On Tuesday we headed down to Harvey Norman in Millenia Walk to check out the current products on the market. Here are some observation I’ve made:
Compare: Dyson hair dryer VS alternate brand hair dryer
I have been hearing about the hype of Dyson’s hair dryer, simply for its higher pricing ($599!!!) and iconic form – circular tube mounted on a pedestal. Testing out the product myself was a m a z i n g (i felt so cool using it :>).
A simple form accentuates with futuristic element for its sleek and metallic material. Colour palette goes monochrome – black, white and silver. Heads for different functions are interchangeable with magnetic attachments. The act of attaching those heads with just a click enhances the user experience greatly. Heat shield technology allows the body surfaces to stay cool. With such a small engine running, it produces a pretty strong gush of air!
(4/5 would buy for I know that it’ll last for a very long time (by Dyson) and it’s small enough to carry when travelling. That is, if I can afford)
Hair dryers from the other brands take on a conventional route to compete with price or addition heads that helps with curing hair. Apart from the body that contains the engine, rest of the parts are slim and vary with curvature forms. Black and white are essential colours with a touch of red/ pink specially for their feminine consumers.
The difference: Design for hairdryers in general are dominant on functionality – different level of warmness and wind velocity. Dyson supersonic design chooses to take on the emotion dominance node with its revolutionary form. While advancement in technology and research have given confidence to the consumers, it revises on how a hairdryer can look like. The emotional appeal here is based on our knowledge and impression of the technical specifications in Dyson products – the hollow circular tube that reminds us of ‘that cool bladeless fan’. It is a product of innovation catered to tech lovers indulged in high-end lifestyle.
Discover: Current trends on the market
Upon the entrance of Harvey Norman, most notable trends on popular kitchen appliances are pastel colour palette and retro theme. Smeg catches the wave of retro revival craze with its 1950s pastel toasters and kettles.
Morphy Richards has a range of retro inspired kitchen appliances too, but with a neutral muted range of colours.
A common characteristic from the home appliances and speakers is the oraganic form. The curvatures in their body forms and round edges allow the products to look less rigid and uniquely different.
Explore: Novel Functions
+ Found this interesting build-in sink from one of the washing machines that emulates the natural form of water ripples.
Thought it was a confusing and unnecessary add-on until I went back to do some research:
+ Dyson’s vacuum is designed to have a curved body with low centre of gravity. This helps the vacuum to roll back upright with gravitational force. What drew my attention was its sci-fi looking form with those small kinetic cyclones. Once again, the brand surrounds its product aesthetic to the technology advancement – an emotional appeal.
+ Some vacuum brands seem to distinguish themselves with a different colour, which I thought it’s a smart move. Companies can reduce manufacturing cost with minimal selection of colours and consumers are able to recognize and differentiate brands visually.
Overall thoughts
It’s been awhile strolling through Harvey Norman, I am still as fascinated as I was a kid looking and running my hands through products. Items on the current market tend to skew towards design that has emotional dominance, expanding on wider range of colour selection to novel shape forms.
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