being seated within it. It’s fair to say the year 2077 is quite far away, but if this is the direction we’re heading in, I honestly can’t wait for this future!

Designer: Joon-yeop Bae

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This floating habitat concept captures carbon from the air and converts it into electricity!

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Carbon Capture Refuge X is a conceptual habitat that is a dystopian dream but in the best way possible! Yee envisions these to be floating structures that capture carbon from the air and convert it into electricity. It will be a community created for scientists and by scientists that sits within the Earth’s troposphere. Scientists in this habitat are working on environmental research but it will also be a space for refugees.

Each habit will feature solar panels and direct-air-capture fans that extract carbon from the atmosphere to be converted into electrical energy. The energy will run through neon strips within the structure’s floors, walls, and roofs. Yee describes these strips as “veins” designed to circulate utilities throughout the structure. They will also act like “muscles” that elongate to accommodate the system’s growth and open and close depending on the weather to allow air and natural light inside!

Carbon Capture Refuge X is an imaginative vision for a floating, technologically advanced future city. Even though the design seems like something you can only see in movies, it actually showcases achievable technologies such as carbon capture, which will have an important role to play in reversing climate change.

“War-ravaged by political upheaval and nearly rendered uninhabitable by natural disasters, earth’s refugees became ubiquitous. From the suffering and desperation, a manifestation to live with the earth and not just on the earth emerged. Scientists then developed a habitable living infrastructure known as Carbon Capture Refuge X. This living infrastructure simultaneously provided a sustainable way of living while filtering carbon out of the atmosphere,” explains Yee.

The design utilizes Earth’s magnetic field to suspend the habitable orb above the ground and sea, thus creating a floating structure in the troposphere.  Its physical form will be continuously evolving. Drones will be used for the distribution of goods to and between habitats. Far ahead in the future, Yee imagines that the orbs can be connected and plugged into one another.

Carbon Capture Refuge X will also feature rainwater collection which will be stored and filtered by vegetation and then used to supplement hydroponic farming. The vegetation creates a localized microclimate. There will also be a control centre that monitors the comfort, location, and communications of the habitat. The orbs now fill the sky with ecosystems without borders!

Designer: Bless Yee

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