Handpicked Software

Business Week has published the Industrial Design Excellence Awards (IDEAs) winners for 2005. “In a sea of look-alike products and services, design creates the ‘Wow!’ factor,” they write. “Design is fast becoming a must-have competency for corporations.”

Let’s hope it’s true. Mac lovers already know the value of good product design; it’s the reason many of us buy Macs and iPods. In fact, it’s interesting to note that Apple is ranked second only to Samsung for design wins for the past five years, with a total of 17 (Samsung has 19). Microsoft is ranked 11th, with 8 wins. This year, Apple won awards for the Mac Mini, iPod Shuffle, and Airport Express.

Award winners run the gamut, from DaimlerChrysler’s Jeep Hurricane to empower shoes (designed by San Jose State University student, Angie Kim), which can be put on and taken off without having to bend over (getting them off has always been easy, but getting them on…). But my favorite is HP’s DJammer (pictured above), a musical instrument that lets you manipulate digital music files with hand movements, so you can scratch and mix while prancing around onstage or wandering into the audience.

You can view the design winners by company or design firm here.

Via rootburn.