oobject » non Apple minimalist gadgets

non Apple minimalist gadgets

Cheap hi-fis sometimes come with lots of flashing lights and buttons, sound terrible and are difficult to use. Expensive ones often to come with not much more than an on/off switch and volume control, and sound great.

One of things that happens in a mature market is that people go for quality rather than quantity - what this means in technology is less features and better design. Apple is the first technology company to go mainstream with a minimalist, mature-market design ethos, but there are others. Here are our current favorite (non-Apple) minimalist gadgets. This is a chart that we will be continually updating, over time. Vote for your favorites:

(Ranked by user votes) Vote on and review the contenders below.

Samsung circular printer. more...

(votes: +120)

We have included the zero bike alongside the Selandia bike since in many ways it is opposite but equal. If you are going to stretch the limits of technology for a design, such as the classic bicycle, that doesn’t necessarily need to be changed that much, then this is how to do it.

Zero Bike. more...

(votes: +90)

We’ve included flat wires in this chart, because nothing ruins minimalism more than the inevitable tangle of dust gathering circular wires.

FlatWire. more...

(votes: +46)

Propello fan. more...

(votes: +33)

The Rega Planar 3 has been around for decades, since the time when vinyl was not a retro pastime that would warrant the kind of design that would appeal to an obsessive. It has lasted, ironically, because it has a universal ergonomic simplicity that is not necessarily niche by nature.

Rega P3 Turntable. more...

(votes: +28)

The neon flip-phone is unfortunately only available in Japan, but its a real beauty. When closed it looks like a small smooth brick, even its LED interface is invisible unless a message is shown. There is something intrinsically nice about things which are hidden until used, like concealed buttons and displays.

Neon phone. more...

(votes: +27)

Chris Holewski Faucet. more...

(votes: +22)

La Cie have a history of rivaling Apple in the quality of design of their peripherals which are often sold to people who own and appreciate Apple items. These speakers look like the took 5 minutes to design in a solid modeling program, and perhaps that’s exactly why they are so perfect.

LaCie - FireWire Speakers. more...

(votes: +22)

With Muji’s store, shortly opening in Soho, in New York, their particular brand or rather non brand (Muji means no brand in Japanese) will be available outside of a small concession in the Moma stores.

Muji’s quality is sometimes not that great, but the design is, like e this CD player which decides it doesn’t even need a lid.

Muji CD Player. more...

(votes: +22)

Bicycles are essentially old but perfect technology. While there are many attempts to make tiny improvements to the efficiency of a bicycle through radical uses of new materials, the single element that is responsible for the majority of that efficient energy transfer, the chain, has not changed much in a hundred years.

The Selandia bike is a minimalist masterpiece for the very reason that it does not try to be modern or different, where it doesn’t need to. Its an absolutely gorgeous combination of traditional and modern design with perfect attention to detail.

Selandia Bike. more...

(votes: +20)

Pendulum Wall Clock. more...

(votes: +18)

Winner of a red dot award, this Joey Roth design for a silent running PC has stacks of cooling fins reminscent of a classic Quad power amplifier.

Silent PC case. more...

(votes: +18)

plus minus humidifier. more...

(votes: +13)

Normally anything called 'Mondrian' is something to avoid like the plague, as it innevitably is some horrible excuse for modernism. This lamp is a real exception.

MONDRIAN T Desk Lamp. more...

(votes: +12)

Soon we will be lusting after the retro look of cathode ray tube TV sets. If so, plus minus' version may well be the object of that desire, since its design reflects the shape of the tube itself rather than building a box around it.

Plus Minus 8 inch TV. more...

(votes: +5)

The living room PC that lloks like a Roomba is out of stock at the moment. Its a nice simple shaped alternative to the ubiquitous rectangular computer box.

Sony VAIO TP1. more...

(votes: +4)

This satisfying brick of a toaster, The Trabo, is designed by architect Gae Aulenti. Auelenti made her name with the Musee D’Orsay in Paris, and more recently designed San Francisco’s Asian Museum, in the, otherwise crappy, Civic Center.

TRABO Block toaster. more...

(votes: +3)

This is one of three products designed by Jasper Morrison for Rowenta. Like many really well designed objects, there is actually not all that much you can say about it. It doesn’t have a fancy timing feature or multi-function display. It boils water and allows you to pour it ergonomically, in a package that is beautifully styled.

Rowenta kettle. more...

(votes: +2)

Sam Hecht’s elegant MP3 player for Lexon uses the same ‘gum stick’ form factor that Apple sadly ditched when they brought out the latest version of the Shuffle. It was fundamentally a better shape, since the iPod Shuffle now has to have a separate cradle to carry around to charge it.

Sound Gum. more...

(votes: +1)

Barouche is a minimalist line of audio visual products designed specifically for hotels.

barouche. more...

(votes: +1)

Toshiba Atehaca Microwave. more...

(votes: -5)