“Design is not just what it looks like and feels like. Design is how it works.”
Reflecting upon the many ways in which Steve jobs has changed our world, and more to the point each and every one of our personal daily lives, one of the most significant accomplishments Jobs has had is the creation of the ideal balance of price, design and performance. This has become an industry model for tech and IT products, and Job’s business model an archetype for many companies spanning all industries. The recent MacBook Air models in particular have been heralded as the perfection of this triad of characteristics.
Over the years as PC producers were focusing more on increasing processor speed as an edge over other competitors, Steve Jobs pushed Apple to focus equally as much on design- with emphasis on a smart, clean, minimalist one at that. In fact, as Steve himself has mentioned on various occasions, one of the biggest influences on his vision for Apple products was a Calligraphy class he dropped in on at Reed College after dropping out. The elegant simplicity in hand written Seraph font combined with the consistent spacing created an enduring impression in his mind that influenced his design conception until the end of his life.
Steve Jobs has even jokingly reflected that if it wasn’t for the influence of this class, and in turn the influence this has had on the first Mac computers and their beautiful typography, modern computers as we know them wouldn’t have such sophisticated and aesthetically appealing typography. In his mind an emphasis on simple yet elegant design mattered just as much as continuous competition for ever faster processor speeds, as was the case in the world of monochromatic PCs.
Most today know Steve Jobs for his pioneering influence on modern technology through the introduction of the iPhone and iPad, and perhaps a select few also know him for his less renowned but equally impressive bout with Pixar. But perhaps his greatest influence has been not so much the products themselves but through what he achieved in the perfection of the ‘holy trinity’ of quality in consumer goods; the perfect fusion of price, design and performance.
