Tag Archives: iF Design 2019

This Award-Winning Breathing Assistive Stone expands and contracts to guide your meditation

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Prana, according to ancient yoga practice, is known to be the universal life energy, in which breathing helps flow through each of us and every other living thing; it keeps us alive. When energy channels are even partially blocked, this disrupts the flow of prana, which can lead to heightened feelings of stress or anxiety. Ayama means to extend, draw out, or regulate. Pranayama is the practice of breath control, which essentially helps clear out any blockages in energy channels that prevent our breathing from bringing us calm.

The makers behind Ayama, Wenxi Qi, and Hengbo Zhang received the iF Design Talent Award in 2019 for their breathing assistive device that helps those of us with anxiety reach a point of self-induced meditation. Ayama, which resembles a smooth, grey garden stone, is really a rhythmic breathing guide that, thanks to fully-integrated motors that run off an electric charge, expands and contracts according to pranayama breathing techniques. When we focus on our breathing and let it guide our peace of mind, then our parasympathetic nervous system is supported, which means our heart rate assumes a more natural-feeling rhythm and our otherwise tense muscles tend to relax in response. This is called a “relaxation response” and provides the purpose for this design.

With an intuitive interface, Ayama is self-explanatory and easy to follow. By pressing the main button on the grey stone, users can adjust the different modes of pranayama: ujjayi, sitali, kapalabhati, and nadhi sodhana. These varying breathing techniques help to quell different stressors, including body temperature and lack of concentration by helping the user achieve a generally calm state of mind. Additionally, Ayama comes with a wireless charger that mimics a miniature zen garden, which works as a friendly reminder that by just checking in with our emotional headspaces, we can practice pranayama anywhere, anytime. Without the help of physical aid, it can be difficult to incorporate healthful breathing techniques in public life. So, Ayama brings a sense of calm when considering how insurmountable battling anxiety can sometimes feel – all you have to do is press a button and breathe.

Designers: Wenxi Qi and Hengbo Zhang

Fujifilm’s portable X-ray unit brings healthcare to the palm of your hands!

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No one ever looks forward to a hospital visit, especially not right now – home healthcare is making a serious comeback in the year 2020, and not only for the older crowd. Product designs like CALNEO XAir, a portable X-ray unit, have come to prove it. The handheld device is authoritative and trustworthy in its conception and manufacturing. In 2019, CALNEO XAir received both the Bronze award in International Design Excellence from IDEA and the Gold Product Award from iF Design.

The award-winning design was created by the team at FUJIFILM in order to provide a convenient household healthcare tool that meets today’s medical guidelines and scientific standards. CALNEO Xair’s exterior is appealing in its intuitively cohesive configuration, making for a stress-free operation. Additionally, through advanced technological features, the product’s battery power and its ultra-high sensitive cassette for diagnostic imaging have also been improved. The high-sensitivity cassette utilizes FUJIFILM’s proprietary ISS method, which translates X-ray energy into optical signals with minimal electric currents and offers a noticeable amount of noise reduction.

Thanks to its super-sensitive imaging plates, CALNEO Xair captures high-quality images, and the radiation dosage necessary for CALNEO Xair’s operation is considerably less than that of X-ray machines found in hospitals. This means that even in the comfort of your own home, you can receive the medical attention and information necessary for healthy living. The product is handheld in order to provide optimal comfort and convenience. Its full weight comes out to an ultralight 3.5kg (roughly 7lbs) as a result of less battery mass and a lightweight X-ray tube. CALNEO Xair reduces radiation exposure for patients, provides reliable and quick information related to the user’s bone health, and brings the benefits of home healthcare to the palm of your hand.

Hospital workers have a lot on their plates, always, but especially in the year 2020, with COVID-19 ramping up again and medical centers understaffed or overwhelmed. CALNEO Xair could provide some relief by transforming the prototypical, heavy-duty X-Ray machine into a contemporary, modern handheld device that’s instinctive and accessible for everyone.

Designer: FUJIFILM

The Moorgen Smart Remote’s design is weirdly attractive… but why?

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It may appear hostile, with the way it takes on this scaly armadillo-inspired aesthetic… but that hostility doesn’t translate to you wanting to avoid the Moorgen Smart Remote. It makes you curious, it makes you practically want to pet it. There’s something unexplainable about the Moorgen Smart Remote’s strange allure, but I’ll try my best to justify why I can’t stop staring at it!

The smart remote was designed not for television, but rather for operating smart lights and curtains around the house. Its difference is highlighted by its unusual form, with highly tactile buttons. The ability of the buttons to simply activate in-built presets means they’re equally important, and aren’t meant for navigation or menu-selection, allowing all of them to be equally sized and maintain the integrity of the 3D pattern.

By breaking the mold of remote design, the Moorgen does something so radically different you can’t help but keep looking at it. It’s quite like the Tesla Cybertruck. So incredibly unusual that love it or hate it, there’s no ignoring it. Except that with the Moorgen Smart Remote, its “unusual-ness” isn’t just visual… it’s tactile too. Even when you’re not pressing the button, I guarantee you, your thumb will be running up and down the remote, just constantly in awe of its hostile-looking-yet-somewhat-soothing texture. It’s the same reason your first reaction to someone who’s just shaved their head is to go “can I touch it?”. The Moorgen Smart Remote was designed to sort of play mind games with you and to absolutely engage the senses… and that’s exactly what makes it so effective and memorable.

The Moorgen Smart Remote is a winner of the iF Design Award for the year 2019.

Designer: Moorgen

This minimal modern water purifier has a ‘filtered’ secret!

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Traditional water purifiers tend to occupy a lot of space in our kitchens, giving the impression that our kitchens are more crowded than they actually are. To rectify this, Korean appliance brand Kyowon Wells recently launched Wells The ONE. Wells The ONE is a water purifying system with a revamped form. The water dispensing faucet and the actual purifying system have been separated to create one space-saving and ergonomically designed product, quite similar to a split AC! The main filtering unit comprising of the filters and motors can be subtly installed within the kitchen sink, island-style counters, and tables, with only the sleek faucet remaining visible to the eye.

The faucet features a modern and minimal aesthetic, allowing it to effortlessly merge with your kitchen. Equipped with a circular touch control panel and an LCD display, operating the faucet turns into an interesting and interactive experience! Via the left section, you can easily control the temperature of the water, and switch between cold and hot water options, in accordance with your mood. Whereas the right side of the control panel can be used to adjust the water flow which ranges from 120 to 1000 ml. All the details are displayed on the screen, with a distinguishable raised line encircling the panel, encouraging tactile interaction and a simpler user interface.

A 9-step filter system eliminates eight types of toxic metals and other impurities that may infect your water. Not to mention eco-friendly materials such as ceramics were used to create the faucet! Available in a variety of color schemes, my favorite being the white and rose gold combination, Wells The ONE is one of the most innovative water purifiers I have seen. Convenient, space-saving and not to mention visually pleasing, it’s the kind of appliance our modern kitchens need!

Wells The ONE is a winner of the iF Design Award for the year 2019.

Designer: Kyowon Wells

Samsung’s dual oven cooks two dishes simultaneously at different temperatures!

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Kitchen and home appliance innovation is out to shock and awe these days and Samsung’s The Dual Cook Flex is a prime example of it! The Dual Cook Flex is equipped with a flexible dual door system, enabling you to cook two dishes at the same time. However, you can customize their temperatures and cook both dishes at their unique requirements! How does it do that? The answer lies in their ingenious hinged door that allows you to access either the entire oven, or only the top half, so whatever dish you have in the lower section remains unaffected.

The dual oven saves you some precious time and helps the environment (and your electricity bill) by using 20% less energy. Amped with Wi-Fi connectivity, you can control the oven using an app! No more fear of burning down the house because you left the oven on. Even when you’re away,  you can preheat, adjust temperatures and switch it on and off by simply swiping through your phone! With a capacity of almost 75 liters, the substantial oven is easy to keep clean due to its Pyrolytic Cleaning System, which burns away any grease or residue left behind.

The Dual Cook Flex requires minimal time and effort while maintaining high functionality. It is especially useful for when you’re having parties or get-togethers. You can cook your crowd-pleasing dishes effectively and faster than usual! Convenient and efficient, using an oven has never been so satisfying!

The Dual Cook Flex is a winner of the iF Design Award for the year 2019.

Designer: Samsung

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