Hello, hello, community!
It has been a busy couple of weeks here at Eve, including redefining the box design, adding and refining laser etching designs, and testing a prototype of the pen loop. Despite the power cuts in China, we are still moving forward with preparations for the mass production run, and that means we’ve got more updates for you. So, sit back, relax, and stay a while, as we play catch up on our latest progress.
The box
As many of you may remember, in the Aesthetic Protection topic I did last month, we presented our choices for the front and the back of the box. We received valuable feedback in that topic, and I also want to cover a few things that were brought up there.
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The eve logo (inverted triangle) is a direct throwback to the Eve motto of developed in the crowd - the wide part of the triangle at the top representing the community that helps develop the products, and the narrow part at the bottom being us, and is also a direct shade thrown at typical corporate structure, with a CEO solely at the top.
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The slight curvature inside the inner angle of the bottom of the triangle (and carried over to our V logo below) comes from the landing page of our website.
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The idea for using an image on the front of a V on the box top comes directly from the idea of showing off the display, its sharpness, and vividness, so to be most aesthetically pleasing, it shows without any distracting icons from a desktop image.
Fast forward to today, and we got a test print sample to look at in our hands.
The earlier design for the top in a test print. Unfortunately, this design does not display the V well, in part because the bezels are too dark, and in part because the originally selected wallpaper was simply not sharp enough to begin with. Interestingly enough, this print illustrates the timeless idea that good designs do not always transfer well to real world samples - it looked fabulous during the design phase, but not so much in our hands.
Because of the above noted issues, @Joni, our industrial designer, went back to the drawing board. He details the following changes:
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The original box top image was simply not sharp enough when printed. The new image he created looks better when printed, but also needed a change to the logo color from white to black. The reason for this type of a print is that we are going for a true brushed metal look with vivid coloring, and when printed on the box we keep a 1:1 size to the V inside.
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The product name and logo on the box sides - he opted for a design that mimics the design on the current Spectrum boxes, so that when the box is lying flat on a surface, the sides have both in the correct orientation.
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The bottom box image has been removed entirely, as it simply would not look good no matter what we tried, even line-art illustrations. So, all we get is the label and relevant regulatory and related icons.
With these changes in mind, here is a look at the new proposed box:
New box, both top and bottom parts. Note the different image, the colors of the V on the front being black now, and the rest of the logos, model and icons on the back being a much more subdued gray, a more direct throwback to the first gen box. Now we will create a new test print with the new imagery and evaluate it again.
Laser etching on the kickstand
We’ve also made improvements by adding a laser etched Eve logo onto the kickstand exterior. In addition, the interior will display pertinent information also laser etched, such as serial number, power input, regulatory logos.
Tests of various intensity etchings of the Eve logo onto the kickstand. This form of laser etching has four controlling parameters: speed, which affects how fast the laser shapes the triangle; power, which affects how strong the lasering is; frequency, which affects how often the laser operates; and physical height between the lasering machine and the kickstand, which needs to be precisely controlled for repeatable outcome.
And now, for your viewing pleasure, here is a video of the laser etching process.
Loop redefined
Our last look is at the pen loop prototype, with our feedback incorporated from the earlier samples incorporated:
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A larger pad for more stability when adhered to a surface.
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Tighter and stronger elasticity of the actual loop, allowing for better grip on the pen.
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Matching fabric on the tab with the keyboard fabric.
The prototype pen loop is now a much more functional yet aesthetically pleasing product. The tightened loop now holds the pen much more snugly, as Grant (@Lore_Wonder) noted in replies to my previous loops topic, while the fabric matching, the loop color and the size all look good and feel great to touch.
Loop attached to keyboard, with pen inserted.
Rear view of loop. Note the matched fabric on the tab.
The pen slid all the way to the clip.
Final thoughts
So, there you have it. We have been working hard going through testing, sample analysis, and conducting our own, internal testing to iron out small issues. We still have a way to go:
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We’ve sent the new box design to be test printed so we can evaluate it.
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We’ve asked if the loop partner can manufacture a loop with a 3 x 3 cm tab and need to see if this will be sufficient for use with the loop.
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We’ve also asked them if we can change the fabric orientation on the tab by 90 degrees, so it simply looks better on the back of the keyboard.
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We’re taking a closer look at the laser etching to figure out if there may be a better imprint threshold that will be both visible enough to be readable when needed yet unobtrusive enough to be aesthetically pleasing (i.e., not easily visible) when you don’t need it.
Thanks for reading and have a great weekend!
