Core77 - Blog • Jan. 12, 2026, 2:51 a.m.

Tool manufacturer Hoto continues to offer a vision of original Chinese industrial design. Their Flashlight Duo can be used handheld, with the expected reflector on the end.

But rotating the selector also lets you use the light on the side, or in a third mode where the end reflector flickers like a candle (presumably for camping ambiance). There's a built-in spring-loaded hanging hook.

One side is also magnetic. Here's a demonstration of the various modes: These run $60.

Core77 - Blog • Jan. 12, 2026, 2:51 a.m.

LEGO might've been the last bastion of popular analog toys. Alas, even they couldn't fight off technology forever.

The company has announced their new Smart Bricks, which are no longer a monolithic piece of ABS. Instead they each contain a chip, an accelerometer, sensors for sound and light, LEDs, and even a miniature speaker.

The user charges the bricks wirelessly, using a dedicated pad from LEGO, and they'll be rolled out within new Star Wars LEGO sets. As for "Why," the bricks are part of LEGO's new Smart Play system.

Core77 - Blog • Jan. 12, 2026, 2:51 a.m.

More proof that in this digital age, people are desperately craving physical objects they can manipulate. EDC brand Titaner has designed this Trident , a talisman-like zipper lock: The Trident is fiddly to open—and that's exactly the point.

The idea is that pickpockets will be too flummoxed to figure out how to quickly get it open. To lock it, you insert this key-like bit, and the two arms won't open.

To unlock it, you press on the ruby thing and pull on the key. There's a second level of locking, where after you insert the key, you slide an additional switch on the side.

Core77 - Blog • Jan. 12, 2026, 2:51 a.m.

Great design deserves to be called out. The Core77 Design Awards give you the platform to call out exceptional solutions—highlighting them for clients, partners, and collaborators.

Our 2026 program presents designers, teams, organizations and students an unparalleled opportunity to showcase work, gain credibility, and connect with the global creative community. If you enter your work by January 31 you'll enjoy the best rates for submission.

Client work, self-initiated projects, entrepreneurial engagements and school projects all have a place in our 20 categories of practice . Our hand-picked panel of esteemed Jury Captains lead the charge in selecting Award winners.

Core77 - Blog • Jan. 12, 2026, 2:51 a.m.

You've probably seen welds, on stainless steel, that have changed the color of the metal around them. That happens because the heat causes a thin layer of chromium-oxide film to form on the surface.

When light passes through this film, the eye sees different colors, depending on how thick the film is. (Same principle as light passing through seemingly clear soap bubbles, yielding multiple colors.) Well, here's some wild news.

Turns out that with certain laser engravers, like this xTool F1 , you can actually dial in the amount of color you'd like, on stainless steel and titanium: That is mind-blowing. (The question for you is, whether that's $1,400's worth of blown mind.)

Core77 - Blog • Jan. 12, 2026, 2:51 a.m.

As amazing as smartphone cameras have become, their UX still kind of sucks. Trying to zoom in by pinching a screen, or adjust focus by tapping a screen, is awkward and rarely produces the desired results on the first try.

Good UX design was once Apple's domain, but they've long since ceded that title. A new innovation in the phone-as-camera realm comes from Xiaomi, with their 17 Ultra by Leica model.

The phone comes with plenty of Leica glass: - 23 mm-equivalent 50 MP main camera - 75–100 mm-equivalent 200 MP telephoto - 14 mm-equivalent 50 MP ultra-wide The most notable design innovation, however, is the Master Zoom Ring. This physical ring can be used to manipulate the lenses in the way you would with a traditional SLR.

Core77 - Blog • Jan. 12, 2026, 2:51 a.m.

Late last year, industrial designer Adam Miklosi embarked on a self-directed project, creating primitive cars out of aluminum extrusions. Here in the new year, he's seeking a role for the leftover extrusions.

After spying DesignWanted's Rethink the Coat Rack competition, Miklosi came up with an idea: "After the first ideation rounds, I made some early 3D-printed prototypes before diving deeper into render visualizations. Testing proportions, attachment logic, and the character of the hooks on real aluminium profiles." "I'm genuinely happy with how these turned out.

A bit rough, very early-stage, but already showing the balance I'm aiming for: industrial structure + playful, customizable elements. Also couldn't resist arranging them into a small, fun composition." Competition aside, I think Miklosi could easily get a side hustle going by selling these.

Core77 - Blog • Jan. 12, 2026, 2:51 a.m.

Croatian inventor Luka Buljan was seeking to add a hideaway guest bed to his home. Unsatisfied with the existing options—sofabed, Murphy bed, air mattress—he had a thought: "Most mattresses today are shipped rolled up — vacuum-sealed, compressed, and coiled.

I wondered: If we can roll a mattress once, why not again? Why not after every use?

I casually shared this thought with a friend who works on industrial mattress rolling machines — and the idea clicked. What if we could build a compact, electric version for home use?" Buljan has successfully prototyped this Roll bed , which must have one heckuva powerful motor to compress all of that foam: Details are light, but Buljan says he's planning a Kickstarter.

Core77 - Blog • Jan. 12, 2026, 2:51 a.m.

Andries & Hiroko Van Onck were a husband-and-wife industrial design duo, active in the 20th century and based in Milan. In 1985, they designed this LEM table for Magis: It may not look like much, but it's got a neat trick: This secondhand unit (which looks to have been modified with a non-standard top) gives you a slightly better look at the components, but I still can't figure out how it works.

Surely there's more than just the friction of the rubber balls holding it in place?

Core77 - Blog • Jan. 12, 2026, 2:51 a.m.

This unique piece of furniture, called Bookmarker , is by Japanese design firm StudioYO . Made from a minimum of materials, it's meant to be both a functional piece and a love letter to books.

This is a "bookmark." It may sound like an exaggeration, but this piece of furniture functions as a bookmark for those who love to read or wish to enjoy reading more. By making the act of reading visually tangible, it provides a dedicated space for a novel you are about to start, a book you want to finish, or an art book you wish to keep within reach at all times.

Bookmarker is crafted from three parts, cut efficiently from a single piece of vertically laminated Japanese cypress wood, allowing for flat packing.

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