Gizmodo: Jonathan Ive

Apple Says White Is Cool Again... But Is It?

Benny Goldman — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 19:37:35 EDT

In an otherwise surprise-free keynote today, one without booms or "one more thing"s, one bit of news stood out: White made a quiet return to the iPod family in the premium 16GB iPhone 3G. Sure, it never fully left Apple—remaining the default color for earbuds, plugs, power bricks, AirPort products and the cheapest MacBooks—but we were finally getting used to a world without white iPods. Does this mean after nine short months put out to the pastures, white is already retro-cool again?

This time around, white won't be for everybody. Once the staple color of the iPod revolution, white will be a statement for those bold enough to sport a phone that bright. It's incredible; when Jobs dropped a little black on the masses, we thought that was radical, but eventually accepted it as the norm. When most Apple products went brushed-aluminum, we were again stunned, but now we think nothing of it. Today white, the color that we accepted from the beginning, is back, this time on an iPhone, and it looks like the most far-out Apple product yet.

Will the return of white in the iPhone set a pattern for the iPod touch, classic, and others? Will white be the new, well, white, taking back the reins as the most popular color? Will the color make its way back to Apple's high-style MacBook Air? Can Jobs, Jonathan Ive and the Cupertino crew keep us on our toes forever by recycling the same three finishes? Most importantly, are you a person that's bold enough to rock this flamboyant new phone? I, for one, am not. [Apple]

Apple's Top Designer Explains Design

Mark Wilson — Tue, 20 May 2008 12:00:00 EDT

Most of you probably know Jonathan Ive even if you don't recognize the name—he's Apple's head of design (otherwise known as the company's Senior Vice President of Industrial Design). And he's chiefly credited for designs of the iMac, iPod and iPhone. In an interview with The Independent, he shared some of his philosophies on designing for Apple, and just how Apple "does it."

We have a very clear focus that all the development teams at Apple share, a focus around trying to make really great products. That can sound ridiculously simplistic, almost naive, but it's very unique for the product to be what consumes you completely.

Later in the piece, Ive talks about Apple's place as a cultural icon.

I'm not driven by making a cultural impact. That's just a consequence of taking a remarkably powerful technology and making it relevant. My goal is simply to try to make products that really are meaningful to people.

We could easily pull the entire interview and paste it here for you to read, but you should really hit up the original article instead. There's plenty more interesting stuff left. [The Independent via psfk]

Wall-E Movie is Jonathan Ive's Latest Design Job

Adrian Covert — Mon, 12 May 2008 20:27:53 EDT

CNNMoney/Fortune has a story out saying that Eve, the female character to stand opposite Wall-E in the movie of the same name, was designed in part by Apple lead designer Jonathan Ive. The robot design is kinda cool, in that it reminds me of the most recent incarnation of Marvin the Paranoid Android, but the real story to be told is of Ive's day spent with the Pixar guys working on Eve.

Wall-E director Andrew Stanton said he wanted the design to be high-end, but also "seamless and for the technology to be sort of hidden and subcutaneous." Stanton called this philosophy straight out of the Apple playbook and called up El Jobso in 2005. Steve sent over Johnny Ive for the day.

But oddly enough, Ive was as tight lipped as ever, despite being commissioned by Jobs for the task. So while the Pixar designers were running design ideas by Ive for Eve, all he would do is nod his head yes or no, as to whether or not he agreed. "Apple is so proprietary and so secretive that he couldn't even really allude to where the future of technology was going," said Stanton. And Pixar is a company which Jobs owns a stake in. Kinda creepy if you ask me. [Fortune]

Jonathan Ive Has Gone Too Far This Time

Mark Wilson — Sat, 02 Feb 2008 13:00:46 EST

Remember the days of wallpaper illusions? Good. Because digitizing your child isn't the next Macbook feature. Steve Jobs hasn't lost control of his chief designer. The world is doomed (yet). [Optical Illusions]

Rumor: Next Gen iMacs to Get MacBook Style Keyboard

blongo3 — Mon, 09 Jul 2007 15:10:04 EDT

You know those redesigned iMacs that are rumored to be showing up in the next couple of weeks? Well it may be that Apple is going to introduce a new MacBook-style keyboard along with them, says Apple Insider. Personally, we love it, so we're not worried, but we also know some people aren't so cool with the wider spacing. [AppleInsider]

Just Who Is Jonathan Ive, Apple's Lead Designer?

Jason Chen — Wed, 20 Sep 2006 15:45:49 EDT

BusinessWeek has an in depth look at Jonny Ive, Apple's head of making things pretty. Did you know that the 39-year-old British Industrial Design expert is a reluctant celebrity, who wouldn't even comment for the article? Of course, that's partially thanks to the strict lock Jobs has on all his employees, especially someone as high up as Ive.

For example, did you know Ive went to a candy factory to study jelly bean making in order to learn how not to make a plastic shell look cheap on a computer. Lots of other interesting details are to be found in this piece, giving you an intimate look of what made the man who makes the products the way you like them—shiny and usable. – Jason Chen

Who Is Jonathan Ive? [BusinessWeek]