In Defense of Boring Design

[@Design.Theory]

If you want to have discussions with other designers or you need help on a design project, you can join my discord chat channel here: discord.gg/hFw55nh

[@yahu5988]

Whats your star sign?

[@MrJarenko0097]

People that buy a Toyota Camry or a Prius did not buy it for the design, but rather for its low price and reliability. It's a different story when you look at a Tacoma or a RAV 4

[@emilioj.sanchezg.6328]

Living in Mexico has taught me something about this "boring design", it has a functional use. if you have a nice car that stands out, you are most likely to get robbed, unlike driving a totally average car, a "boringly designed" car, you just drive through without catching the eye of robbers. It may be a silly reason to buy a car like this, but me and many others take this in count when buying a car.

[@darianbarber3763]

the American side of things that would apply to something they are more likely to need to take into account is that a boring car your eye will gloss over as you drive and you'll notice it when you need to, but you won't fixate on it as much. A more unique car will stand out in a way where some people might be more afraid aka more likely to freeze up and it would be on a drivers mind longer highlighted with very standout Ish colors and a very different shape.

[@meepmorprobotcaptain]

Hmm. I like this idea... Except the Civic, Corolla, Camry and Accord are some of the most stolen/broken into cars in the world. So what serves one context may not in a similar one.

[@anotherprofile7954]

I'm studying industrial design in switzerland and your channel is relaxing and eye-opening, keep it up

[@Design.Theory]

More content coming soon :)

[@pratyushsrivastava7536]

I'm an engineer and I believe that's it's important for the product to look elegant but more importantly it should be functional and the user should be able to just carry on with his/her task in hand without any hassle but ofcourse, it should be able to make the "connection" with them at the same time. So, the products you've shown in the video rightly pointed out this.

[@Design.Theory]

Yeah I agree. Functionality is the priority.

[@125hrc125]

@@Design.Theory Juicy salif? You have an un-used one too - right? lol

[@Angel_Underscore]

I'm not a designer or anything, just some random person. I actually really like ordinary design; I want my phone to look like a phone, my clothes to not be loud, and my tools to look like tools. _I do like some things to stand out_ but they have to be things I'm invested in, for example: I want my kitchen knives to look normal but well made, however, I also like butterfly knives and would love to own one of the pretty ones.

[@BigWheel.]

Boring

[@Angel_Underscore]

@@BigWheel. thank you, that's the point

[@125hrc125]

Not boring - your valid personal preference. As a designer I thank you for your opinion :)

[@midloran]

I agree with you, I also want my stuff to look ordinary, but high quality

[@wired_haus]

Your design preference is firstly YOURS, and I think that, you like things to be interesting when they show a part of your personality. For that to happen they need to be different to the rest, by having the others be “boring”.

[@PitNeex]

When everything stands out nothing stands out, average is easiest to the eyes and feels instantly familiar, it is comforting. Some products need to be boring and blend with the background others shouldn't.

[@FlynLatif]

Best answer. It's the average things that enable beauty around them. One can't exist without the other. Good can't exist without evil.

[@sttonep242]

Hello! I'm super happy I just found your videos. I been studying ID for 2.5 years and I'm a bit dissapointed these things you talk about are not taught in my design school. This is EXACTLY what I want to learn. The current world situation has been eating my motivation but maybe watching your videos will help me. Thanks!

[@Design.Theory]

More coming soon! Share the channel with friends and fellow students. It helps me out a lot. Only if you want to, though :) Also, if there are other topics that you want me to cover, don't hesitate to ask.

[@udayshome1793]

In some ways, I think the boringness comes from it's ubiquitousness which in turn is a result of excellent functional design in the first place. You have to go back to the first Camry or early Casios to understand it's design, instead of looking at the current crop of an entrenched product line to understand it.

[@patrickgirgen5464]

I liked that you used the Camry as an example of uninspired design. An important element that I think you omitted is that there is a demographic that fears standing out. That's one of my mother's worst fears. She drives a Camry, and wears a lot of beige cloths. Thanks for all of the great content.

[@aygwm]

There are advantages to blending in

[@Pakanahymni]

There definitely is a point to boring products. I don't want absolutely every single little appliance in my kitchen to scream for attention, because it makes the space feel cluttered even if every single thing is striking and beautiful.

[@Warpwaffel]

Better a boring design that works than an interesting design that doesn't.

[@kingaragorn123]

This channel is starting to be a constant eye-candy to me!! looking forward for more videos about design theory and especially design methods. would love to see a video comparing them with real life examples or real products. Keep it up man, your are doing great 👍💯

[@Design.Theory]

Thanks for checking it out Mostafa! More content coming soon

[@kingaragorn123]

@@Design.Theory i’m looking forward for that 👀

[@125hrc125]

For me, its down to: Product type. If it will represent or enhance the customers identity / brand language. Where the product type is in life cycle. Sunrise / sunset per Sony terminology. If your trying to get a job after graduating :)

[@gemmazanoguerasubervilles1584]

Very interesting reflexion, I think that design that doesn't really stand out is necessary, it doesn't mean they are bad designed, ugly or useless, besides, we just can't be giving our attention to every object we see and own. But there's kind of a dangerous edge to making boring design, mistaking it for mediocrity seems something easy and can make design loose all its purpose.

[@Design.Theory]

Yup. We can't just have our house be full of products that all compete for our attention. It would be like living in a circus.

[@reinhardt3090]

@@Design.Theory speak for yourself.

[@radeonmccullum6050]

One major aspect of this kinda "boring, normal, and inoffensive" design sense is that you don't always need to make a breakthrough product, especially in the car industry with the likes of staples such as Camry, Corolla, Accord, F- 150, etc. The problem is that if manufacturers keep on pushing the limits of their staple products it will lead to high and rather exorbitant expectations among the buyers. Consistently making upcoming products with such "boundary-pushing and extraordinary" designs and functionality is hard, extremely hard even if you compare it to the "inoffensive, everybody-pleasing and not bad in any way" philosophy used by corporates which in turn is quite sophisticated. At some point or the other, your boundary-pushing design is going to fail, fail to satisfy the buyers, fail to satisfy the sales, fail to make the major chunk of money it used to do earlier, and fail to keep the reputation of the company. It takes a lot, quite a lot to make your way to the top of the competition, at that level even a single wrong step can sometimes lead to such a point, a point where you will find yourself in great difficulty even to take on the ones you have rightfully conquered.

[@batmon5424]

I work in Software Industry and I see a ton of adoptations of product development methods from Toyota in my industry. The key thing here is "Lean Product Development". This encourages to minimize waste (Anything that is not to be used / admired by majority) and develop only what's needed. Not a huge fan of it, but it is smart way of producing things in a timely manner.

[@SlimothyJimothy621]

2:07 to me the Altima stands out because of its unique taillights, but that’s about the only risk the designers took with it, that and having a teal color option

[@rukeyburg1084]

I think you're the perfect 'discussionor' when it comes to design. It's like your channel is your whole playfield, and it's nice to see *a very* nuanced guy to explain it all. Maybe you're comparable with Game Makers Toolkit, because people usually/used to joke around when it comes to justifying themself. _"..but, have you worked after your education?" *- ...., I follow Design Theory* XD

[@dome_node]

It comes down to marketing to particular segement of the market or customer pool. Certain customers are OK with something boring.. maybe they don't want this particular product to express their personality.

[@MC57315]

Man, your video's are so refreshing. I think you make some excellent points why making something that is not bad, is often the priority of larger companies. When you look at it from a design brief though, I'm pretty sure that the Camry's of the world have a larger list of requirements than the top of the line products in which designers can get crazy. Developing products for mass consumption is often a careful balance of fitting a larger demographic, hitting tight budgets and trying to implement some new trickle down technologies in a cohesive way.

[@Benji...]

Interesting point, it's always so tempting to go overboard with the design

[@Design.Theory]

Agreed. You gotta do what's best for the use case.

[@gpd4110]

weird because i see so many beautiful blends in between elegant surfaces there that achieving this harmony under many limitations is a great example of creativity.

[@ruphelan1307]

not sure if i would describe some of the designs as 'boring', simple forms, yes, the Braun HL 1 fan is a simple cylinder form but it looked like no other fan before it making it very distinctive and quite delightful in its simplicity. Wording aside i 100% agree with the point you're making about not trying to impress but trying not to make anyone dislike it. it makes you wonder how many really cool designs were tapered back and relaxed so that the product could fit a wider audience

[@Design.Theory]

Yeah, Dieter Rams is a bit of a stretch in terms of calling it 'ordinary' design. I think the problem now is that people are still drawing inspiration from that style 70 years later. I understand the reason why. Dieter Rams' principles and the designs that resulted from those principles perfectly reflect what a design should be. It's hard to improve on them. I would say that almost every car design that has made it to market has been toned down considerably. Look at the concept cars and then look at how watered down the production models are.

[@alexflores4458]

Yes, another example could be the Honda - e, in my opinion regardless of the basic shape and non particularly crazy design details, is pretty exciting and quite refreshing.

[@Design.Theory]

@@alexflores4458 I like the Honda E a lot!

[@leonzhang8675]

Hey im a ux designer at big tech, really different field but I still really enjoy listening to your vids, I might reference a few points in my own articles in my own field, especially when you mention design by committee, its really a common theme across any modern design field

[@Design.Theory]

Go for it! If you do decide to use this as a reference feel free to use my real name in your works cited (John Mauriello). Totally optional though. I'm probably not the first person to notice and publish this stuff

[@leonzhang8675]

@@Design.Theory will do! Excited to learn more from your videos!

[@microcolonel]

I love my 2020 Camry, it has... a lot more personality than you seem to imply. Not only that, I have received unsolicited compliments from total strangers on it. I'd say the older designs have been more bland, but the most recent ones are, to me, actually beautiful. And then when you look under the hood, you're glad you got a Toyota, particularly a full-sized one. You can get to everything you're likely to need to get to in the first decade of the car's life, things are clearly labelled, and the finishes all stay intact. As for market segmentation, the Camry has the SE for men, and the LE for women; XLE for wealthier women, and XSE for wealthier men (and of course, the equivalent Leuxus for even wealthier...).

[@hizzaddinno394]

That is my entire design philosophy: Minimum Effort! Lol. In most parts of the world, people don't understand good design. If fact they can't recognize it even if you hit them over their head with it. What instead happens is they see mediocre designs and crappy designs and think it's good or even better than actually good designs. I believe this happens in formerly colonized states which had their native cultural development suppressed by centuries of colonization. The appreciation of beautiful objects couldn't develop then got stunted and warped. These civs eventually got independent and got more money of their own to purchase such objects as cars and mansions but their values are markedly different to civs that never got colonised. Like the Chinese buyers who demand Beemers with massive shnozzles & Victorian styled mansions and furniture to show off their wealth. To the West, it must seem bourgeois and outdated. The karmic irony is that these former colonies now have a higher number of wealthy individuals who are capable of buying the offerings of today's corps and thus their under-developed tastes now determine the designs of future cars and vehicles.

[@ReubenAStern]

I like simple designs. Especially when there has been careful thought to reliability, ergonomics and making it intuitive to use. I actually find them visually appealing too. But the ideal would be to have loads of Toyota Camrys with low power and an obscure model that looks the same but has really high performance. I would want to own that.

[@leogobbi10]

As an architect I also find interesting “boring” but well done architecture. The majority of our cities are made of totally ubiquitous design, the problem as I see, is the mediocrity of most of it. A lot of market driven buildings are cheap and average, but it seems the stake holders involved try to spice things up or follow some specific trends that really don’t add nothing to the designs or actually only make it worst, just for the sake of slightly contrasting with competition or for personal interests. The question is being simple and accessible to most people at the same time being well done. That takes a clear vision of what works and what is consistent design.

[@kausthubhtsr9636]

Wow! This is completely a different perspective ✨

[@Design.Theory]

Thanks for watching Kaustubh!

[@4is67]

There is slight but definite difference between boring design and sophisticated design. Designers have to take a lot of care not to make product boring, but simple and sophisticated. Apple products are good examples.

[@Hyvelez]

Generally think that there is no excuse for ugly bland design. Like the toyota, it makes me sad to look at. Or let's take Volvo who in the late 2000s until the mid 2010s, designed incredibly boring car-designs that was a bland as it could possibly be. But they completely changed their design-language a couple of years ago, and their cars looks amazingly beautiful.

[@steeven23]

very mature and humble of you to admit it

[@TheSaxophony]

John I just love your channel. Funny I hate the Camry and I have hated them all, I hate Toyota's design in general. Clearly most people disagree me. It is interesting how having strong feelings and in depth knowledge about a topic sends you to the margins and average knowledge places you in the middle. I love Alfa Romeo's but they sell 1 car for every 100000 that Toyota sells. My taste in music is also way off average and that is why music like jazz does not sell well. Great video, thank you.

[@keepsteddy]

Whats with the Tyler Dirden splice at 2:22?

[@TheJojoaruba52]

As a Corolla owner, I believe it is a composite of the best of all designs. It is vanilla. Nothing wrong with vanilla.

[@Design.Theory]

Vanilla's probably my favorite flavor. Boring? yes. Effective? Also yes.

[@Lawrence330]

@@Design.Theory Vanilla doesn't mean plain. Vanilla is a flavor, just like chocolate is a flavor, or strawberry or anything else. I'll never understand why people use vanilla to mean "plain" or "regular." Go eat plain yogurt and get back to me on vanilla.

[@joshuawisner4177]

I'm 22, with no interest of becoming a designer or engineer, but here's my take on the camry, for what it's worth. Toyotas stands out from other cars because of their relatively low cost of ownership. other cars might be cheaper, more advanced, or offer more appealing features, but Toyotas "run forever". Anyone who shops in the used car market knows that Toyota is king. Pickups from the early 90s with 200k+ miles are still selling for $12k, and hell, that's a decent investment. (Didn't you see that top gear episode, man? boxed frames man, the 22re is indestructible, man.) I think the value of a Toyota rests on the promise of reliable, careful, Japanese engineering, with the illusion of perpetual value. striking design takes a back seat, and for many in the economy market, would probably dissuade them from taking a car seriously. Toyota isn't supposed to be a brand that spends money on unnecessary gimmicks and design. A cool looking car that's worth the money? Does not compute. A boring, stock design caters to that expectation, and lets the engineering take center stage.

[@ignaciomorandi8001]

I've really loved this video/reflexion. Sometimes I think that we, as designers, are very focused on standing out, make a product that appears on design books, and it's respected by other designers. I use to call that "Designer Ego", and is something that I can' t get away of. I should be okay with designing simple things, they are what lots of people look for, and lots of people doesn't even notice the details that we consider failures or wrong choices, but as designer, it's a bit uncomfortable to not use all of our knowledge in a product, or being part of a project that goes away of what we learnt in college

[@Design.Theory]

Yeah. Make no mistake, I think that almost all red dot design award winners are good designs. But I think that it's very dangerous to design in search of prestige or awards in general. The user and use case is king. Every decision must stem from that.

[@Lawrence330]

@@Design.Theory I think that this is a huge problem in fashion. Everyone struts out onto the runway dressed for the Hunger Games, but all I want is a pair of blue jeans with the right boot cut and durable enough that I'm not headed back for another set in 3 weeks. I understand that for designers, standing out is something of a calling card for future employment, award, or prestige, but for consumers, well, we don't want that crap!

[@westod5502]

I have almost finished reading the design of everyday things by Don Norman to see whether Industrial Design would be a good career path and I am now far more concerned with functional design. I enjoy products which have a clear purpose with simple refined designs.

[@Design.Theory]

Always design for the user and everything else falls into place :)

[@SAS_786]

Some people prefer boring design because it is understated, functional and cheaper than designer goods.

[@enefezeta9044]

Really liked your vision.

[@lihtan]

The thing with car design, is that each model is crafted using the same design language, so that there's a visual progression from the base models all the way up to the luxury models. Usually the luxury models have a bit more refinement and creative details. This way consumers of the cheaper products can feel like part of a larger family, yet also be subconsciously steered towards more expensive products.

[@jungcarol]

Acho que também precisamos considerar o conjunto das coisas… objetos de design muito arrojado tendem a não combinar tão bem entre si. Por outro lado, as coisas “beges” tendem a compor um conjunto harmônico e definitivamente têm seu valor.

[@ecstaticryan4369]

The thing is a product like the camry may not have a show stopping design but that’s not the point, its meant to be the most reliable car you’ll ever drive. It’s like the tile they put in so many schools. It’s not pretty but it’s held up pretty good for having been there for like 50 years.

[@elijahdelacruz3204]

I love my Toyota Camry Hybrid. Just got it this year (2023 for anyone watching from the future) and I don’t have any regrets. It’s so simple that it looks good - in my opinion - it’s versatile. But hey that’s just me, as I never liked anything too flashy. While most guys my age (Im 22) definitely gravitate more towards sports cars and cars that have a bit more going on in the design, I like my simple Camry. I know, I’m fun at parties 😂😂

[@noble20xx56]

I get you though. I know Camry's get a bland reputation, but I always admired the simplicity of them ever since before I could drive.

[@designCred-tc1sv]

Id argue there's another thing about a 5/10 design that gets underrated yet is inherently part of that product - it sets a baseline. In order to make a benchmark to actually know if you've made an outstanding, 10/10 design or not, you need to know what is the standard of the product you're about to make. Think of this like the "control group" in an experiment.

[@mihir8701]

I always assumed cheap cars were simple designs to save money. I though just making a car sleek was cheaper than adding lines

[@billmcdonald4335]

I'm a user, not a designer. I appreciate design, and I understand that the job's not an easy one. What I want is that the design not get in the way of what the thing is meant to do; I don't need a re-design of a mundane object, nor do I care for a new shade of anthracite. The cliche 'less is more' isn't one in my case - it's part of what makes the difference in my buying decision.

[@thedarkside3899]

From my experience the "boring" designs most of the time are the ones for the masses. In glass we most of the time talk about classic design which pretty much is a nice way to say boring. One line of boring glasses every 1-2 years guarantees stable income for the company so that more risky/modern designs can be made and maybe even fail.

[@Designotherwise]

It makes sense! They wanna target the widest audience possible to have the highest possible number of buyers. Ferrari isn't making a product for the masses, quite the contrary, their point is to get car ethusiasts or rich people to buy them and their designs are much more bold and exciting. Then again, PS5 targets a large number of people but hvae just come out with a very radical design... in conclusion, nothing makes sense

[@Design.Theory]

Thanks for checking it out :)

[@Lawrence330]

A lot of gamer gear is ridiculously ostentatious, and a lot of office computers are bland black boxes. The trick is to find something in between, a traditional design with edge lighting or an accent panel, something that doesn't scream "alien mothership."

[@halcometmartinezreales8600]

Very nice video! Keep it going man! I really like your content. I think that a good design is much more than the shape and expression of it. It's the full process, from the manufacturing, to the usability details in the daily use. However, the function of the form as a joy sparker is also important. Maybe in the 4.0 industry we can custom the shape to each user? Or maybe the user can be better educated in what is a good design?

[@Design.Theory]

All interesting possibilities. Thanks for checking out the videos!

[@FreekaPista]

Simple and unadorned products/designs don't have to be boring. The Bauhaus school is probably the easiest and most pervasive example of this. Completely revolutionary at the time and striking in its avoidance of the popular trends before its advent. I think Brutalist architecture serves the point well too, though in that case you can see how dramatically the public can react against it. One thing I found interesting is that despite being much simpler in design, I find earlier models of the Toyota Camry and Corolla to be much more attractive than the cars you showed in this video. Adding too much takes away from the purpose of the product (a utilitarian transportation device), though that might be a reaction against the broad contemporary trend of "overstyling" cars than a more objective view of the design on its own.

[@ruzzelladrian907]

Ikea Lack table. I see it as good design. It’s not remarkable, but it’s minimalist design and very affordable price makes it very versatile.

[@Steelpoly3dJ316]

I have lamented in the past about modern minimalism in product design. How props from video games and animation are so appealing compared to the blank rectangles that make up so many modern real world products. But, if nothing else, I can understand that some things are not meant to be anything more than a background element.

[@kaiokendo]

00:07 ssangyong indiference??

[@samarthnarang2184]

Amazing videos! Really changed my point of view on a couple of things.

[@Design.Theory]

Glad it was helpful!

[@kibby8823]

Like one example is fridges, back only like, a few years ago, like the early to mid 2000s they were so nice, or the 50s or 70s, fridges had patterns, color, different design, now their just grey or white

[@AntonioFellini1]

Ambient music is probably my favorite kind of music. It inspires me and allows me to do other things at the same time I'm listening to it. So I'm kind of in favour of boring design.

[@reinhardt3090]

I can't see the comparison between Ambient music and Boring design. Simplistic yes, but boring? Those are not the same thing. What makes something boring isn't it's simplicity, it is its unoriginality. Ambient music is often varied and constantly changing, not just repeating the same thing, I would argue pop songs are more like boring design than ambient music, as pop songs repeat the same structure multiple times and often different pop songs sound similar, almost the same in some cases. Boring pop songs are boring because we've heard them before. Boring design is boring because we have seen it before. Apartments aren't always ugly but they are if you make every apartment building look the same like the communists did. That is part of the issue really, boring design is utilitarian, acts as if is good because it allows itself to spread to more people than anything else. It thinks the ends justifies the means, give people boring lives for the sake of everyone having being able to have the design and have "better" lives. People didn't realize it fast enough and now we have suicide rates like nothing in the history of mankind. How else can one explain the rise in suicide other than industrialization? Why are people so unhappy in our society? Something is clearly wrong on a global scale. This isn't normal. People are so disconnected and apathetic and it certainly can't help to have the same boring designs everywhere. Places like Wallmart, Target, Lowes, 7-11, and more like them are soul sucking and you will find the same exact buildings wherever you go in America, any variety of design would risk losing customers and they, as monopolies, can't have that. And don't say they aren't monopolies, There isn't any room for people opening businesses in those areas and these companies have been exposed for using dirty tactics and working together to make sure they stay on top. Laws against monopolies don't stop separate companies from working together towards the same goal for both their benefit. Wallmart and Target are a good examples of 2 stores that clearly have monopolies but are only technically not because they sell things other stores sell and there are 2 of them. In function they control everything about the same as a monopoly does. Are you not defending monopolies by defending boring industrial design? They literally can't exist without boring industrial design to appeal to enough people. Do you think the death of small business is a good thing? Think we should all work for corporations in the future? Where does this boring industrial design lead us? simply take it to its logical conclusions and you won't like it. We never think about the real cost of mass produced boring industrial design either, We get most things from foreign places like China. Child labor is a fact as well as the likely slave labor of the Uyghur people. This is only possible because we like to buy the same boring industrial things and China can only sell us so many, so cheap, because they are boring industrial designs made by abused workers. Without boring industrial design China wouldn't be able to sell us slave labor goods in mass.

[@jamesperry4470]

I think this overestimates how much the consumers and business people care about original design.

[@ArifRWinandar]

Products are like fashion, sometimes people want something boring because they don't want to attract attention.

[@chriskappert1365]

Is it everyday or is it special occasion ? A commuterscar or a trackcar ?

[@Lawrence330]

Not to say that I prefer "bland" styling, but sometimes understated is just right. I have an affinity for early 2000s BMWs, they sort of blend into the background and don't really scream "look at me." The high performance M3 practically blends into traffic in the way a Corvette couldn't. This may or may not be desirable for everyone, but that's consumer choice and we're all better for the option. Of the current crop of economy sedans, I find the Civic to be garish and childish in appearance, the Camry and Jetta are far more understated in design and don't pretend to be anything other than they are. Even the "juiced" models are conservatively styled (Jetta GLI, Golf GTI), with only subtle cues to indicate they are "elevated" from their cousins.

[@javelinexile]

I think the level of flash you include in a design impacts the market it can reach, but also it can deemphasize a product to make your market ready for the next thing. I also think it can be a trap most companies get caught in and it was touched on in the cybertruck video where John talks about a certain hunger for something, Anything! different to come along and grab customers' attention. So while the corporations are busy trying to please everyone in the corporation and only giving customers new doorhandle shapes to look at from year to year because it's "safe" someones going to come along and eat their lunch. So here we are in a pandemic that's not over and might be another year of hiding in our houses, I'll tell you the last friggen thing I want to look at when I take a stroll next summer are honda civics everywhere and girls wearing pajamas and guys in T-shirts and Hoodies. Time for another roaring '20's any maybe another Harley Earl

[@Design.Theory]

Imagine how stressful life would be if we were surrounded by objects that were all as polarizing as cybertrucks, but in completely different ways. You'd have a conniption. After this year, a part of me would happily welcome boredom and complacency :) Although, I try avoid doing "boring" design as much as possible. But sometimes the brief simply calls for it.

[@javelinexile]

@@Design.Theory Grew up in the late 60's and 70's any modern styled home or office was an assault of competing colours and shapes. Home was more sane. But it was fun to be outside and visiting places

[@webtoedman]

Depends on the pajamas.

[@L3nny666]

Make the Pantone chair cheaper and you will see it everywhere. I think people enjoy great design, but just can‘t afford it. A lot of design objects just have inflated price tags

[@cturdo]

Ordinary - useful, efficient, reliable, profitable. Look at any new jet airliner these days - tube with two big engines. Their improvements are mostly internal and on a mass scale (fuel efficiency and less maintenance).

[@SagBobet]

Agree. Commercial jets are designed to meet safety regulations, as well as cost, function, and comfort to an extent. It's very much like a bus. Even though it would be interesting, it doesn't make much business sense to give them a bold design since I would guess the most people purchasing an airline ticket make that decision based on how striking the exterior of the plane is, except maybe in unique circumstances. Hell, I don't even think most airlines list the model of airplane they're going to use for your flight before you buy the ticket.

[@ruzzelladrian907]

If Toyota Camry is 5/10. Hyundai Sonata and Kia K5 are a 6.5/10 or 7/10. I have a greater understanding about general mass market car designs now after watching this video. Thanks.

[@steelheart4148]

There is a difference between "functional" and "boring." German sedans are "functional" but still convey a sense of understated elegance. Japanese sedans are just "boring."

[@mbox314]

The toyota camry is a stylish car, it Has all kinds of swoopy lines and things that don't need to be. You just think it is bland because it is the most common car on the road. Trees are beautifull works of art but you don't appreciate it because they are so common. If the camry were exactly the same but twice the price and made in Germany everyone would think more of it.

[@parkerwonser]

Fantastic video. Thank you for this clarification.

[@Design.Theory]

My pleasure!

[@jakobholgersson4400]

I'd like to disagree with you on the Camry. We've had a decade where everything has been forced to look like an SUV. Blobby front ends with huge headlights that make the Toyota Corolla my mom had in the 1990's look like a Lamborghini in comparison. The new Camry looks low, wide and aggressive when compared to what's on the market.

[@6lbs._onion]

Be me, has a 09' camry with a redone exterior that looks like a 11', is beige coloured. Yep. That's my flavour, and I love it. It's unassuming, it's reserved and to sum it up. It's humble. . . . . . . and miss me with them newer models... Lambos wananbe lookin' arse

[@crimsongoldeagle8868]

The problem with new car designs is because looking at them almost feels like watching a good first episode of a show only to find out that the rest of it is boring and mediocre. The modern Camry designs have enough detail and sharp lines to catch the eye, but so little personality or feel that when you actually really look at them you're only left feeling disappointed.

[@nemonemo4373]

it's amazing channel!!!! I've got massive perspective just for 3days, Thanks a lot and i found some of your video including this one couldn't show English caption. When click caption icon it show vietnamese(auto translate) instead:::.

[@Design.Theory]

Thank you for the kind words, Nemo! I appreciate that. Let me see if I can fix the closed caption issue.

[@mustafazahari9793]

Camry/Toyota does not depend on design alone...they have reliability....good engineering... That is why their design is 'boring'...non offensive....just enough....kind of design Btw...thanks for the channel...

[@EryPrihananto]

Thanks Man. I think you should check the subtitles, it's not work good on your channel

[@Design.Theory]

Thanks for the tip

[@ten-ub4xd]

im binging your vids, their super interesting

[@Design.Theory]

Glad you like them! Thanks for checking it out :)

[@reitsmaassociates]

Ahh the Camry - yawn!!!! But the world loves it. Kills us designers when average is rewarded. Guess its a universal principle to keep us designers humble.

[@ettoja6849]

i want boring design in my everyday life. so that when i have 20 boring appliances at home, they go well together. i don't want 20 distinctive screaming-look-at-me products to make a cocofony :DD

[@cfkay3727]

I just want what I buy to look like the object I'm buying. I want my car to look like a car and my chairs to look like chairs. Call me boring, but I think there is value in just that. Not everything has to be unique.

[@w8lvradio]

Who doesn't like beautiful industrial design: It becomes boring only when it becomes ubiquitous by its very success, so I'm going with defense of boring design! In Sweden, nobody cares much about blondes when it comes to beauty, because there are so many blondes. But that doesn't mean that one or a dozen Swedish Blondes aren't beautiful. For me? I like that something can be beautiful and well made, and yet affordable via mass production's economy of scale. The BEST designs are the ones that are beautiful, intuitive, and ergonomic: Setting aside blondes(! ;-)) I'm talking about the art deco toaster. It's beautiful, intuitive, and the pull down handle is easy for anyone to operate, as is the darker/lighter switch. And even the sound when the toast is ready: It's a bread transforming toast producing jack in the box! Who doesn't like that analog bimetallic switch and spring pleasing sound that tells you: Your toast is ready! Now, just like blondes, there's millions of them. They all have "the same look". Even the less Fancy Dancy ones. So you can immediately identify that as a "toaster" and approach operating it with confidence. I really like Pilot Pens, too. Coleman Lanterns and Stoves. Grundig/Eton radios. I also like a shower faucet that is easy to set when I'm traveling, where red and blue are marked, and it's easy to get the water right. I wonder if intuitive beautiful designs might even make products safer, because you recognize their purpose and function instantly. On the other hand, I don't like power tools that have "playful" designs, because power tools are serious dangerous things that must be treated with respect. I also like "over built." Roman Roads may have used much too much labor and stone, the design is simple, and in Roman times anyway, likely pretty ubiquitous. But some of those roads can still be used today. If that's not beautiful design? I don't know what is. The worst designs are the techno "flashing 12's" types. Good design I think empowers the consumer. All the Best! 73 DE W8LV BILL.

[@TheMissingxtension]

Toyota is successful because of their great engineering. I know for a fact the boring design has nothing to do with how well it sells. They are the only company that can sell a truck that is 16 years old. The tundra went from 2006 to 2022. The changes were mediocre, just basically massaging the body. But the 07 model was the best design and kicked everyone in the assembly. They did the same with corollas, its all the same but only massage the body and interior.

[@YatzeeWillWearAGreenHat]

Yes, we need boring design, No, that doesn't mean that they're not boring. Yes, I still buy them if I don't care about that item, like a table or a door.

[@rajkumarbharathi3139]

the reason why Camry and other sedans look the same is because of convergence evolution. all sedans have the same goal to optimize i.e. give most room for passengers while at the same time increasing the fuel economy. Thats why they look the same.

[@brettenhooks4966]

What’s wrong with Jack Johnson?

[@gaswhole]

when everything in the world tries to stand out and be something special not only is nothing special but the whole is unharmonious and ugly.

[@NoName-ik2du]

I personally _despise_ bland cars. The Honda Civic currently holds the prize as my least favorite car of all time; specifically the body styles form 1992-2015. In 2016, the car went from boring to ugly, and I thought it was the best thing they ever did to the brand. An ugly car has personality. A bland car is just depressing. I understand some people don't want to stand out, but that doesn't mean there have to be bland cars. Looks back at the '50s. _All_ cars had _some_ style; even the boring ones. People could buy something boring if they wanted, but it wasn't just a drab featureless blob like the 2006 Honda Civic. A car is also different than something in your house like an Echo. The thing in your house should match your décor, of which there are many varieties. So a neutral design will appeal to more people because it won't clash with what they already have going. A car, on the other hand, is a stand-alone object that sits outside. It's not expected to match anything, and it doesn't need to. The "safe" design has no function in a car. And lastly: Screw beige.

[@roelantverhoeven371]

I like Beige... especially on cars it can look great

[@Aciimov]

Good Design is useful

[@user-xg6zz8qs3q]

I'm tired of hearing that the Camry is boring design. I think that it's overly stylised and aggressive for a sedan and comes off as cartoony. I dislike the huge maw, chunky muscular proportions and gigantic rear headlights. I'd argue that the Camry isn't boring enough and will age poorly as a result. I believe that the duller Volkswagen Passat or Ford Fusion look better.

[@Design.Theory]

I think you're right, but you have to remember that pretty much all cars today look more like something out of Transformers. As a result, the features you describe are very run of the mill, which is kinda counterintuitive

[@user-xg6zz8qs3q]

@@Design.Theory Yes! It is counterintuitive to say that I dislike the Camry because it follows all of the trends I grow tired of. To me, the Camry is a crystal clear reflection of automotive trends throughout the years. For this reason the Camry will never be iconic.

[@jonathanbowen3640]

As a car designer I agree. This is really not boring at all. Its very over styled and super dramatic in fact. Toyota (and Lexus) have gone out of their way not to produce boring design. You're absolutely right about VW making far more ordinary designs.

[@vladyarotsky5287]

@@jonathanbowen3640VW much less busy designs make their products look more fresh and more appealing.

[@jonathanbowen3640]

@@vladyarotsky5287 VW products are very refined and ordinary, not sure they look more fresh, the new golf 8 actually looks less advanced and clean than the old edgier Golf 7!. I agree that they are less busy designs, and to me they are more appealing and more refined, but they are much less brave than Toyota. Less interesting than Toyota. The Supra looks very over styled. And the CHR looks a lot more modern than say the Tiguan. The Mirai is not boring either. I disagree that the Camry is a boring design. I don't like it. but they really tried to do something with it. The VW Passat is way more boring.

[@StefanBacon]

Bland design is a failure of public infrastructure, for example, the Toyota Camry is a symptom of lacking transit networks. Of someone buy a product that's not interesting, they probably didn't want it in the first place and the solution to thwir need ia larger in scope than product design. That doesn't mean Toyota shouldn't make the camry, they should, but they are doing so to compensate for the failure of another entity.

[@mwamengele]

Bland products dont have that “out of my league” phenomenon

[@flamixin]

On the other hand I think you need too mention as well, too much ubiquitous product could lower the moral of the society, which I think is the case today.

[@derrickstorm6976]

My defense: sell your soul to shitty CEOs who only care about quarterly reports

[@designerdigest]

I love what Toyota do with their cars but pretty much the opposite on Lexus.

[@ChibiSteak]

4:11 fin.

[@OrlandoMGarcia]

That has been the story of camry a little to soft to not anoy any one, glad they got rid on thist last gen of all the sand, camel, gold beige colors.

[@Gabriel.Ponce.De.Leon.777]

I think a very useful design is not very far to be classic elegant. Volkswagen is good at this.

[@oldcowbb]

muji seems more minimalist than ubiquitous, i don't really know the difference

[@sshlokmishra2967]

back to some revisions

[@jmi5969]

Good video, but - in my utterly unprofessional opinion - wrong about the Camry. I suspect that the current Camry (XV70) was deliberately made bad and tasteless, almost Korean. Not as bad as the curvy Huyndays, but very close. They had decent XV20 and XV30 bodies in late 90s - early 00s - these (again, IMO IMO) were precisely the "not bads" that are the subject of this video. And then came the really good (almost iconic in my country) XV40, which looked a class or two above its intended market niche. Toyota quickly throttled back, and replaced it with the ugly boxy (but still not bad) XV50 and then the current XV70. Good for taxis, they say, but little else.

[@Design.Theory]

Yeah I mean, they have Lexus and Scion right? Or I think Scion was discontinued, actually. Anyway, the point is, they can't make their Toyotas look too good, otherwise it will cannibalize their higher end cars. It's kind of dumb, because it literally costs nothing extra to make a car LOOK good. Making it actually be better does require better components etc. though

[@Camska427]

i hate the design of most modern cars, kia souls are... pretty soulless. at least in my eyes but my sister drive one and loves it. i have grown up loving cars my whole life and love and fall in line with most vehicles designs pre-aero 1980s. wide and long style that the late 50s early 60s came up with just fills my brain with dopamine. to me those cars had more character but my sister doesn't know or even seen many classic cars beside the one here and there out on the road. she doesn't have a connection with it, like most of the modern pop who just drive cars and need nothing more, but they'll connect and in the future reminisce these current cars.