Script collection by Lexon

Alarm clock by Lexon

Lexon's Script collection updates the principles of the 7 segment display - which became synonymous with electrical products during the 1970s and is still popular today - with a new digital font that has an elegant, calligraphic style.

Boom Boom by Mathieu Lehanneur for Binauric

Launched last week during Milan Design Week, Mathieu Lehanneur's new wireless speaker Boom Boom is inspired by a piece of fruit. Its faceted form has no top or bottom, and is sized to fit comfortably in the hand.

Live from Milan: Smeg launches small appliances

Faithful to the style of the company, Smeg's new collection of small appliances delves back into the 50's. A kettle, slice toaster, blender and stand mixer all feature strong retro aesthetics, but coupled with high performance and the latest technology. The lines are curved and sinuous, the products warm and compact.

Cycling safety lights by Veglo

Veglo has developed and created a range of innovative bike lights which aim to tackle driver’s inability to see cyclists in the hours of darkness. The Commuter X4 is made up of four fibre optic light guides and a projective central light. The light can be worn over the cyclists’ rucksack or placed directly on their back using straps which fit over the shoulders. When the fibre optic setting is switched off, the straps become their own reflectors to car lights. The device is water-resistant, USB rechargeable and durable, adjusting to multiple bag sizes up to 35 litres, and fits over rain covers.

Schneider Electric x Mathieu Lehanneur: smart energy

French designer Mathieu Lehanneur was commissioned by Schneider Electric to create a collection of smart devices able to measure and manage domestic energy consumption. With the issue of energy production becoming increasingly real, new regulations are implemented to raise consumers' awareness and encourage individual contribution to the collective energy-saving effort. Insulation and double-glazing are no longer enough.

Lazy Bytes exhibition: the new remote control

EPFL+ECAL Lab invited four of the world's most prestigious design schools to re-invent the remote control. For once, the main purpose is not just performance and functionality but also the aesthetic and experience of the object. 

The projects by ECAL, ENSCI-Les Ateliers, Royal College of Art and Parsons School include concepts such as the combination of hand-writing and digital control, or the transformation of everyday objects into remotes. Most ideas are currently undergoing tests to be turned into marketable products.

Easy biking: Lucetta lights by Palomar

Smart and simple, Lucetta is a set of portable magnetic bicycle lights designed by Emanuele Pizzolorusso for Italian company Palomar. The small LED lights attach with magnets, so they can be used for a bicycle or any metallic surface.

Plugg: a DAB radio operated by cork

Plugg radio by Skrekkøgle

Design studio Skrekkøgle has developed a prototype DAB radio that uses the physical act of stopping a cork as its on/off mechanism. The project explores the idea of bringing tangible interaction back into the increasingly dematerialised appliance industry.

Plugg radio by Skrekkøgle

The studio used 3D printing, laser cutting and electronic hacking to develop the prototype. Its previous projects include a sculpture depicting the Solitaire win screen, and an alternative memorial process for pets.

Plugg radio by Skrekkøgle

Electric: an audio-visual narrative by Mathieu Lehanneur

Photography by Felipe Ribon

French designer Mathieu Lehanneur has completed the interior design of a new Parisian cultural platform, Electric. In a space of 1,000 m2, complete with panoramic views over Paris and the Eiffel Tower, the designer created a technological forest that graces music events and concerts with a note of poetry.

Stand-alone bathroom unit by Filip Deslee

FD1 by Filip Deslee

Belgian interior designer Filip Deslee recently launched a compact bathroom unit including all the essentials and available in 100 RAL colours. The designer has fitted a sink, several drawers, electric sockets and light switches within this self-sufficient product, making it an ideal choice for those with limited space or a taste for minimalism.

Retro radio by Ionna Vautrin

Mezzo radio by Ionna Vautrin for Lexon

Lexon has released a new radio by French designer Ionna Vautrin. With its simple controls, rounded shape and retro colour combinations, the Mezzo radio looks as familiar and comforting as an old transistor, and is available in four cheerful colourways.

Ballo speaker by Bernhard Burkard for OYO

Swiss design studio Bernhard Burkard has designed a portable, battery-powered speaker for Japanese brand OYO (Objects You Obsess) that rolls or hangs to create a 360 degree music experience.

Tree of light in Bruxelles

Challenged by the city of Bruxelles to rethink the traditional Christmas tree that decorates its Grand Place every year, 1024 Architecture have designed a contemporary electronic tree (or Abies Electronicus in Latin), made of a metallic structure covered in a white cloth.

By day the tree is a 19 metre-high belvedere that the public can climb up to in order to admire the panoramic view of the city; by night it is a musical and visual installation.

Electrolux Design Lab 2012

Tastee by Christopher Holm-Hanson

The brief for 2012's Electrolux Design Lab competition was to design appliance concepts that can provide a fuller sensory experience. Thomas Johansson, design director of Electrolux and president of the Jury explains, "We rely on our senses for virtually everything so it is important to take them into consideration when designing household appliances."

Cotton Candy and Popcorn Popper by Ariete

Italian appliance brand Ariete has launched a new collection called Party Time, which ties into the trend for Nostalgia Appliances with its 1950s-inspired rounded shapes and retro colors.

Live from Maker Faire New York

Box Robot by 4M

With attractions and workshops for the whole family, including many activities for children, New York's Maker Faire 2012 was an insight into the makers and inventors' world, making visitors feel like one of them.

Princess: the compact breakfast

Compact4All by Princess

With space becoming more and more of an issue in large cities the world over, Dutch electrical goods specialist Princess has come up with a stackable solution.

Compact4All is made of four kitchen appliances with all the necessary accessories for a healthy and efficient breakfast. A kettle, a coffee maker, a toaster and a squeezer all function separately or can be grouped together to make a compact breakfast unit where everything is within reach.

Orange connects with the young design generation

For the second year running, Orange has curated a design competition to promote links between creation and technology. The first edition, called Orange whispers to your ear, was dedicated to making hand-free kits more practical and attractive. This year it was titled Orange gives you the keys, and focused on the relationships with and within the home.

58 students from five leading European design schools spent months working on how digital technologies can improve tomorrow's life at home, and how the inhabitants of a same house, building or neighbourhood can be encouraged to interact and connect more, wherever they may be.

Fogring at Maison & Objet

Fogring is a portable humidifier and aroma diffuser that can be used anywhere due to its reduced size. The floating donut-shaped product can be placed in any type of open container, from a large vase to a small tea cup, and it works with a USB driver.

Exhibited at Maison & Objet this weekend, the product ties into a growing trend among designers to develop devices for well-being.

Sony at IFA 2012

Sony VAIO Duo 11

IFA 2012 is now in full swing, with both trade and public tech enthusiasts flocking to Berlin's Messe to look at - and test out - the latest innovations from the industry's biggest players.

Electronics giant Sony unveiled a host of new products at its press conference, with CEO Kazuo Hirai personally taking the stage to announce, one by one: an 84" 4K LCD TV; a wearable, Wi-Fi enabled ActionCam; a sleek hybrid UltraBook; and the phone that James Bond will be using in his next movie, the Xperia T.