Maya Posch wrote an insightful, and perhaps controversial, piece on the state of consumer goods design titled “The Death Of Industrial design And The Era Of Dull Electronics.” her basic thesis is that the “form follows function” aesthetic has gone too far, resulting in functionally equivalent devices all looking the same. Cellphones, such as, are now slabs of screen with minimal bezels, designed to disappear rather than showcase industrial design.
This extreme example sparked lively debate, as people desire both beauty and function in their creations, a concept ofen in conflict. While Posch’s point about the suppression of designed form in consumer goods may hold true for some items, it’s not global. Our houses, as an example, do not look alike, despite serving the same purpose. Ironically, architecture is the origin of the “form follows function” fetish. Cars fall somewhere in between, with cellphones representing the opposite end of the spectrum from architecture. There remains ample room for both form and function in the world.
Consider the smartphone case. In an era of homogeneous devices where slimness is a prime selling point, most users add a few millimeters of thickness with a decorative case. This desire to ornament our phones, even at the cost of slimness, stems ironically from the sameness of the devices themselves.
Could this be the same impetus behind the cyberdeck movement, custom mechanical keyboards, and various hacks on consumer goods? The need to personalize items is nearly universal, perhaps representing a better ideal for good design: a device that speaks to you directly as it represents your work.
While purchasing a phone case isn’t as creative as hacking a phone, it allows for a degree of personal design expression. It also frees designers from making highly personal choices for consumers. Perhaps a “nothing” design that allows for easy personalization is the solution. Has the slab smartphone ultimately resolved the form-versus-function debate?
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