Less is More

The Wonderful Simplicity of Land Cruisers, Speed Queens, Light Phones and In-N-Out.

The Metrocard vending machine was a beloved icon of New York City. It was one of the few things you could expect to actually work. It functioned with a simplicity you don’t often expect from NYC. It was easy to overlook the minimal nature of both the physical machine and the user interface. It was designed by Antenna with intentional simplicity in mind. Easy to digest menu screens which allow for easy decision making was at the heart of this NYC icon. I miss seeing how fast I could get through the Metrocard machine’s menus, but the OMNY contactless system is easy to use and understand. It’s a rare instance where things in our modern life get less complicated.

These days I feel like I have more questions than answers. Almost everything we buy, wear and use is too complicated and it doesn’t need to be. This applies to everything from t-shirts to cars, watches to washing machines. I don’t want to have to use a comparison chart to buy pants. I don’t want to hook my dryer up to the Wi-Fi. I don’t want to have to download an app to get into a sporting event. Why don’t more companies think about the end user? All of this feature creep and clutter leads to anxiety, chaos and unhappiness. So when I see a company do or make something simple I rejoice in the magic of restraint. The willingness to go against the push for the hyper-specialization which capitalism demands.