The Best Product Designs of 2006

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The Best Product Designs of 2006

Posted by ryuzaki0 on Thursday June 29, 2006 @09:19AM from the shiny-toys-get-recognition dept.

conq writes "BusinessWeek has made available IDSA's annual list of the best designed products of the year." From the article: "The Talking Tactile Tablet system allows visually impaired individuals to access graphic imagery they otherwise would not be able to enjoy. Instead of using Braille, which the majority of visually impaired people do not read, users hear audio descriptions of each component of an image. Key considerations of the design were ease-of-use, ruggedness, cost and providing a pleasing aesthetic experience, namely how the product feels."

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Fleshlight by BadAnalogyGuy · 2006-06-29 09:21 · Score: 5, Funny

Snubbed again.
Before We Announce the Best of 2006... by RoadDoggFL · 2006-06-29 09:21 · Score: 5, Insightful

Should we let it finish first?

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"This is considered plagiarism."
1. Re:Before We Announce the Best of 2006... by The-Bus · 2006-06-29 09:50 · Score: 4, Interesting
  That's the /. editor's fault. These are the "2006 IDEA Awards" which means they take place in 2006. The 2006 Academy Awards did not hand out Oscars for the best movies of 2006 either.
  
  And some highlights for me...
  
  AMD Personal Internet Communicator - A replacement for the $100 laptop?
  DX1 Input System - very programmable keyboard-type device
  Water Tile - the coolest showerhead I've ever seen
  $100 Laptop - wait, here's the actual laptop
  The Nutty Buddy - the ??? before profit was "testicle protection" in this case
  Water Tile - To quote the byline, "This design strategy uses brand identity to revitalize the image of condoms and redefine traditional condom distribution channels"
  Sun x4100 servers - if you're into that sort of thing
  City Wing - LED streetlights
  Airwash - doing laundry without water
  
  What does sadden me is that the most popular category for winners seemed to be office chairs. How amazingly boring.
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  Small potatoes make the steak look bigger.
Won't Work by thecommenter · 2006-06-29 09:29 · Score: 5, Funny

The SignalOneSafety Vocal Smoke Detector uses a parent's recorded voice to wake children in case of a fire and provide them with evacuation instructions.
Shut up Mom, I wanna sleep 5 more minutes before school!

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http:///..org...pure genius, yet absolutely impossible to explain to the uninformed.
What the.... ? by Onan · 2006-06-29 09:31 · Score: 5, Interesting

When did it suddenly become okay to have "web" "pages" with no actual content at all, just javascript that serves no purpose but to echo html?

So I guess I won't be seeing this list. But I have a pretty clear idea of a site that won't be making my own list of best designed anything ever...
1. Re:What the.... ? by bcat24 · 2006-06-29 09:36 · Score: 4, Funny
  
  When did it suddenly become okay to have "web" "pages" with no actual content at all, just javascript that serves no purpose but to echo html?
  Welcome to the Web 2.0! It's like old technologies put together to make new buzzwords.
Not new... by jdray · 2006-06-29 10:03 · Score: 4, Insightful

Number 16, the self-erecting tent, is an exact duplicate of the PopTent. My wife and I have had one for years and love it. They were featured in the (bad) movie Congo.

Furthermore, they award Lenovo for a cheeseball "all in one" design desktop when the tried and true iMac (flatscreen model) has been around for two years or more? Who are these people?

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The Spoon
Updated 6/28/2011