"The Perfect Thing" illustrates many interesting elements of the design process. One of these elements that was introduced was the motivation of developing a new, more efficient product design. In the case of the iPod, developers were trying to improve upon older products of the same category. Before the iPod was invented, similar products were uncomfortably bulky, had inconveniently small memory capacity, had poor battery life, and had inefficient designs. Developers at Apple were motivated to develop a product that improved upon the weaknesses of products created by other companies before the iPod. Another element of the design process that this article illustrated was the extensive teamwork that goes in to creating an efficient product. In coming up with the concept of the iPod, there were many people who gave input and recommendations to creating the best product possible. For example, Jobs was initially convinced that only three buttons were necessary on the original iPod: forward, back, and pause. However, the rest of his team talked him into including a fourth "menu" button on the wheel of the iPod. In addition, the third page of the article explains how one person was in charge of the workings of the device, another was in charge of software, a third was in charge of the industrial design, while a fourth was in charge of overseeing the project. Several outside companies were also contracted for specific tasks. Thus, the iPod was by no means a one-man project.
When evaluating the "perfect product," I would follow the same steps I use when I go shopping for clothes. If I walk into a store to buy a shirt, the first thing that must happen is that the product must draw my attention. This could be by being very good looking, or by having an interesting and unique design element that distinguishes it from the rest. The next thing I look at is the price. If I believe the product is too expensive, I will not consider buying it. Obviously, price changes depending on the product in question, so I usually compare the price of the product to that of other similar items. If the look of the product and its price suit me, I consider practicality. What material is it made from? Will I get a significant amount of use out of the product? Will it be difficult or impractical to clean? How will it hold up over time? While all of these questions apply specifically to clothing, they also apply to any product I am evaluating or considering buying. It is important to note that when shopping for clothes, I usually do not have an instant need for the product I am buying. When searching for a less common item like an iPod or computer, I usually do have some sort of need for the product. Therefore, another important element to consider when evaluating the perfect thing is "how badly do I need this product?"
I believe the iPod is an extremely strong product, and I am very glad that I own one. The strongest element of the iPod in my opinion is that it is extremely practical and easy to use. After going through the simple process of putting music on the iPod, thousands of songs can be played with the press of a button. In addition, the iPod is an extremely aesthetically appealing product. It looks like a new aged device that everyone living in our times should have. Another strength of the iPod is that its design continually improves over time. The current model of the iPod has many new capabilities and benefits that the original iPod lacked. IPods now have internet access, many applications that can be downloaded, a smaller size, and a more sleek design. On the negative side, I find that my iPod's battery life decreases after each charge, so that after a year or two, it needs to be charged on an almost daily basis. Another negative that I just discovered is that it is very difficult to transfer music from one computer to another, due to the company's efforts to prevent the stealing of music. This was particularly inconvenient when I wanted to transfer my iTunes library onto my laptop before leaving for K.
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