101 Things I Learned in Product Design School

101 Things I Learned

by Sung Jang, Martin Thaler, Matthew Frederick

An engaging, enlightening, and cleverly illustrated guide to product design, written by experienced professional designers and instructors.

Products are in every area of our lives, but just what product designers do and how they think is a mystery to most. Product design is not art, engineering, or craft, even as it calls for skills and understandings in each of these areas--along with psychology, history, cultural anthropology, physics, ergonomics, materials technology, marketing, and manufacturing. This accessible guide provides an entry point into this vast field through 101 brief, illustrated lessons exploring such areas as

- why all design is performed in relation to the body
- why every product is part of a system
- the difference between being clever and being gimmicky
- why notions of beauty are universal across cultures
- how to use both storytelling and argument to effectively persuade

Written by three experienced design instructors and professionals, 101 Things I Learned(R) in Product Design School provides concise, thoughtful touch points for beginning design students, experienced professionals, and anyone else wishing to better understand this complex field that shapes our lives every day.

Genres: Design, Nonfiction, Business, Psychology, Reference

216 pages, Hardcover

Published October 13, 2020

Reviews

[Nikolay Edigaryev · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a great book to order in a physical form and keep on bookshelf for you and your design studio visitors to have a look at while resting.

But keep in mind that if you're going to read it like a normal book, i.e. sequentially, it can be somewhat miserable because there's no story and the context switches pretty rapidly.

So, overall: best read by skimming over unrelated pages and reading the ones that are. Repeat multiple times for success.

[Stanley · Rating 5 out of 5]

rychle vedomosti ohladom designu produktu a vsetko okolo toho

[misu · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun and accessible read. I have a little prior exposure to product design (part of why I picked this book up is because I miss learning about UI/UX in school) and could grasp the vast majority (~95%) of these 101 things. They range from quite generalized (design process advice) to very specific (like the height/angle of chairs), but are all wonderfully concise and interesting.

Something I enjoyed is that while this book might be quite short, it does reference other books in the field (like Don Norman's The Design of Everyday Things and William Whyte's The Social Life of Small Urban Spaces). I will be making my way down those rabbitholes in the weeks that come.

Like many books of this nature, the best way to get the most out of this book is to read and reread bits of it over and over again frequently, and to think about its lessons.

Note: I read the .mobi version on Kindle and struggled to read all of the illustrations (which add to the reading experience significantly). I bet a physical copy would prove much better.

[Dipaq · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very clear and concise summary of the things you've studied in Design School or something you've missed. Sung Jang has covered all of it.
It was also really refreshing to go through the basic things I started understanding while studying in D School.
Must read for all the Designers out there.

[Bazingo Bro · Rating 5 out of 5]

People often credit 'The Design of Everyday Things' as the best book on design. I think this book might be a strong contender for that title.

101 Things I Learned in Product Design School is a book which, you guessed it, has 101 lessons about product design to share. The lessons are extremely brief, yet very insightful, spanning further than product design itself by being applicable to pretty much any form of (commercial) design.

Because this book is small, brief and jam packed with information, I take it with me and use it as a handbook for when I need to consider or redirect my process. Being able to take 101 key insights to change my course of action will be invaluable to any work I do, for sure!

With that said, the book isn't a "How Do I Design Products From Scratch" book. It doesn't take you by the hand through the entire process, but to me that's totally fine because that is not what the book sets out to be.

If you're a student in the design field or someone who often has to work with (product) designers, I heavily recommend you to pick this one up. You will quickly understand the work and struggle of a designer, and be able to take that into consideration.

[Sofie · Rating 5 out of 5]

veldig overførbart til det vi holder på med

[Pat · Rating 5 out of 5]

This lovely little book lays out in simple line drawings and a few words various principles and truths about design. It is a sturdy object in plain brown board and makes a nice book to hold in the hand. The series is intriguing in its simplicity. It is not telling you everything, just 101 things, but all are interesting to me as a novice. I do have some building design background so perhaps I am biased but I found this book delightful. I am not a product designer, so I cannot judge the quality of its content for truth in this field. I do like it.

[Sophia Exintaris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very cute, easily readable, with good little reminders in it.

Authors do not know what UX is, but aside from that lapse of knowledge, the book is very nice indeed. Just skip item 23.

And ignore how imperial measurements are mixed in with metric on item 47.

If you can ignore both those things (and perhaps a few more that I was unable to spot) it is a very handy little book giving wisdom on all sorts of aspects of product & industrial design.

[Kim Pallister · Rating 3 out of 5]

My third book in this series. Fun little quick reads in a digestible format. I got a little less out of this one that the other, perhaps because it's closer to my area of expertise. I think the books serve as a set of interesting observations about domains in which the reader is a curious layperson. YMMV.

[Sabine Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars⭐️ although this book focused mainly on physical products as opposed to digital products, i found it to lay a great foundation for design fundamentals and thinking like a designer. i’ll be sure to reference this frequently and i enjoyed the holistic advice in the field of marketing as well.

[Alina Borger · Rating 5 out of 5]

This brilliant book has been my breakfast reading for the last few weeks. It is an entirely different way to *think,* and it’s fascinating as a result. Recommend for teachers, parents, writers, accessibility specialists, shop owners, spiritual leaders—ANYONE CAN benefit!

[Erika Reyes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice review of information I learned during industrial design undergrad. Also, concise way of showing some important concepts in a way that is easy to understand. Probably more helpful of you are younger (high school to college age) or are curious about the field.

[Spencer Brauchla · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quality digestible lessons, similar to the other “101 Things I Learned in ____” books. However I do not feel as if I had as many “mini epiphanies” from Product Design as what I enjoyed so , much from others in the series.

[Jiwon Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really love these "101 Things I Learned" series so far. In fact, I borrowed 6 yesterday including this. My favorite part was about the MAYA principle: products that are most advanced yet acceptable helps people ease into something innovative without being horrified by the changes.

[Harrison Dempsey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love this series as a great little primer into another discipline. Full of ideas, some new and interesting, some old but from a different perspective. Always learn something and enjoy the level that everything gets distilled to.

[Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

A worthy read. Some excellent gems among many reminders and fresh perspectives on well-worn topics.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a quick fun read, reminded me of being back in university and working late hours in the studio.

[Louis Prosperi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another excellent installment in the "101 Things I Learned" series.

[Logan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Surprisingly great

[NipNip]

Nice one

[Christine Z · Rating 5 out of 5]

Concise and elegant, easy to understand with visuals. Finished reading in a few hours at a local bookstore

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent little book full of great product design tips.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the 4th book I've read in the series and probably around my second or third favourite (Urban Design still wins, and Engineering is close). Nice mix of insights that are half-familiar and wholly new.

[Joe Cho · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reminds me of good times in industrial design school. Fun and quick read for designers

[Prateek Vasisht · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book. So many insights presented so concisely, with great art work.