Final Deadline for 2025 is March 25th at 9 PM EST—get to work on your entry now with the help of this guide.Receiving an honor in the Core77 Design Awards takes a little more than just an exceptional design project—it requires turning that exceptional project into an entry that w … | Continue reading
To anyone who pays an energy bill, harvesting free power from the sun sounds attractive. But solar remains prohibitively expensive, at least in the U.S. The up-front cost of the panels and the installation mean the overall savings take years or decades to accrue, which is too lon … | Continue reading
Here's what we looked at this week:Specialty tools: Cascade Designs' snow saw for safety and shelter. Chery's wild living-room-on-wheels vehicle concept.Industrial designer and innovation leader Kevin Bethune's new "Nonlinear: Navigating Design with Curiosity and Conviction" … | Continue reading
The comedian Colin Quinn jokes that reaction videos have become popular because we are now too lazy to even react to things. Better to watch someone else do it than expend the energy.I thought of that when I saw this robot bicycle, which at the moment appears to have no function … | Continue reading
This case study is pretty light on details, but I'm including it because when I first saw the product—a designey tool set aimed at consumers, not tradespeople—I was curious as to who designed it. The answer is: Industrial design firm Doris Dev. Here's what they had to say about t … | Continue reading
When it comes to cutting sheet metal, roofers have a plethora of tools to choose from. And all have their drawbacks. Handheld snips are reliable, but cause fatigue over long runs. Electric shears and nibblers are faster, but create waste in the form of curlicue shavings and meta … | Continue reading
As we saw with his Smoke Glass, Italian industrial designer Joe Colombo loved smoking and drinking. And, apparently, poker; he designed this Poker Table in 1968. A precursor to the gaming tables of today, the table featured four flip-out wings that allowed players to stack an add … | Continue reading
Niigata, Japan gets a lot of snow. Way back in the 1960s, they figured out a way to keep the roads clear of snow without requiring plows. Groundwater warmed by geothermal heat is pumped through a network of pipes below the road surface, and sprayed onto the asphalt using sprinkle … | Continue reading
While there's nothing funny about car accidents or the message behind Gaetano Pesce's UP 5 chair, designed in 1969, this anecdote is worth telling. First off, the UP 5 chair. The curvaceous form is meant to represent the popular idealization of women's bodies—and it's attached to … | Continue reading
As the 1950s became the '60s, a new automotive phenomenon was emerging: The sports car. In 1960 Chevrolet broke the 10,000-unit production milestone for their Corvette, the first time that automotive niche had reached five figures. Up until that point, automobiles in America were … | Continue reading
If there's a category of furniture I never think about, it's cloakroom furniture. But these pieces caught my eye. They're the stock-in-trade of Dalform, a Swedish company that sells to schools, hospitals, gyms, sporting venues, businesses and institutions. The powder-coated finis … | Continue reading
These bFRIENDS Power Modules, by British industrial design firm Pearson Lloyd, challenge your idea of what a power strip is supposed to look like—and how they're made. As the firm explains:"Traditionally produced using highly tooled, multi-material assemblies, the bFRIENDS pow … | Continue reading
Curious about design awards but have not yet made a decision to enter? Here is the guidance you may be looking for to present your team's work to a jury. If you are reading this unconvinced of the merit of entering a design awards program, please let us to take a moment to remind … | Continue reading
In just a matter of years, quadrotor drones have gone from consumer playthings to CIA-level technology. Drone manufacturer DJI's Dock 3 moves well beyond the consumer sector, targeting emergency responders and infrastructure inspectors. The "drone-in-a-box" system allows the comp … | Continue reading
Peak Design, the B-Corp known for producing well-designed bags, has made their first foray into proper luggage. Their new Roller Pro Carry-On was designed from the ground up, without relying on off-the-shelf hardware. The designers first looked at the telescoping handles common t … | Continue reading
An avalanche can literally go from 0-60 within seconds. The impact of the onrushing snow is enough to break bones and cause internal injuries. hould you survive those but be buried, you'll run out of air within 15 minutes.This is why avalanche forecasters exist. These men and wom … | Continue reading
Chinese auto manufacturer Chery is teasing this concept vehicle, which is either called the Fulwin Jinyun SMPV or the Journeo; the messaging is unclear, as there's been no official press release from the company. It was reportedly designed at the company's Advanced Design Centr … | Continue reading
Industrial designer and innovation leader Kevin Bethune, the founder and Chief Creative Office of design think-tank dreams • design + life, has written a new book. His first, "Reimagining Design: Unlocking Strategic Innovation," explored the strategic values of design beyond aest … | Continue reading
Enzo Mari introduced his Autoprogettazione movement back in 1974, encouraging DIY furniture making. Today, five decades later, German company 1x1 Systems continues the movement with a digital twist, providing 3D print files for objects you can assemble and complete yourself.This … | Continue reading
Thyrm is an American company founded by Andrew Frazier, a former medical device designer. Frazier has shifted course towards designing tactical gear, like this DarkVault 2.0. It's a chest-mounted rig for holding smartphones, designed to be used in "austere" environments encounter … | Continue reading
These images are by L.A.-based artist Joshua Vides.As it turns out, they're more than just images:Vides wraps each car in vinyl, then hand paints them to create the Pop Art / comic book / A-Ha video aesthetic. The cars were featured in Vides' solo show, Check Engine Light, whi … | Continue reading
The Core77 Design Awards Tools category features consumer products only. It includes products or services designed for individual use with the intention of improving efficiency and productivity, supporting craft, making, and personal building. Examples include: hardware tools, pr … | Continue reading
This gorgeous piece of industrial design is by Grau, a German lighting company whose motto is "Light should be a poem."The lamp is called Fire Table, and Grau's designers have really sweated the details:The shade is made from mouth-blown glass. The lamp's body is aluminum, in you … | Continue reading
It's been a few years since we asked "Why are wi-fi routers so darned ugly?" This Vibrant WiFi router, by Seoul-based industrial design firm Intenxiv, aims to change that. "Wireless internet routers have traditionally been hidden away due to their unconventional shapes, limited … | Continue reading
Although Phillip Potthast has been reading Core77 since his time as an industrial design student, he never anticipated that he might one day appear in its pages talking about bees. "I was more into automotive and car design, actually," he reminisces. "And I've just pivoted, one h … | Continue reading
This surprising Bubble Stool is by Studio Ololoo, a Ningbo, China-based design firm. At first glance it appears to be aluminum, and it might take you a second to spot the unusual seat: The stool is in fact made of painted wood. The captured, inflated seat is made from thermoplast … | Continue reading
We've seen offset-leg cantilevered side tables before, but Humanscale's Float Micro offers a trick that many don't: Height adjustability. The leg presumably contains a spring or hydraulic piston, as the unit is unpowered. The base is available in a flat Glide version or up on l … | Continue reading
Brooklyn-based Spitfire Industry is a consultancy founded by industrial designer Isis Shiffer. The firm has worked across every category an ID firm might be called on for: Product, lighting, medical, wellness, toys, packaging, luggage, vehicle interiors, you name it. With plenty … | Continue reading
Here's what we looked at this week:Fellow Products channels Dieter Rams' design approach. 1X shows off NEO Gamma, their domestic servant robot. This is surely the beginning of the end. Phaidon's forthcoming "Mid-Century Modern Designers" book covers 300 designers and goes way … | Continue reading
Here's an example of a company going above and beyond to solve their clients' problems. Sortimo is a German manufacturer of mobile tool storage solutions; van racks and corresponding carry cases are their stock-in-trade. Tradespeople in Europe fit their vans out with Sortimo kit … | Continue reading
Briefcases are form follows function.The briefcase came into existence in the 19th century, following the explosion of the mass production of paper in standard sizes. As commerce and legal affairs began to dominate the economy, businesspeople had a need to transport documents aro … | Continue reading
The Autodesk Fusion team is excited to announce the second annual Autodesk Fusion Prize as part of the 2025 Core77 Design Awards. This award recognizes the most outstanding project that utilized Autodesk Fusion product development software from all entries in this year's awards p … | Continue reading
The Core77 Design Awards Commercial & Industrial category features equipment, machinery, and systems used in business operations across various industries. Operational equipment and systems designed for commercial use such as retail, restaurants, and offices. Industrial equipment … | Continue reading
This Stool Story project is by Weil, an Industrial Design student at ECAL. Weil sought to repurpose cast-off material as functional furniture.The material used in this project is discarded carpet from the school's workshop—previously utilized in furniture exhibitions. This led We … | Continue reading
While living in Japan, I witnessed an interesting trick for teaching children to ride a bicycle: Remove the pedals. As the child Fred-Flintstones his way around the street on the bike, their body naturally picks up on how to balance a two-wheeler. They can literally pick it up in … | Continue reading
Pipe Lighting is the German manufacturer that revolutionized set lighting with their lightweight inflatable solutions. Now they've come up with another neat trick: Filling out their kit with RGBWW, which are LED units that can incorporate Red, Green, Blue, Warm White, and White, … | Continue reading
Here's an unusual barbecue cooking implement that fittingly comes from Asia. This mesh frying pan, by Japan's Noridomi Iron Works, was designed to allow you to cook rice and noodles over an open flame. While you could do this with a skillet or wok, this mesh design permits the f … | Continue reading
Japanese manufacturer Sigma's new mirrorless BF camera is freaking unibody. It is machined out of a single block of aluminum, and the milling process reportedly takes seven hours. Why? Does this make the camera take better pictures? Is it easier to use? No. About the only tan … | Continue reading
Good product designs solve a user problem, occasionally a problem the user didn't realize they had. Other product designs emerge when companies try to apply some technology they've mastered to a new market, answering a question no one asked.I think this product falls in the latte … | Continue reading
Within the world of tool design, workholding doesn't get much love; it just isn't sexy. But without proper workholding, tasks are made more difficult.Minneapolis-based company Work IQ Tools gets that. They've developed this IQ Vise, which can rotate on a ball joint to achieve ang … | Continue reading
What do you envision when you hear "landscape architecture?" Undoubtedly you picture the finished product, some carefully-curated and -manicured arrangement of plantings surrounding a house. Few picture the laborers who do the backbreaking work of moving earth, stone and plants t … | Continue reading
The Core77 Design Awards Consumer Technology category features electronic devices, software, and gadgets that are designed for personal use by the general public and aim to improve daily life, enhance entertainment, facilitate communication, or streamline tasks. A consumer softwa … | Continue reading
If you walked into a residential or hospitality-industry bathroom, and saw one of these, would you know what it was? That's the Gordon, which British manufacturer Eskimo Design bills as "Europe's most innovative towel warmer" and "the best electric towel rail you will ever own." … | Continue reading
As someone who grew up watching Star Wars, it's weird to realize that C-3PO was essentially an AI. So was R2-D2. Two AI's that had dominion over their own bodies, and nothing further. That's not the future, however. Figure AI, one of the startups leading the humanoid robot develo … | Continue reading
Industrial designer Gustav Rosén and business partner David Lindell recently launched Kord, a Swedish design brand. Their stock-in-trade, at least to start, is power. "We saw an opportunity to take something as common as power strips," says Lindell, "and give them a distinct pres … | Continue reading
Design writer Dominic Bradbury has been working on Mid-Century Modern Designers, "an homage to the design pioneers who defined the Mid-Century aesthetic through their work in furniture, glassware, ceramics, and textiles," according to Phaidon, the publisher. "Featuring 300 of the … | Continue reading
One year ago we first saw EVE, the moderately creepy humanoid robot designed by Norwegian company 1X. Whereas EVE was designed for industrial and commercial environments, the company has since rolled out NEO Gamma, their wheels-free 'bot designed for performing menial tasks in a … | Continue reading
"Don't design, just to design," says Jake Miller. "Set out to solve a problem. Then, solve that problem in the most elegant way imaginable." Miller runs Fellow Products, a company he founded to "introduce more people to specialty coffee through approachable design." Surprisingly, … | Continue reading