Online concept evaluation in Philips' Simplicity Labs

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Philips Research usually does not work on the next big thing in consumer electronics, but on the next-next big thing in consumer electronics. To give you a sense of the timelines we're talking about: back in 1994 they were exploring the possibilities of the networked home in the WWICE project.

Over the past years user-involvement has become more and more important when they develop future product concepts and now Philips Research is opening up: on their SimplicityLabs website you can see, evaluate and contribute to new interaction concepts. The presentation is not extremely engaging, and some of the concepts may make you wonder: will I ever use this? But that's the idea...

1 reaction:

Walter Aprile said...: imagine that: in 1994 they were exploring the networked home and still today, more then ten years later, nobody gives a damn about the networked home, except techno-exhibitionist and sellers of white goods desperate for finding a way to push more boxes out.

At this rate, if in 2050 nobody still gives a damn about the networked home they will have been even more anticipatory.

OK, more seriously: I have not yet seen a realistic scenario for the networked home that wasn't either a minefield of potential disasters or an exercise in boredom. And the fridge talks to the oven! And what do they talk about? "I am very hot!" "I am very cold!" "Ovens rule" "No, fridges rule!"

I am sorry, the networked home brings out the worse in me.; 4:05 PM