Coca-Cola and Pepsi continue to rely on nostalgia for throwback can designs. Did these iconic brands need so many redesigns through the last decade to stay fresh?
“People seriously love their cola cans. Yet Coca-Cola and Pepsi are always tinkering with their packaging…” —Gabriel Beltrone, via AdWeek
Google Gmail gets a redesign with some new features including “information density” adjustment (a.k.a. whitespace or table padding), smarter search, more fluid page width, and a cleaner grid (oh, and lots of gray).
via gizmodo
A redesign for Amazon.com appears to be rolling out to select Google Chrome users (with Amazon Prime accounts).
This is the first major redesign for Amazon.com in a while, and it includes the same style left navigation drop down menu with some major changes. More specifically, there is a definite push for Amazon Prime, including books, e-books, cloud storage, music, streaming and download videos. Search gets a face lift, and the bright orange and blue boxes have been reduced to accent colors, something that many users will probably appreciate.
The timing of the site redesign seems fitting for the new Kindle product launch (shipping mid-November). Interestingly enough, we did not spot any redesigned pages on any browsers other than Chrome. It makes sense when you think about integration into Google Chrome’s web browser apps combined with the Kindle Fire running its own brew of Android.
If the rest of the redesign resembles the updated site navigation, we may be in for a big surprise.
Mary Blair’s 100th birthday anniversary is honored with a colorful Google Doodle logo. The Walt Disney storyboard artist, born on October 21st, 1911, is fondly remembered for her often whimsical, illustrative style in children’s books (notably Little Golden), advertisements, and concept art for classic Walt Disney animated films. And she especially was known for her wonderful use of color, as highlighted in a new Oscars tribute video.
“…Although Mary Blair is perhaps best known for the design of Disneyland’s “it’s a small world” attraction and park murals, her concept artwork for “Cinderella,” “Alice in Wonderland” and “Peter Pan” in the 1950s, as well as for earlier short subjects, reflects her unique sensibility and lasting influence on animation…”
—The Academy on Mary Blair’s World of Color - A Centennial Tribute
Pixar’s Monsters Inc. versus Monsters University
Pixar characters Mike Wazowski and Sulley will undergo slight anatomical tweaks for the upcoming Monsters Inc. prequel, Monsters University. The new film has a release date in 2013.
“…While instantly familiar, due to the original Monsters, Inc., it looks like Pixar is trying to do something very different and unique as well. John Lasseter described the film as an “animated college movie.” The film is a prequel showing us a time when Mike and Sulley were not quite the best of friends. They are both 18 years old and some slight alterations have been made to their appearance. Mike is a bit shorter and has a retainer, while Sulley is thinner…”—Pixar Times
(images via Slashfilm)
The U.S. Postal Service is launching a redesign of their website in hopes it will provide an easier, time efficient experience. With new navigation tools in place, the USPS presents a more organized, simpler website.
In one of the more elaborate April Fools’ Day hoaxes of 2011, Hulu.com goes back to 1996 with a GeoCities inspired redesign.
What makes the new look extra fun, is that the television and music content featured is in-line with some of our old favorites from the 1990s.
