Mp3 Speaker Brandi ng Well established brands such as Apple – more expensive and well known. Less established brands are usually cheaper but often associated with lower quality. Styles, Shapes and Sizes General aesthetics Colour choices Design style Materials Modern vs Vintage Minimalistic Bold Futuristic Themed Design movements How to Power Plug into to mains to power – this can limit it and stop the product being portable. Battery powered – increases portability, but can lower quality as batteries can’t sustain bigger speakers for a long length of time. Could use rechargeable batteries that charge while product is plugged into mains. Need to know: BSI regulations for mains operated equipment. Ergonomi cs Anthropometr ics Need to get anthropometric data of target market to design an appropriate product. Needs to be easy to use and for people to interact with – buttons, sizes and grip (if portable) are all important. Function Docking Operations Universal: this option opens up the product to more buyers but could put off people who buy for quality as universal docks seem lower quality. Brand Specific: closes the product down to only work with one specific brand – if you choose a well known one e.g. Apple the product will still sell well, however you would have to raise the price to fit with the current product pricing. It could also charge the product while playing music. Not all products charge the same way – some have different ports. If it was portable it would need to run on batteries which would run down too quickly if the product also docked and charged the mp3 player. On/off switch Do you need other basics e.g. fast forward, rewind play and pause if they are already on the mp3 player? If it is gadget like – would having shuffle, different views (e.g. album, genre) be better? Does it need radio? Portab ility Protecti on Size Quality What size is acceptable it to be classed as portable? Would size depend on needs of target market? How do you keep the speaker safe during transport? Add a cover or something to slide over the speaker? Make it out of durable and robust material? Does the speaker need to protect the player? Would making the speaker a certain size make the quality lower? If it’s likely to break during it’s uses (e.g. if it was taken to beaches etc) is it better to make it inexpensive? You can’t have big speakers or surround sound and portable. Or do you make it more robust by spending more on hardy materials? Would people pay more, less or the same for a portable speaker? Target market & Needs What will people want in that particular age range? What are their interests, likes and dislikes? What is their spending threshold? What aesthetic features would persuade them to buy the product? Do they have a favourite design era? Which is held highest – function, cost, gadgets, portability, quality, longevity, aesthetics? Where/when are they most likely to use the product? What is the impact of this? Would they be influenced by “green factors”? Life Span How long will the components last? Should cheaper components by bought to reduce the price? 6R’s – recycle, reuse, reduce, reuse, refuse and repair. Could it be recycled? Would it end up in landfill? Or could components be reused? Should something with a long life cycle cost more? Environm ental Issues What happens to the product after it’s reached the end of it’s life? Could the product be manufacture from recycled/recyclable materials? Could the product be taken apart and have the components used elsewhere? Material s Timb er Meta l Compos ite Plas tic Sustainable and cheaper than the others. May not give a quality finish to the product. Carbon fibre would be strong and tough to resist impact. Plastic can be a cheap option – needs to be produced in bulk to make it cost effect, batch production might only just scrape back what you put in. Strong – can be heavy. It is also expensive. Safety Issues Finishes QA and QC must be regular. The product must comply with British Standards in order to be used – this guarantees the safety of the public. This is especially important with products that take their power directly from the mains. Protection against battery leak. Clean edges – none sharp. Must use a compatible fuse in the mains plug. Spray painted Varnish or stain Hammering Annealing Brazing Pattern applied Tarnished Does is need some way to isolate power?