The Pillow Tie: Silly, serious commentary?

Okay, so it doesn't quite fit with a "usability" theme - but there's something kind of deep in this ridiculous combo.  The blurb puts it best: most functions that require a tie deserve to be slept through.  So the subversive thing to do is enable the wearer to sleep - thereby committing a more egregious violation of norms than simply not wearing the required tie in the first place.  It's a statement; first camouflaged, then bold, always ironic.  And sorry, but completely unusable!  Oh well...
[Thanks, Ruairi!]

Future Vision: Not just ubiquitous touchscreens...

Microsoft recently made another one of those "vision of the future" concept videos, and designer Bret Victor tears it apart limb from limb. And the limb, in this case is the hand: Bret makes the case that touchscreens make pitifully insufficient use of the versatile and capable human hand.  It's true: simply sliding around Pictures Under Glass (as he calls them) like in the top screengrabs from the video is such a limited interaction, when the hand can do so many things as shown in the bottom rows of photos.  Let's hope the future isn't just the same iPad-style interaction model we have now, extended to every possible surface - that's just the present, mindlessly multiplied to aggravating infinity.  Read Bret's rant, and demand something better!

iPhone Player Buttons: More Space, Please!

Don't get me wrong, I love my new iPhone 4S.  But it's not perfect, and some of its buttons are downright - yes - unpressable.  Today, I'm picking on the quick audio controls that come up when the home button is double-clicked.  They're a great idea; they're just spaced too darn close to each other.  The times when I use the quick-access buttons, instead of fully unlocking the phone, are times when I can't give the phone my full attention - I just want to quickly pause the audio.  But the buttons are spaced so close together that I frequently hit the Forward or Back button instead of Pause - and that risks losing my place in my podcast.  Apple, why not give each button more space, like the quick Photoshop job on the right?  It may not look as "clean" from a design perspective, but it's definitely more usable.  They'd be more pressable buttons!

Dissolving Fruit Labels!

There's really nothing not to like about this one:  fruit labels which dissolve quickly in water, becoming "fruit soap" which helps wash away pesticides, dirt, and bacteria.  It's a concept being pitched by Scott Amron, complete with the opportunity to invest.  I hope it works out - but I hope it's executed better than the Photoshop job used to demonstrate it...
[via Inhabitat & Gizmodo]

It's (Not Really) Ready...

This one comes from my lovely wife Jessica, whose eagle-eyes noticed some contradictory fine print in an ad for the new Toyota Camry.  The tagline is "It's Ready. Are You?"  The fine print?  "Prototype shown."  Sooo, is it ready or not...?
[Thanks Jess!]