Comments on: Simple is Expensive http://www.niblettes.com/blog/2006/11/09/simple-is-expensive/ Tasty Little Nuggets of Design and Innovation Goodness Tue, 06 Jan 2009 12:04:33 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6.3 By: Innovation Zen http://www.niblettes.com/blog/2006/11/09/simple-is-expensive/#comment-4871 Innovation Zen Fri, 10 Nov 2006 08:52:16 +0000 http://www.niblettes.com/blog/2006/11/09/simple-is-expensive/#comment-4871 Recently I have read the story of a nordic company that sell trash bins. They are very well-designed yet very simple. Guess what, they were selling for $400 a pop also. And sales are strong according to the article. I think we can say that simplicity is the ultimate sophistication. Recently I have read the story of a nordic company that sell trash bins. They are very well-designed yet very simple. Guess what, they were selling for $400 a pop also. And sales are strong according to the article.

I think we can say that simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.

]]> By: Victor Lombardi http://www.niblettes.com/blog/2006/11/09/simple-is-expensive/#comment-4815 Victor Lombardi Thu, 09 Nov 2006 20:34:01 +0000 http://www.niblettes.com/blog/2006/11/09/simple-is-expensive/#comment-4815 RE>Apparently its very expensive to strip out functionality. That pretty much nails it. Alan Cooper has a good bit about this in his "Inmates" book. For example, most similar devices rely on the same integrated circuits inside, so the designers find similar ways of using those circuits, and probably think it's wasteful not to afford the user all the functionality the IC has. Perhaps Kitchen Aid has to order a custom IC and other parts to create this unusual device. RE>Apparently its very expensive to strip out functionality.

That pretty much nails it. Alan Cooper has a good bit about this in his “Inmates” book. For example, most similar devices rely on the same integrated circuits inside, so the designers find similar ways of using those circuits, and probably think it’s wasteful not to afford the user all the functionality the IC has.

Perhaps Kitchen Aid has to order a custom IC and other parts to create this unusual device.

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