Eole from JulienM on Vimeo.

This elegant concept design by Julien Moise may be some way from technical reality, but it raises interesting questions about how alternative power methods could convey sustainable values in the user experience of mobile devices.

The word ‘sustainability’ is often associated with compromise and the customer accepting ‘less’ while being expected to pay ‘more’. Designs such as this suggest positive ways in which renewable power sources could express active statements of user intent and identity within a product.

While Moise’s design is for a watch, it is easy to imagine this crossing over into phones, with users blowing the turbine to illuminate the idle screen status display or clock.

It picks up on the themes of MEX Pathway #7 (‘Express sustainable values in user experience‘) discussed as the recent MEX event in London.

The next MEX is on 30th November and 1st December in London. Stay up-to-date with the latest news by following this blog (RSS links at the top), signing up to the email newsletter or following @marekpawlowski on Twitter.

(Via Yanko Design).

Marek Pawlowski

Marek Pawlowski is the founder of MEX. Since 1995, he has focused the MEX business on helping digital industries to develop better, more profitable products through improved understanding of user behaviour with mobile devices and wireless networks. MEX is best known for its events, research and consulting, which balance commercial, technical and user insights to define the future of mobile user experience.

Recent Posts

Design Talk 80. Digitally sustainable; Mirren Fischer, Founder, Brilliant Product Design

Mirren Fischer is someone who finds herself at the confluence of some really big challenges:…

5 years ago

Design Talk 79. Our future towns; Dan Phillips, Royal College of Art

Poetry and place...listening and lockdowns... Dan Phillips, who led the Royal College of Art's (RCA)…

5 years ago

Design Talk 78. Mark Baldino, co-founder, Fuzzy Math

Mark Baldino's path to co-founding a Chicago-based design agency wends its way from a degree…

5 years ago

Design Talk 77. Paul Campbell, Chief Product Officer, Centaur Robotics

Paul Campbell, a former chief designer at Ford, is now re-imagining the wheelchair at Centaur…

6 years ago

Interaction unintended

Opening the oven released a cloud of steam. I should have been expecting it. It's…

6 years ago

Design Talk 76. Placeful computing; Jared Ficklin, Chief Creative Technologist & founding partner, argodesign

Jared Ficklin's approach of 'think by making' has led him to produce remarkable digital design…

6 years ago