Friday 23 November 2007

aesthetics of my motor car mouse

Right, we've now another task to complete, for SPP1 tutorial but then also set in our lecture.

I have decided to use my mouse as my focus point when considering it's overall aesthetics.



First things first, as can be seen, its a mouse mimicing a motor car! Function-wise, it has a left button, right button and a scroll wheel to accumulatively make it easier to browse our computers.

Visually, the palm sized mouse comprises of 2 main colours: yellow and black. The strong contrast this makes draws the eye and thereafter, the electric blue lit headlamps prove another point of fascination. It has a shiny, glossy paint effect that has been used, adding that alure for it being something quite sexy, but then at the same time cute.

The headlamps of a triangular shape are quite a contemporary design as opposed to the rectanglular form used, say, a decade ago. It gives the car mouse some character. It reminds me of being quite cat-like for some reason. They shine a bright neon like blue light, which draw the eye, but in functional terms, alert the user to know that the mouse is on and connected.

In mimicing a true car, the wheels feature silver 'alloys' (although my heavy use has worn that down just a "tad") and in particular, a 6 spoke design, along with shiny metallic rimmed grills on the front. The half moon choice for the wheels are used so to make it a properly functioning mouse, but could be deemed futuristic, that of a hover car maybe, gliding along the ground. The combination of the black positioned next to the silver for the grills is a scheme which compliments each other. We know the front black panels to be grills due to the ribbed effect that has been applied, and in my opinion, are synonomous with the design of BMW cars, whose public image is that of expensive, refined cars.




The lines which form the body plates of the car mouse are all fluid, giving it that realistic sports car look. The curves, although no doubt being there to fit the ergonomics for a hand holding the mouse, mean it altogether appears a sleek design, streamlined, coupled with the small narrow side windows reinforcing the sexy sports car appeal. Of particular note, the blacked out windows give it a sort of racy, edgy feel, as opposed to, for example, a family car with big, clear windows.

In all, I really like the aesthetics of my mini car mouse. It looks futuristic, it's neat and being packed in a relatively small form, again, I believe, gives it some character, cuteness. What sets it aside from a bog standard mouse, it's major selling point you could say, is that it grabs your attention: the colours, the design with sleek lines, but then also the bright blue headlights and the red brake lights. In addition, it would appeal to car lovers alike. If I were to use one word to describe it, it would have to be, very simply, cool.

When thinking further afield, the idea leaves you thinking of all the other regular items in our life that can be altered into the guise of a mouse. Saying this though, there are already so many attempts that have been made, some better, more ingenious than others:





Comments

I've commented on Diana's multi-colour candle posting as well.


"I like your candle! and it is true what you say about the flame, in that they do provide some sort of calming quality. for me, i think the different colours that the candle drips make it look not too dissimilar to a stick of rock?! main stream candles nowadays all tend to be them large thick ones, normally just of one colour, so your thin one, with a variety of colours gives it some uniqueness! also, as with all candles, when they are lit the wax then runs down, but this adds to the visuals, as the dried drips give it more texture and in my opinion, that aged maybe even archaic, traditional candle look."

Over and out...
@

1 comment:

Philip Howlett said...

Hello Ashley, it's Phil here (www.philiphowlett.blogspot.com). Just commenting on this article as part of the SPP1.

I thought this was an accurate, in-depth review of the aesthetics of this product. I haven't seen this particular mouse before, so I found this an interesting article. As you said the colours are striking and create an effective visual contrast. It's got tons of character as you pointed out, and it's styling is really appealing to me and probably other people of our age. The fact you've drawn comparisons to real life cars shows that you've researched and really thought about the product you're assessing.

I would also maybe comment on the fact that the styling of this product makes it a novelty item. Mouse designs are fairly generic, as they have to perform their function with comfort being of the utmost importance. Here a manufacturer has given a mouse a 'gimmick' which makes it appealing for different reasons.