Invisible Magnetic Drawer Lock

There's some truth to the notion that the most secure lock is the one you can't even find - if you don't even know where to start, picking it becomes practically impossible!  That's why I like the "Covert" invisible magnetic drawer lock from Quirky - it's not just a clean minimalist design, it's even more effective than normal locks.  The only problem with this kind of product is that it relies on its secret for its effectiveness - so if the product ever becomes too popular, it'll essentially stop working!
[via Gizmodo]

GymPact: Work out, or it'll cost ya...

I love products that users inflict on themselves in order to change their behavior for the better (remember the cash-shredding alarm clock?), and this one definitely counts.  GymPact is a system that pays you to go to the gym - and charges you when you don't.  It's pretty simple: you commit to a certain workout schedule, pay money when you don't go, and that same money gets paid out to people who do keep their schedule. The app seems to have clever enforcement techniques, like making sure you check in to the gym by actually being at its location as determined by your phone. Hey, if it makes people work out more, I'm all for it!

Unpressable Hotel Light Switches

I took these photos of two tabletop lamps in the same hotel room in Phoenix last week.  (Don't ask about the Fiesta Bowl, by the way.)  First, a quick word about usability design in hotel rooms: make everything obvious.  The nature of a hotel room means that all users are novices; their stay is so transitory, there's no time to become an experienced user.  So, are these two switches obvious?  No; in fact, one must be twisted while the other must be pressed, and neither visually suggests the correct action.  And putting two lamps with differently-operating but visually identical switches in the same room is a very bad move!  What any hotel chain would be wise to do is opt for large, obvious buttons on every device:  if it's a button, make it a big ol' mashable BUTTON.  If it's a knob, make it something that would be at home on an old-school stereo.  Don't make me spend extra brainpower figuring out a room I'll never stay in again anyway!

Does Form Make a Camera?

This one comes from old pal Jonathan Jackson, and it's a little silly on the surface - but like a lot of silly products, it's packing some design commentary just underneath the surface.  What you're looking at there is an iPhone case - and yep, it makes it look just like a somewhat old-fashioned camera.  Besides the disguise, the Gizmon iCa adds some function: it lets you attach different lenses to the iPhone camera in the bottom left corner, and features a big tactile shutter button and optical viewfinder.  But what's really apparent here is that smartphones have generally failed as a form factor for a camera.  You can't find the shutter button (if a real one even exists); your finger often blocks the oddly-placed lens, and holding the phone only by its edges (to prevent touchscreen interaction) just begs for an accidental drop.  Something like this silly case could actually improve the usability of the phone as a camera.  Now if only it didn't look quite like that...
[via TechCrunch]

Usable Robot Interaction

Robots have always been comfortable in industrial settings, where the jobs they perform have to do with parts, assembly, and other inanimate objects.  But when they have to function around people, it's a whole different ballgame:  it's not just the accomplishment of tasks that matters, but also how robots interact with the people around them.  That was the focus of a recent study at Palo Alto's Willow Garage, as reported by tech columnist Dan Lyons in Newsweek.  What they found was that people need more than just the rote performance of tasks from robots; it helps to have little extra signals that communicate, in human terms, what's going on.  My favorite example:  "To figure out how to open a door, the robot will simply stand in front of the door, not moving, just scanning the surface with its cameras. To a human, the machine seems to be stuck in one place. But if engineers make the robot’s head move up, down, left, and right while it is scanning, humans understand that the robot is trying to figure out how it works. The movement is unnecessary, but it helps humans recognize what the robot is doing, a trick that animators call 'readability.'"  In fact, more than just being unnecessary, that movement likely makes the engineering task even more difficult.  But since it helps the robot function in its context around humans, it's beneficial to the overall design - it's precisely where human-centered design and task-focused engineering meet, and hopefully find a way to get along!

Return of the Shutter Button!

Apple has been on a crusade against buttons for quite a while, removing them from the faces of phones, tablets, and even their own store elevators.  This means almost everything is done through the touchscreen - but recently, the tide has receded, and a few functions have regained physical, tactile buttons.  The one I'm celebrating today is the camera shutter button, which is the new secondary function of iProducts' volume-up buttons. And folks, this makes sense!  When you're taking a photo, you're focused on the world you're shooting: making sure the camera is aligned, everyone's smiling, and so on.  You need to be able to feel the button, to press it and get that tactile feedback.  It's pretty remarkable that we've gotten to the point where we applaud the re-introduction of old technologies as new design innovation.  Incidentally, using the volume-up button enables some new useful tricks, like using a wireless headset as a photo remote.  Welcome back, shutter button - it's good to see you again.

The Pillow Tie: Silly, serious commentary?

Okay, so it doesn't quite fit with a "usability" theme - but there's something kind of deep in this ridiculous combo.  The blurb puts it best: most functions that require a tie deserve to be slept through.  So the subversive thing to do is enable the wearer to sleep - thereby committing a more egregious violation of norms than simply not wearing the required tie in the first place.  It's a statement; first camouflaged, then bold, always ironic.  And sorry, but completely unusable!  Oh well...
[Thanks, Ruairi!]