Yanko Design - Form Beyond Function

Spire is the latest trend in wearable tech and it’s focused on focus! Unlike most fitness trackers which only track step goals, Spire aims to enhance the wearer’s awareness of their state of mind and how it relates to breathing.

Worn comfortably on the belt or bra, it detects your breath throughout the day and sends immediate alerts when it detects how tense, focused, active or calm you are. Paired wirelessly with a comprehensive smartphone app, it tracks trends and gives the user tips and tricks for breathing as well as other recommendations to relax or energize for reaching an optimal state of mind and well being! After use (its battery can last up to 7 days!) the unit can be tossed on an attractive wireless cork charging pad until you’re ready.

Designer: Jonathan Palley

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Gone are the days of sticking an awkward, pointy thermometer under your tongue for 60 seconds! Introducing, Thermo – the Smart Temporal Thermometer! In just 2 seconds, its 16 infrared sensors take over 4000 measurements to determine temperature from the temporal artery (considered the most accurate place to take temperature). You don’t even have to make contact with the skin, making it the most sanitary and least scary method for kids available! Measurements sync automatically with your smartphone. Based on age, fever history, and symptoms, the Thermo app gives immediate results and advanced health advice depending on stats.

Designer: Cédric Hutchings

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We enjoy seeing how far a designer can push furniture to be portable and innovative at the same time. In a way, the Flux Chair is quite similar to the Ollie Chair since they both can compress down to a flat pack, making them a dream to store and very easy to transport/carry around. The impressive thing however about the Flux chair is its ability to do so A. in a way that makes carrying even easier because your folded chair is smaller as well as lighter, and B. using just one material that isn’t just flexible when you need it, but rigid enough to support the body’s weight too.

The beauty of Flux is in the way it transforms from a large polypropylene envelope (briefcase sized) to a fully functioning chair that takes all of 3 minutes to set up. Using curved folds to make the chair structurally sound, the designers have managed to strike a rather lovely blend between structural integrity, and a unique aesthetic that doesn’t look anything like something you would imagine would be achievable through folding (Yves Behar’s Kada Stool, for example). In fact it reminds one of an origami version of the Pantone Chair, if you ask me, personally! The curves not only give the Flux chair its incredible load-bearing abilities, they even make the chair comfortable to sit on, as the curves on the chair match those on the sitter’s bodies.

The Chair comes a variety of colors and even features a Junior size for children. Its curved aesthetic and folding principle have been juxtaposed on many more furniture pieces, ranging from footstools, to even fully-functional minibars! You can check out more on the Flux Furniture series here!

Designers: Douwe Jacobs & Tom Schouten.

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Since the days of the cavemen sitting roasting around a fire, there’s nothing like food to bring people together! Perhaps our appliances should be built around this sentiment rather than to be shoved in a corner! The Family Multifunction Cooker is a perfect example of a communal cooking appliance. It’s cleverly designed to be operated by a group who can take equal part in the process. Whether you’re steaming, barbecuing, boiling or simply warming something up, this portable appliance makes it easy to share the experience with friends or a partner, even from the comfort of the couch!

Designer: Ellie Zeng