8 Ingenious Redesigns of Everyday Objects
Students from École cantonale d'art de Lausanne paired up with conceptual gadget maker Punkt to recreate, and improve, eight everyday items.
ÉCAL/DONGKYUN LIMCorner Clock
Each year during Salone del Mobile in Milan, Italy, design students from Switzerland's École cantonale d'art de Lausanne show off creations that are more about ideas than making it to market. This makes Punkt is a fitting collaborator. The Swiss company’s gadgets often are so technologically pared down, they’re almost conceptual---like its [MP01 mobile phone](https://www.punkt.ch/en/products/mp01-mobile-phone/) that handles only calls and texts and looks like a calculator. For ÉCAL x Punkt, the students created prototypes of eight household items, all reconfigured to be more intuitive. This clock, for instance, hangs in the corner, so users can tell time from every angle in a room.
ÉCAL/Jaehoon JungTilting Projector
Projectors are fantastic gadgets that let you enjoy television without an actual television devouring space in your living room. But most projectors come with some spatial constraints, because they need to beam content onto a wall opposite the viewer. Designer Jaehoon Jung solved for that here, by creating an octagonal body for this projector. The device rotates, affording a range of angles for projecting and viewing.
ÉCAL/James DartTorch Lamp
Like the typical video projector, the typical flashlight has a slight usability problem: it casts light in one direction. It's not a light so much as a spotlight, illuminating only what it's trained on. That isn't particularly useful in a blackout, or when your hands are full. Torch Lamp features a rounded lens reminiscent of an incandescent bulb. A flat bottom lets the Torch Lamp stand up, filling the room with light.
ÉCAL/Jérémy FaivreDigital Camera
The DC 01 is a lightweight digital camera that eschews screens in favor of one small lens attached to a camera body. The idea is to pinch the protruding end with two fingers---your thumb and index finger---to more easily snap pictures from tricky angles. No screen also means no fretting over your photos and endlessly trying to get the perfect shot. Like a disposable camera, it lets you live the moment and record the moment, and enjoy the photos later.
ÉCAL/NADINE SCHAUBWall Printer
For anyone who still needs a printer, this one was designed to feel like an old-school mail slot. The printer mounts on the wall (a clever space-saving feature) and spits out pages right side up into a basket below.
ÉCAL/Kevin GouriouWeather Station
Yes, for a home weather station, you could rig your home with sensor-laden gadgets like Netatmo and Lapka. You could even [build your own](http://slim-weight.info/2016/04/diy-weather-station/). The WS 01 Weather Station is meant for more routine use. The square device sticks to a windowpane and displays temperature, air quality, and atmospheric pressure. A tiny solar panel powers the gadget, so once it's up, it's up for good. Pedestrian, but highly practical.
ÉCAL/Terkel Skou SteffensenInternet Radio
There used to be a fixed number of radio stations in any city. Internet radio made your options seem limitless. This circular radio channels design language from the original iPod and makes surfing Internet radio possible just by spinning the dial. The industrial design likely feels familiar; its UI is evocative of the Nest thermostat, and features the same perforated grill and neutral color as the well-known [wall-mounted CD player](http://www.muji.us/store/furniture-interior/electronics/electronics-others/wall-mounted-cd-player-white.html) Naoto Fukasawa designed for Muji.
ÉCAL/Lucas FrankExtension Socket
Like a retractable leash, or a tape measure, the ES 02 Extension Socket uses an internal rewinding system to give users an adjustable length of cord. An electrical socket is on the end of the cord, to make powering up a more flexible task. Its designer, Lucas Frank, says it's "for stress-free travel."
