Kirk McElhearn, writing for Macworld:
Sometimes the little things matter.
I’ve bought a number of Apple products in recent months: an Apple Watch, an iPod touch, an iPod shuffle, and a MacBook. Each time I’ve unboxed one of these devices, I have been reminded how unobtrusive Apple’s packing is. It’s designed to protect your new devices, but not make it hard to start using them. And the attention to detail in Apple’s product packaging bears witness to Steve Jobs’ belief that products should be beautiful inside and out.
Amen.
This does not apply to Apple’s packaging of their power adaptors. Those seriously take scissors, lots of muscle, and about fifteen minutes to open.
Sounds like toy companies need to hire some of Apple’s packaging people.
While they still do some of the best packaging for the main products, accessories packaging is mostly terrible. Opening adapter and cable packages without hurting fingers or breaking fingernails is a chore. And don’t get me started on these round clear stickers they use over corners everywhere. Impossible to open without combat equipment and guaranteed to leave the package in a poor looking condition once you’ve finally made it.
I recently (when going through my storage) stumbled upon the iPod Photo’s and the Firewire iSight’s packages from back then. These were great, lush and iconic… today’s equivalents are not really that exiting in comparison.
I agree except in the case of the Apple Watch and, as someone else mentioned, the power adaptors. In both cases, the box is just ridiculously large by Apple standards. And I turned down the special Apple bag when I bought the watch. That’s likely an Angela touch. Nice touch but an environmental crime.
Agree. It is as if the accessories and packaging are designed by the B team at Apple.
Some of this aesthetic has percolated out into the competition. The packaging my wife’s Blackberry came in last year was, apart from the color, remarkably familiar, right down to the inner boxes with half-circle tabs.