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pr o d u c t
OGO
de S i g n F i r M Collins
lo c at io n New York, NY
cl i e n t AT&T Wireless
B e
Apart from Apple, this category is strongly gender-
stereotyped, with techy, masculine, steel gadgets
contrasted with pink, bubbly, frosted goodies for the ladies
(so to speak). This packaging, however, effortlessly slots
into a happy medium—young and punchy, with its rainbow
of primary colors as the simple graphic backdrop. It might
distract from the product visual slightly, but it would
certainly attract your attention. I’m relieved the windows
are transparent frosted, as I think an opaque box with that
amount of vibrancy might be a little overbearing.
M k
In 1985, Paul Rand designed packaging for IBM that applied
a similar, vertical color-bar format. That was more than
twenty years ago, so it goes to show that really good design
really is timeless. As a form of re-appropriation this design
brings back stripes as a decorative and attention-grabbing
graphic back into fashion.
r W
A nice exercise in visual contrasts. The cacophony of color
on the front of the package is nicely balanced by the side
panel’s quiet elegance. I like how product features are
called out in simple, tiny-but-readable black type, and
how this again is contrasted by the huge, playful, geomet-
ric drop-out logo. The name and entire brand experience
speaks directly to the millennium’s kinetic, connected,
“survival-of-the-fastest” culture.
S W
You can feel the energy pulsing through this brand. This
is all about the constant flow of communication, using all
sources—text, IM, and email. This is perfect for a young cul-
ture, but the design wisely manages to broaden that demo-
graphic. I love how OGO is reversed out of the stripes and
becomes part of the energy. The translucent side panels
add a sophistication and give the design room to breathe.
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pr o d u c t The Visual Thesaurus
de S i g n F i r M Thinkmap
lo c at i o n New York, NY
cl i e n t Thinkmap
pr o d u c t Ultrasilencer Special Edition
de S i g n F i r M BVD
lo c at i o n Stockholm, Sweden
cl i e n t Electrolux Floor Care & Light Appliances
M k
I like to think that designers carry a visual thesaurus in
their heads. We visually associate the connections between
words and images, signs, symbols, colors, and shapes. But
who would not want to use this product to get the juices
going? The graphic map, positioned off-center as structures
building in space, is a perfect means to visually identify this
experiential process. The top horizontal color-coded band
serves as an overhead boundary for the interconnected
concepts and nicely balances the brand identity that
grounds the overall architecture. The icon and brand
identity lockup effectively communicates the character of
this product.
S W
The Visual Thesaurus is an intriguing concept in and of
itself, so to use one of the diagrams on the cover of the
package was probably an obvious solution. However, the
obvious is often overlooked. The orange band at the top
feels too rigid for such a beautiful, exploding diagram. My
eye bounces up there, when I really want to roam around
the beautiful words. The booklike box structure with
the wider sides feels sturdy and substantial, like an old-
school thesaurus.
M k
A noise-free (noise as in clutter, uncontaminated by
unnecessary elements) image for a vacuum packaging
design is really quite cunning. The classic, clean typeface
and color combination express a confidently modern design
aesthetic. Creating silence with a pure white interior is
beyond clever. Imagine the experience of opening a brown
kraft–color corrugated box and experiencing the stark
whiteness of the product and the inner environment. The
white bag carries its branding proudly. The fact that the
designers considered the interior structure as part of the
experiential strategy is an added benefit that helps make
this really good design.
S W
Cleaning might actually be fun if I had this vacuum. The
product is beautiful, and the package it comes in is a perfect
expression of the design aesthetic. The brown kraft on the
outside of the box communicates the utilitarian aspect,
while opening to the bright white vacuum surrounded by
the white kraft would be almost surreal. The orange cord
sold me.
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pr o d u c t
Q•BA•MAZE
de S i g n F i r M Spunk Design Machine
lo c at i o n Minneapolis, MN
cl i e n t Q•B A• MA ZE
M k
With product this graphic and colorful, incorporating it into the visual
appeal of the design makes sense. The white label with die-cut arcs
contrasts nicely with the structural forms of the products and with the
dotted lines that bleed off the edges. The bold identity and graphics on
a white background complement rather than compete with the vibrantly
colored product. It’s interesting how both the large and small black dots
work effectively in symbolically expressing the purpose of the game.
r W
I’m not sure if it’s the product or the package that I like more. Sure, your
eye bounces around between the many elements, but that’s part of the fun
in the maze experience. The product name mirrors the clever tag line. I like
the structural die cut and the graphic dotted line that continues through
the lower right corner, revealing the final destination of the traveling
balls. Bravo to the design firm who left the dual language and the warning
statement on this submission! That’s a requirement in the real world. So
many others cheat by giving in to the temptation of removing the required
disclaimers before entering a review process. I applaud not only the design
but also the design firm’s honesty.
S W
This straddles the line between adult product and kid product. Amazingly,
the package manages to target both by giving the colorful, translucent
maze pieces center stage. The pictographic quality of the logo and the
primarily white package surface frame the product nicely. The dotted line
running through the package tells a useful story of how the marble moves
through the maze, but it also adds a sophisticated, playful element to the
surface. Could this be the next Lego?
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r W
You gotta love a frog with bling, right? If one of brand
identity’s objectives is to surprise and delight, then this
design is a contender. What a hip and trendy frog has to
do with burning DVDs I don’t know, but I do know that this
will catch your eye and perhaps fire your imagination in the
otherwise duller-than-dull electronics category. Check out
the froggie icons that call out the brand’s core benefits in
equally delightful ways. Check out the vibrant color and the
playful logo. Forgive the “yank ‘n burn” brand motto on the
top panel (again, I just don’t get it.) However, sometimes it’s
worth going to this extreme to make a lasting impression.
Even if that means kissing a few frogs in the process.
pr o d u c t USB Cell
de S i g n F i r M Turner Duckworth
lo c at i o n London, England and San Francisco, CA
cl i e n t Moixa Limited
B e
Great idea in the logo, nicely observed, that gives this tiny
package relevance. Pastiching the generic language of
batteries—black with green/orange; heavy, bold sans serif
caps with some glowing energy cues—helps communicate
the attributes of the product.
M k
The product is extremely clever, the effectiveness of this
small design solution is equally bright, and the logo really
nails it. At first glance, you assume it’s a battery, then
it’s a flash drive, then it’s a USB battery. Our immediate
presumptions come from visual conditioning. Maybe you
have to be pretty astute to see the flash drive symbol in the
logo but once you get it, you really appreciate how one letter
and one rectangle can be transformed into a clever brand
identity. Nice little radiating energy graphics, too.
pr o d u c t Yank DVD Burner
de S i g n F i r M Capsule
lo c at i o n Minneapolis, MN
cl i e n t Yank
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pr o d u c t
Divcom
de S i g n F i r M Nolin Branding & Design
lo c at i o n Montreal, Canada
cl i e n t Divcom
M k
It often surprises me how poorly designed the packaging for interior
design products is. This solution for under-cabinet lights demonstrates
how a simple, clean, modern aesthetic can effectively distinguish a product
from its competition. The die-cut window nicely frames the products, the
combination of the silver-and-white product against the lime foil lining
shines, and the matte gray structure with lime and white lowercase type all
work together to give it a pleasing appearance.
S W
This is a beautiful package—clean, simple, elegant, and only two-color.
The solid matte finish is a nice foil for the shiny chrome-and-glass finish of
the product. The solid interior color gives the products a strong base. The
simple diagrams/icons work especially well to keep the bilingual copy
to a minimum.
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