So, my new iPhone is scheduled to arrive in the mail today. And I’m really excited. I’ve owned my original iPhone for two years now, and I’m ready for a change. The iPhone was the first phone I ever spent more than $30 on–mostly because in the past, I’ve found most hand held devices available in the US to be downright ugly.
Which brings me to my next point: Today I received a pitch about Sony’s new designs for its VAIO EA-Series Signature Collection. The laptops, with an etched pattern called “Arabesque,” are available in pink, black, and gold.
Let me be clear. These aren’t horrible looking. But they aren’t amazing, either.
The issue? The suits running Sony–and companies like Sony–don’t get what women want.
Think about the laptops Vivienne Tam and other designers have created for HP. (We actually gave one away to a reader a few months ago.) Again, I don’t think these are downright ugly, but I also don’t think I’d personally carry one, even if I was a PC person.
To be fair, tech companies are savvy in certain ways: They’re attempting to attract more females, a segment of the market with plenty of room to grow. But I feel like they’re going about it in the wrong way. Women, much like men, want their products to look good. That’s why I buy Apple–because it looks good. (And it also works, but that’s not a story for this site.)
Another company that gets it right? Incase. While they only provide protection for gadgets, it’s good-looking protection. Incase’s collaboration with Another Magazine, Gareth Pugh and Colette is much more attractive to me than a pale pink cell phone.
What should these firms do to better connect with female consumers? Hire people who actually know what they’re talking about when it comes to what looks good and what doesn’t. Don’t rely on market research, which is something big companies tend to fall back on.
What do you think? Do you like girl-i-fied gadgets? Or are you simply after great design?
Tags: Apple, iPhone, Sony, VAIO, Vivienne Tam
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Great design. That whole SATC2 & HP thing made my skin crawl.http://loublog.tumblr.com/
I like that tech companies are starting to pay attention to how stylish the product is (well PC tech companies are just starting). I still haven't seen one that I MUST have though. Besides, I may convert to Mac anyway. ;)
I like eye-catching, interesting design — I like surrounding myself with visually appealing objects. So in that sense, *maybe* I like things girl-ified, but I don't think slapping out a pink model of something is good design.http://www.janehasajob.com/
Good style is not necessarily male or female. However, it may be that females generally pay attention to appearance in a product, where men may look more for gadgety gadgets. I want something with style and with gadgets (but then again I'm an engineer). The fact that I can get an iPhone case from Kate Spade or design my own, etc. is far more exciting than the boring stuff at the Apple Store, but I wouldn't need the style if I didn't have the gadget in the first place!To go further, I also like elegance in the actual interface, so Apple appeals to me far more than PC.
Good design. As you said, Apple products may not be geared to look feminine, but they're so beautifully designed that they simply attract people with good taste. Just because a laptop is pink does not mean it looks “pretty”.
I don't think pink PCs and the like are targeted to women at all–they're targeted to *girls.* The same teens and pre-teens who are into Justin Beiber and Miley Cyrus will almost certainly want pink everything–phone, laptop, keychains, lip gloss, you name it. I do agree that there is a big market to be tapped in adult women who favor beautiful design over candy coatings, but I can't imagine that Sony really expects full grown women to buy the laptop above (at least, not unless it's for their daughters).
What is “good design” though? It's so many things to different people. For instance I like clean, modern, and uncluttered objects/environments with interesting, conversational surprises. (Like a simple grey dress with weird buttons, or a different drape, or a subliminal stitch). However pink and gold baroque patterning that hints at luxury probably screams good design to a lot more people than a simplified aesthetic. I use a Mac because it's a great product; the clean design doesn't hurt but I'd still buy a Mac if it was a dog. In terms of sales, doesn't hit-'em-over-the-head, loud-n-splashy (à la Target housewares) sell the best?
http://www.garancedore.fr/en/2010/05/30/mais-qu...This is the only product customization I've found myself coveting. As for that endless stream of treacly pink electronics, the only market I've ever noticed for it is late adolescent girls and gay boys. The only people I ever saw with a pink iPod nano were boys, and it was not cute.
Maybe it's just me, but I like my laptops to be clean- white, black, grey, mostly because it's an investment. If I buy a patterned laptop now, who's to say I would still like in in 6 mo, 1 year, 3 years etc… If anything, these companies should invest in cases for gadgets, like you guys mentioned with incase. I dropped $35 on a cute kate spade iPod case, but there is no way I would have spent the $200 on an iPod with the same design on it. Next week, if I decide to hate the preppy pattern, I can just go buy another case for my iPod- no harm done, and I won't be stuck looking at an iPod design I hate for years to come.
Well I have a baby pink Toshiba so I guess I'm waving the flag for girly laptops over here (it was a PRESENT).http://tovogueorbust.blogspot.com/
Oh hell yeah!!! someone please open up a Girly gadget store in the EV!!!
Totally. Amaze.
Interesting topic Lauren. I've always wondered about this. See also: Why do girls' razors need to have big plastic green/pink handles reminiscent of some Fisher Price toys, while boys are seen as capable of working with a straight handle in some faux-metal finish? I'm sure Gillette/Schick have done their research and they must sell better targeting men and women with different looking (yet essentially identical) products, but it always seems odd to me. P.S. Dear P&G, Schick etc, you also don't need to seal your razors in some impenetrable plastic that will never biodegrade. These aren't, like, cabbages or something, they're not going to go off. Raise your game guys.
GIRLY INDEEDinkied.blogspot.com
FYI, Kate Spade is boring too.
Here are some amazing girl gadgets that are also great in design…win-winhttp://www.kikidm.com/shop/Instruments-of-Pleas...if you want to know what Apple is going to come up with next…look at Braun products from the 1960shttp://i843.photobucket.com/albums/zz360/taytro...
The photo in your latest post got deleted somehow.
sort of a funny rant coming from Fashionista … are you actually complaining about fun, colorful design? and a focus on women? in my current white office/white desk setup my white Sony VAIO fits in perfect and makes me smile–something i never experienced with any other computer. if my walls wore the Tricia Guild wallpaper of my dreams I might choose a hot pink or lipstick red PC and smile away just as much when I type. why not have fun with technology?
Maybe the Paris Hilton phenomenon of the early to mid-2000's is to blame, but retailers like Sony seem to believe that women have, as a whole, failed to evolve past the Barbie-esque accessories we loved as 5 year olds. To them, feminine = variations of hot pink plastic, possibly pimped out with ornate designs and Swarovski crystals. I'm with Lauren on this one. I still use the black Mac Book I bought several years ago, and Iove it because it looks good and works well. I like electronics that are designed well but that don't look like they're trying too hard to appeal to women.
Macs are shiny and have nice outward design, but they don't suit my rather DIY approach to computing. They'd prefer I paid some jerk at the Apple store $100 bucks to give the thing a reboot if it freezes. But like I said, they look nice and are generally user friendly (or retard-proof, depending on how you look at it).I'm also deeply uncomfortable with the idea of someone being able to look at my closed laptop and know it's a “girly computer”. I wouldn't want to march into Tech Services and hand them a bright pink laptop with Hello Kitty on it and say “fix this”. This is the fast track to not being taken seriously. Likewise, can I really picture myself working as a lawyer in a couple of years and busting out a hot pink laptop in a meeting with a client? Hell no. Pink, girly electronics, to me at least, give off a message of frivolity and cloying, Barbie-ish sweetness that borders on immaturity. I'd much rather see attractive, gender neutral designs in more colors that appeal to everyone- why not a line of jewel-tone laptops in the sort of colors cars come in? Deep red, green, medium blue, even lime, orange, or yellow. Plus the usual black, charcoal, and white. I think computer companies are slowly getting the idea- kids and hipsters like macs because they're pretty as much as anything. I look forward to the aesthetics from other companies improving in years to come.
Ah, I see I have a fan.
I've seen that OPI have collaborated with DELL for exactly this point…good idea in theory, but maybe the practice isn't as ground-breaking/attractive for women: http://www.vogue.co.uk/beauty/news/100610-dell-...
I have absolutely no problem with a “girly” tech gadget as long as it works. I have the Butterfly Diaries laptop by Vivienne Tam & HP and I love it. It performs like a regular PC, Windows 7 is amazing (compared to previous versions), and it's portable. It's not a slow device and I have absolutely no problem with the fact that when I look at it, I have something quite beautiful to look at. I've also been known to buy pink/purple/yellow cases for my BlackBerry & iPod touch. Now if it's pink and can't function…that's an issue