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What’s Black and White and Read All Over?

The obvious answer is concept cell phones with E ink displays. Despite their lamentable lack of color range, E ink mobiles are just all the rage these days. This concept from Anthony Reed stays a bit more inside the box with simplistic grid styling that keeps everything well within the gray scale range of the display.  When all you have to work with is black and white, maybe its best to embrace it fully instead of covering it up in flashy case graphics.

Bends to Cushion Your Bum

The chair uses an molded aluminium frame to hold a stretchable fabric across the sitting surface, defined by injection molded plastic rims to sculpt the form. The fabric gives to the weight and shape of the person sitting to allow maximum comfort, hence doing away with upholstery to achieve a higher level of cushioning. The semi-transparent nature gives it visual interest. Of course that stiletto support in the rear is questionable. Still, it’s an interesting take on modern furniture design.

Designer: Abhijeet Kumar

This iPod is Full of Air

It really is! Hear me out. The iBangle is Gopinath Prasana’s vision of a future iPod where the devices have become darn close to becoming jewelry. If you factor in inflation and the cost of Apple products today – might as well call it jewelry because it’ll cost as much. I digress, the iBangle is a thin piece of aluminum (of course) with a multi-touch track pad. To achieve the perfect fit, a cushion inside the ring inflates to keep itself taught against your wrist. Unisex? Maybe.

Designer: Gopinath Prasana

To Shoppy with a Shoppy

Any good industrial designer with a mind for helping out his or her society has a list of things that haven’t been improved upon lately. Next on Junji Kawabe’s list is the shopping cart. With a hot orange color scheme and his sights set on a super cute name ready for tagging [Shoppy!], Kawabe’s well on his way!

Designer: Junji Kawabe

Pool Party

UK based design firm, Freshwest have taken the meaning of pool table to an entirely new level – literally. Recently unveiled at London’s Design Week, “Pool Table” is a conceptual design that sparked both curiosity and humor from viewers at the show. “Pool Table is made from 50mm of acrylic that reflects light giving it a peculiar semblance of an actual swimming pool.

Designer: Freshwest Design

Trod the Untrodden Path! GeoCane and Upward!

Presenting the best way to get lost in a walking stick. The GeoCane by Felix Hardmood Beck takes the idea of a divining rod and finds you some great adventure in the great hiking pilgrimage. Stamping the ground creates a path that noone else has followed, creating a unique experience for you, the final and last one true highlander.

Designer: Felix Hardmood Beck

Nesting Doll House

House N is a new house in Oita, Japan , by one of our favorites, Sou Fujimoto Architects. The house is a series of nesting boxes, another departure from a glorified 3 bedroom 3.5 bath architected ‘stravagazna. The Japanese are light years ahead of everyone else in this regard.  Look no farther than the powerful, simple, and effective section for proof of this.

Designer: Sou Fujimoto Architects

Sherwood Forest’s Fantastic Treehouse

London-based architects Make created the winning design for the Sherwood Forest Visitor Centre (yes, that Sherwood Forest ). Their solution makes this little installation in Madison Square Park look really weak. In fact, Make Architecture’s take seems to owe more to Tadashi Kawamata’s early work than anything in contemporary architecture.

Designer: Make Architects

Top 10 of Green Design

Never one to let a trend pass without jumping on the bandwagon ourselves, here is Yanko Design’s top 10 list of the most impactful green designs of recent memory. Given so many criteria available to judge the concepts, ordering the list was tough, but in the end we shot from the hip as well as flipped a lot of coins. Without further ado, hit the jump for your daily dose of feeling good about Mother Earth.

A New Way to Bike

That cushy padded seat on your bike is a fitness hinderance, preventing the toned legs Lance Armstrong would envy, and keeping your back unnaturally aligned. The TAURUS bike eschews the seat for a unique cab forward design. Designed specifically for children, you stand leaning forward enabling correct posture while making the largest muscles in your body work harder. The pedaling action is more akin to stair stepping. You’ll be fit and tone in no time.

Designer: Julia Meyer