Innovation Lab: On Dyson

After watching the videos on James Dyson, I found it quite interesting that he wanted to promote his own products with genuinity rather than make stereotypical advertisements to promote them on his behalf. His interview truly revealed how he cares about every product he invents, as he goes through numerous prototypes and thought processes before releasing the final product. I found it really fascinating that what brought him to the point of launching his own company was him finding his vacuum cleaner incompetent, and therefore taking the problem into his own hands to redesign it. He struggled with his first project quite a bit as funds were difficult to acquire and he had very little support as he wasn’t a “professional” to other eyes. All of his inventions are based on basic everyday problems, but he takes it to an extreme level where all the little details matter. His passion can be seen through the video where he tests out all of the vacuums his company has released, and explains the thought process behind each design choice. Another notable aspect from his interview was about how many people think you need to work with a businessman to launch your own business, but Dyson says that as long as you keep thinking intelligently, innovating, and approach the idea of building a business in a naive way, then you can succeed. His stance is that all inventors are essentially already marketers of their product, also a salesman because they are passionate about their product and they understand the manufacturing process, making them fully prepared to launch their own products without outside direction.

I have 3 products I especially like from Dyson’s inventions, which include the Supersonic Hair Dryer, Airwrap Multi-Styler, and the V15 Detect Absolute Vacuum Cleaner.

The Supersonic Hair dryer has a unique design that doesn’t use any blades, it has heat control so that hair doesn’t become damaged, static and frizz are reduced, it’s lightweight and quiet. You can also attach different things to it to change up the style of your hair or to dry with precision. My favorite aspect of the product is that the vent is at the bottom of the handle, and because it has no blades, your hair never gets stuck in the hair dryer. This product is incredibly well designed, although I wouldn’t say the price is worth it.

I’ve heard a lot about the Airwrap Multi-Styler both online and in person, which makes me lean towards the product being worth its expensive price. Like stated in the name, it has multiple styling options because it comes with various attachments of: barrels for curly/wavy hair, brushes for volume, pre-styling dryer, and more. This product is extremely easy to use as it basically sucks in your hair gently to wrap around the barrel, so it takes minimal effort and all you need to do is hold up the strand of hair you want to style. Sometimes I want to curl my hair for special occasions, but I absolutely hate the process of doing so because it takes forever and I usually burn myself in the process. With this product, it would save a lot of time to style hair in various ways and it also has heat control, making it very safe and easy to use, so I would say this Airwrap is definitely a worthwhile investment.

Lastly, the V15 Detect Absolute Vacuum Cleaner just amazes me in almost every way. It is incredibly efficient and the design was made with much precision to ensure that it is both easy to use and effective in cleaning homes. I particularly like that it is wireless, because I hate having to hold up the vacuum cable whenever I use it, or having to unplug it to move to another room. The laser is super useful since it shows all the dirt the human eye cannot see, and I think the particle count is really cool. It also works on every surface and hair is never caught in the brush.

One product I did not like at all was the Dyson Zone Air-Purifying Headphones. First of all, it looks pretty silly and too bulky to be sitting on someone’s head. I also read a lot of reviews on it and there were a lot of cons to it including the heavy weight, fan motors clouding the audio quality, fans being too loud, and its inefficiency in purifying the air based on your location’s air quality. I also discovered that its battery life is said to be 50 hours, but only 4 if you are using both the audio and air purifier. I’ve owned multiple headphones throughout my life, and one of the biggest problems I had was the weight dragging down on my head, placing pressure on my ears and hurting my piercings (especially my industrial piercing). I also cannot justify the price for this product because it does not achieve what is advertised to be, and there are numerous headphones that are much more affordable and efficient. The audio quality also is not great on these headphones, which is a big no for me; they also don’t automatically turn off after a period of time which is a feature most new headphones have. Overall, the headphones just do not work as well as other headphones do, it is incredibly bulky, and the air purifier isn’t reliable.

When I think of another innovative designer, I think of Elon Musk. I would like to preface that I am not quite a fan of Tesla vehicles and I do understand there is much controversy around Elon Musk. Disregarding those notes, I do think Musk is an innovative designer because he created Tesla’s electric vehicles, which are sustainable and high-tech as it had the self-driving mode controlled by AI. Back in California, everywhere I go I spot a Tesla, probably each and every model in various colors, which makes me think about why people are so invested in this car. It wasn’t until I was in a Tesla that I understood its capabilities and innovative features. Tesla also has safety features to help prevent car crashes, although from personal experience I would say the braking is not as efficient as it should be. Elon is also involved in various other projects but I think that the Tesla vehicles are his most known invention.