Functionality and Design - The Dichotomy for Consumers

Posted November 26, 2011 at 9:08 pm

Undoubtedly one of the defining elements of advancements in products is actually not engineering advancements but design and style. Though people can assert that design and technology developments go hand in hand, it is additionally simple to see how design dominates customer habits. This has been the case for a while since industrial production enabled producers to build cheap products where the onus was on design rather than functionality. E.g., the paper clothing of the 60s were cheap and arguably of a bad finish yet for lots of fashion conscience people they were must have wardrobe items.

This continues today. Phone builders continually push and pull on the dichotomy of functionality vs design. A lot of manufacturers choose simple designs and rely instead on feature development. Others choose to feature fewer features but instead focus on design, at times even working with celebrities.

With this focus on design instead of usability, it is easy to think of devices as simply design orientated but it's good to not forget that these devices are meant to have useful benefits. When you are picking a product there tends to be three aspects that you must think about - features, cost and design. At times you may wish to spend more on features or design. Sometimes they are incorporated together. Apple's design ethos is an excellent example of design meeting technology.

If you always buy products based on their look then you should really start to think about the functional element too. While it may be tempting to get the trendiest design, it may not be the best performing. You should always look at the functionality of the device and how you will be using it. There is little point of buying a really flash computer if all you will be doing is writing emails with it or surfing the Internet.

So, whenever you are purchasing a new product, you should always think about how you will use it or why you need it. A good example is e-book readers, such as the Amazon Kindle. They have practical uses as well. For instance, a lot of airlines are now limiting flyers to a single piece of luggage. An e-book reader is much smaller than an average book and you can take many more books with you on holiday.

Cell phones are a good example of improved technology functions. You can use your phone for all your multi-media needs. Many phones now feature large storage capacities letting you save music, videos and pictures on there. Many phones now have digital cameras too, meaning you will not need to buy a separate, costly camera. The Internet is not any different. Lots of sites have been designed with functionality and usability in mind. You are able to use websites which were created to allow you to manage online time better. They vary from a social bookmarking service, password keeper and personalized homepage...