Personal Rapid Transport (PRT)

I was just browsing the BBC News website when I came across the new technology at Heathrow airport in London. I had never actually heard of personal Rapid Transit (PRT) before until reading this article on BBC News. 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/click_online/9617577.stm

It was invented in the 1950’s but the first operational PRT was introduced in Paris in October 1974. Back then it used lasers to keep a close distance behind each carriage, the whole project was dropped shortly after development. 

As you can see the style of the PRT in Paris is very boxes and not aesthetically pleasing, this is obviously just due to the time. The creators of this said that each carriage should be close behind so more carriages could fit on the track therefore using more carriages. If I am honest I feel that is a very stupid idea, just for the fact if anything went wrong with the technology it would cause so much damage.

After looking into what PRT is I think it is a very effective way to travel, I feel that eventually big towns should use this technology to replaces buses. Buses are loud, slow, gets stuck in traffic, not economic, expensive to run. This way of travel is more effective as it is doesn’t use people, its completely computerized. It won’t get stuck in traffic, or release bad fumes to the atmosphere, as it is completely electric. Over all it is a cheap way of travel and shows a new cutting edge technology. The work at Heathrow, in my eyes is great. The look of the whole system is modern in the way it has been created, from the glass folding doors to the round shape of the exterior pods.

Over all I think this is great idea Heathrow has taken from history and completely modernized it to work for the airport. I do feel that eventually in the next century, each town will/should have this technology instead of buses, well that’s what I hope. 

Is the 'Genium' Prosthetic really affordable?

On the train to University this morning and was looking through the metro newspaper and came across an article about the first British bionic man. Instantly I was like 'Yeh Right!' but i was shocked that it was real. The article was about how a man lost his left leg when he was 15 in a road accident and his struggle with prosthetic legs. So he went a spent £50,000 on a bionic leg that works the same as real leg. 

‘Genium’ creates the leg, they describe this as, “Creating natural, multi directional movement, it optimizes a user’s gait and gives them the confidence to engage in activities and try things they might not otherwise be able to do with a normal prosthetic knee.” The amazing thing about this new technology is that this product gives an amputee the ability to run, jump, cycle and a lot more intensive sports. This video with demonstrate the leg fully. 

http://www.hanger.com/prosthetics/services/Technology/Pages/Genium.aspx

This is a fantastic new technology shows a break through on a serious situation, making amputees move around significantly better without any issue. Matthew Newbery received 2.1 million pound compensation after his accident so could easily afford this new advanced technology. But the question is, will any average joe be able to afford this technology?

In my opinion i feel that No i dont think any average joe will be able to afford this. Its a brand new product so obviously over time the price will decrease in value and become more affordable, but i just cant see the price falling low enough. 

Over all this product is incredible and is extremely useful for amputees but i think 'Genium' should redesign this and make the product more affordable for the average joe than aiming this great technology to the rich. 

ZIIIRO Celeste Watch, is it too complicated?

Following my last blog I have decided to keep looking into new products on the market but avoiding the whole smartphone area for now as there is too much of an uproar with this iPhone 4s vs. Samsung cheat thing. I was browsing the Internet tonight and came across the new ZIIIRO Celeste Watch on Behance.net 

Straight of, seeing this product cause my mind to be shocked! I genuinely think - from an aesthetics view - that the design of this watch is incredible. It is currently keeping in the currant trend with the dull metal with the contrast of the bright colors. Everything from the simplicity of the design of the wrist band, to the flat coloured face to the 'cool' new way of telling the time, it all comes together to create a very - in my eyes - asethically pleasing watch! 

But once I started to look at the function of the watch mechanism (this new time telling technology) I personally felt it was very confusing. 

It could just be me, but I just think looking at this watch product, I can’t tell the time from it! For example, look at the first image on the left below. It is meant to be 12:30 but nothing is pointing to 12, if im honest I think it looks more like 13:30. Same with the middle image, 1:55, it looks like 2.55. 

Over all I do really love the look of this product with the metal and the contrast of the bright colours but I honestly feel that it doesn't work as a product. Okay eventually I guess you would know how to work it but I feel it would still take you a few minuets to think of the time, when on a traditional watch can tell you the time in a few seconds. 

Samsung - The Copy Cat Scandals!?

Welcome to my blog about Trends and Visual thinking. I am currently studying Ba (Hons) Product Design, were over the next year I will be updating this blog with new Trends that interest me. I will also be discussing topics of design that I feel strongly about.

I will be starting this blog with an article I found in the guardian earlier this week, explaining that Samsung has taken over Apple in the fight for being the best smartphone selling company.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2011/oct/28/samsung-overtakes-apple-smartphone

As a neutral debate I feel that Samsung should not be praised for this and should be branded as CHEATS! I have researched Samsung and Apple’s mobiles since 2007 when the first iPhone was released. In my findings I found out that Samsung have actually been copying existing mobile brands in their designs, not just Apple but also Blackberry.  Let me explain.

From before June 2007 when the first iPhone was released, no mobile company used touch screen in any of their products, only the occasional touch pad was used.

“The original iPhone was released in June 2007 with an auto-rotate sensor, a multi-touch sensor that allowed multiple inputs while ignoring minor touches, a touch interface that replaced the traditional QWERTY keyboards, and many other features that helped to give Apple an almost instant healthy market share on its release”

In June 2007, Apple released the first ever iPhone that featured a ‘built in’ iPod. In September 2007, Apple released its 6^th Generation IPod Classic. 

However, a month later (October 2007) Samsung announced the release of its brand new smartphone, the B&O Serenata, featuring an inbuilt mp3 system and a 4gb internal storage capacity.

“Serenata is a music mobile phone focusing on sound quality and at the same time on bringing a more sophisticated lifestyle. To own Serenata is to enjoy the best possible music experience while you are on the move. Bang & Olufsen's expertise in concept development, user interface experience, acoustic sound capabilities and design skills together with Samsung's leadership in mobile phone technology, engineering and quality have realized a new way of combining unique music and mobile experiences for consumers. Featuring hi-fi speakers to deliver high quality sound reproduction and telephony, Serenata also provides a portable conference call feature, enabling multiple users to have a phone call.”

 This is Samsung B&O Serenata, Released in October 2007… 

And this is the 6^th Gen Ipod Classic. The new shape released September 2007 …

Would you say this image of the Samsung B&O Serenata resembles Apples IPhone Classic?  Yes?

In 2007 Samsung started their ‘copy cat’ routine that has carried onto todays market.

After the iPhone 3g was released in 2008 Samsung retaliated by releasing their first touch screen phone ‘Samsung Instinct’. It was described as “The iPhone killer” from Samsung at a bargain price of $129.00” 

Samsung revealed that when this phone was released, it would be an “iPhone Killer”, if they were intending to do that then why did they end up copying most of Apple iPhones ideas? From its touch screen, to square icons, the details of it’s battery icons and even down to the rectangular shape and sleek look, every major detail had been completely replicated yet positioned differently. Why? There must have been something that Samsung wanted to achieve, possibly spite over the reputation of the worlds leading technological brand, Apple…?

Right after this the Blackberry Curve 8900 was launched where the world saw a different sort of phone, instead of the Apple iPhones all touch screen mobile, blackberry created an all button mobile. 

 Soon after this release, Samsung responded by releasing a phone called the ‘Samsung Magnet’. The overall design and function of the phone worked parallel to the ‘Blackberry Curve’. The difference between Samsung’s mobile phones, Apples iPhone and any Blackberry, is that Samsung mobiles seem to have a reputation in malfunction and breakdown, were as Apple and Blackberry are known for making reliable phones that last.

Samsung doesn’t just copy other companies’ ideas; they also copy their names.

All the way through Samsung’s mobile phone history it shows that every phone they released had a different name for each new phone. Since Apple has kept the iPhone name but changed the letter or number at the end, Samsung has now adopted this idea with their brand new mobile – Samsung Galaxy. The Galaxy name has stuck with Samsung for their last 13 phones that I last counted that are on the market at the moment - http://www.samsung.com/uk/consumer/mobile-devices/smartphones/android

The iPhone 4 was released in June 2010 (Picture on right) and the Samsung Galaxy S2 was released about 10 months later (on the left). Samsung has just blatantly copied the iPhone 4 features, everything from the App Icons being in the exact same position, to the entire shape of the phone, to the next page circle symbols, everything to the speaker at the top.  Apple said, “Apple says the product design, user interface and packaging of Samsung's Galaxy devices "slavishly copy" the iPhone and iPad.” Through out the past years, Samsung have been copying all there ideas of other companies – I can understand field research, looking into products on the market – but Samsung have actually been copying the ideas and putting them into there own products. At the moment, the papers are crowning Samsung as the “Smartphone King” in my opinion I feel they do not deserve the glory for there products at all, as in my eyes they are ‘Copy Cats’ and ‘Cheats!’