The Polaroid is back, Industrial Design

‘Shake it like a Polaroid picture’ – OutKast

When people hear about or see the brand ‘Polaroid’ the first thought is normally, ‘woah, they’re still alive?’. The Polaroid has been around for years and though a smaller in today’s market, is still very much alive due to its smart industrial design.

Speaking of being alive, Polaroid just brought their new action camera to market. Though entering a crowded market, and competition against heavy hitters like GoPro, they may have an edge that was previously undiscovered. Called the ‘Cube’ it’s a small camera, targeted at the younger demographic who go to video to record their ‘wild night’s out’. Think of all the vines that will come out of this.

The number one thing that this product has going for it, other than it’s cuteness, is it’s smart industrial design. The Cube fits nicely in the palm of your hand (35 millimeters all around), the edges are softly rounded and if you look close enough, you’ll note that the sides are slightly rounded as well.

The goal was to move away from the traditional look of a camera. Gregoire Vandenbussche, a senior designer at Ammunition, who worked on the cube, says his main inspiration was the old-school pink erasers we used during school. “When you use it, it kind of wears down and it’s very friendly, and you like to hold it in your hand and fidget with it,” he explains. “We wanted that sort of quality to it.”

Though the Cube is very cute and almost delicate looking, it’s also a product of smart industrial design. It is not a GoPro, but with high-quality video at 720p or 1080p resolution and a wide lens, it doesn’t need to be. To switch back and forth between the two and or insert your SD card, you unscrew a little door in the back. To take a still image, your press the button once. A video?  Twice. To view your photos or footage, you simply plug the camera into your computer via a micro USB.

The Cube was designed to be so simple to use and accomplished its goals so single-minded, that you kind of want to over think it a little. But then again, we are talking about Polaroid.

About: MAKO Design + Invent is the original firm providing world-class consumer product development services tailored to startups, small manufacturers, and inventors. Simply put, we are the leading one-stop-shop for developing your physical product from idea to store shelves, all in a high-quality, cost-effective, and timely manner. We operate as one powerhouse 30-person product design team spread across 4 offices to serve you (Austin, Miami, San Francisco, & Toronto). We have full-stack in-house industrial design, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, patent referral, prototyping, and manufacturing services. To assist our startup and inventor clients, in addition to above, we help with business strategy, product strategy, marketing, and sales/distribution for all consumer product categories. Also, our founder Kevin Mako hosts The Product Startup Podcast, the industry's leading hardware podcast. Check it out for tips, interviews, and best practices for hardware startups, inventors, and product developers. Click HERE to learn more about MAKO Design + Invent!