Keep It Simple, Stupid: Why Gadgets Should Have Fewer Features, Not More

Should gadgets be simpler? Today’s gizmos come loaded with features, most of which will never get used. Take Canon’s G9, which Gadget Lab reviewed in September 2007:

Sheer breadth of modes, features and options is almost too staggering for a normal person to learn in a reasonable amount of time.

It’s easy to see why manufacturers pack more and more functions into their products: the check list on the back of the box has to have at least as many points as others on the same shelf. But this obsession hurts ease of operation and generally makes the tool less useful. In short, for the consumer, simple is often better.

There are examples of pared down gadgets. Currently, the Flip Video camera is causing a storm amongst bloggers. The Flip is a solid state camcorder with the most minimal feature set possible: A fixed focus lens, flash memory, a small screen and a sprinkling of buttons to record and playback footage. It has a built in USB plug and runs on AA batteries. No hi-definition, no optical zoom, no face detection.

And people are going crazy for it. The tiny case, not much bigger than a pack of cigarettes, can be kept in a back pocket, ready to go. This simplicity makes capturing video fun again. Instead of playing with the settings, you just forget about how you use it and just use it. David Pogue of the New York Times has this to say:

That’s how it is with devices like the Flip. They’re so simple, mastery is immediate, and so is your sense of pride and happiness.

Apple has a good idea of what makes a simple product. The original iPod did one thing, and it did it in a way that could be learned instantly. Apple realized that you didn’t need to pack complicated file management software into a music player, and offloaded the heavy lifting to iTunes, a fully fledged computer application. We all know what happened next. Even so, Apple is affected by the need to constantly add new features in order to sell newer, better models. The iPod Touch is a feature packed handheld computer. It does, though, only have one button.

Often, the simplest tools can be the most flexible. A good chefs knife will do anything that a modern food processor can do, and could probably replace 90% of the uni-tasking gadgets in your kitchen. And the humble Bic Biro is still used by millions every day. We don’t have to think about setting fonts, changing batteries or customizing its home screen. The tool disappears into its function.

So why aren’t there more simple gadgets for us to buy? Because we are bovine idiots who graze on the latest marketing claims. More megapixels, “time-saving” pizza-scissors, we’ll buy anything that promises to make our lives easier, even if it really makes everything take twice as long.

There’s hope. The Flip proves that there is a demand for the cheap and cheerful: It has a whopping 13% of the camcorder market after just one year. KISS.