Taiwan Products Win 38 iF Product Design Awards 2007, Including Gold

The iF Product Design Award 2007, one of the world's oldest and four largest design competitions dubbed also as the "Design Oscars," saw a total of 38 Taiwan products selected as prizewinners honored with the iF Seal of Design Excellence, including one iF Gold Award, with such products successfully meeting a range of design standards. Prizewinning products, besides showing obvious design superiority, literally wear their feathers on their caps: The official Seal of fine design quality, a red square with its distinctive white letter logo, is synonymous with globally recognized, outstanding design for over 50 years.

Each winner receives a coveted iF certificate, which retains its validity for the entire product lifecycle.

The single Gold Award winner of the iF Product Design Award from Taiwan is BenQ Corp., which also won the highest honor in 2006. A total 50 Gold Award winners were selected from the entire pool of award winners, while last year a jury of specialists evaluated 2,292 entries from 35 nations, the best of which were given awards and publicized internationally.

According to the Taiwan Design Center (TDC), the iF Product Design Award can look back on a rich, long tradition. The iF Product Design Award, TDC points out, is dedicated to promoting awareness for the significance of excellent design, as well as providing corporations with an opportunity to directly compete against their peers on a high-profile platform, which is also an open, educational stage for the interested public. If nothing else, the evolution of the iF Product Design Award, now consisting of 14 categories, tells of the increasing complexity of contemporary design.

According to the Taiwan Branch of the International Forum Design, organizer of the iF design awards chooses winners from 13 categories for the iF Product Design Award: 1. Audio / Video, 2. Telecommunications, 3. Computers, 4. Lighting, 5. Furniture / Home, 6. Household, 7. Leisure / Lifestyle, 8. Industry / Buildings, Health+Care, 9. Office / Business, 10. Public Design /Interior Design, 11. Transportation, 12. Advanced Studies, and 13. Packaging.

To honor the local prizewinners, TDC selected the following items among Taiwan entries that won awards for product designs in 2007.

Award Winning Products

Award: Gold Award, iF Product Design Award 2007

Product Name: BenQ PMV1000

Product Type: Portable TV

Product Category: 01. Consumer Electronics/Telecommunications.

Company: BenQ Corp. of Taiwan

Design: BenQ Lifestyle Design Center

BenQ, a major computer peripheral and consumer-electronics brand in Taiwan, continued to win the highest honor of the Gold Award of iF Product Design Award 2007 with its BenQ PMV1000 portable TV.

The BenQ PMV1000 is a portable mobile digital TV (DTV) designed for the whole family. It is water-resistant and equipped with a unique rotating handle that allows the user to easily relocate the DTV any place in your home, even the bathroom. PMV1000 comes with card-reading function, allowing the user to save and load images anytime and use the DTV as a digital picture frame. Users are in control of the program content through wireless image transfer. PMV1000's design concept originated from the idea of a porcelain plate--the pure whiteness and rounded angles give the unspoiled, comfortable feelings found only at home.

Award: iF Product Design Award 2007

Product Name: 9FF2CMI

Product Type: Digital Photo Frame

Product Category: 01. Consumer Electronics/Telecommunications

Maker: Royal Philips Taiwan

Design: Philips Deisgn Eindhoven, Netherlands

The Philips 9FF2CMI is a digital photo frame. It offers full-color, ultra-high resolution photo viewing and allows users to easily share their digital photos with style anywhere and anytime. Features of the photo frame include exchangeable frames, angle adjustability, and wall mounting set this new-generation item apart from the previous model.

Together with a new user interface (UI), the interface has been improved by the use of a five-way switch allowing much more intuitive and simple operation. The possibility to personalize the product with a wide array of frame designs (wood, metal, transparent etc.) allows users more freedom to match the photo frame to their living space or enhance their interior decoration.

Award: iF Product Design Award 2007

Product Name: Pole Jump

Product Type: Clothes hanger

Product Category: Household

Maker: Yeduo Design

Design: Yeduo Design

When the pole jumper passes the bar, his body forms a perfect curve, which is also the perfect curve for hanging up your clothes. The function of a clothes hanger is created at this dramatic moment, making the surrounding space dramatically come alive. It is a statue, a piece of art, a hanger which is perfect for your clothes.

Award: iF Product Design Award 2007

Product Name: Mini Cube

Product Type: 1" USB HDD

Product Category: 02. Computer

Maker: A-DATA Technology Co., Ltd.

Design: A-DATA Technology Co., Ltd.

The Mini Cube 1" USB HDD has an aluminum alloy case, which provides excellent protection for the hard drive inside, and gives a nice quality feel and colored body. A main feature of the product design is the non-slip round indentations that help users hold the device more securely and add to the design and vivid color scheme with a transparent plastic button in one of the indentations. The fresh and colorful design is a pleasant break from most of the current portable HDD products in the market. The Mini Cube 1" USB HDD brings stylish functionality with a unique personal style to portable storage.

Award: iF Product Design Award 2007

Product Name: MPV-800

Product Type: Portable TV set

Product Category: 01. Consumer Electronics/Telecommunications

Maker: Mitac International Corp.

Design: Mitac International Corp.

MPV-800 is a mobile entertainment device with an 8.5" liquid crystal display (LCD) display, stereo speakers, and a DVB-T receiver. Video/audio files can be played from external USB devices and memory cards directly without needing a PC. Its glossy finish and elegant design go with any kind of decoration. The stylish metal stand lets the user adjust the viewing angle. It also can be unfolded 180-degrees to become a handle for better portability, like a fashion handbag, allowing users to enjoy video/audio content everywhere. The amber illumination touch keys enhance the high quality of the MPV-800. The illuminant effect of LCD screen and function keys shows that the TV is in "standby" status.

Award: iF Product Design Award 2007

Product Name: ASG-142 / ASG-143

Product Type: Mouse and VoIP phone

Product Category: 02. Computer

Maker: Sysgration Ltd.

Design: Sysgration Ltd.

The MouseFone consists of a Skype VoIP phone built into a PC optical mouse. Designed for both general PC users and business travelers, it provides the ideal answer to their Internet communication needs. The innovative new ASG-142 and ASG-143 models employ the same flip-top design so popular among mobile phone users, providing extraordinary communication enjoyment. Whenever the user wants to enjoy free phone communication via the Internet, he or she simply presses a button to activate the hands-free function. The MouseFone is suitable for people at home or for voice conferences in the professional environment.

Award: iF Product Design Award 2007

Product Name: DynaPoint WA Webcam

Product Type: Peripheral device

Product Category: 02. Computer

Maker: DynaPoint Inc.

Design: Nova Design Co., Ltd.

In addition to meeting a basic functional requirement like most other computer peripherals, the DynaPoint WA Webcam provides an enjoyable interactive and playful experience of Internet video through design features like an adjustable base and detachable lens. The three-ring base is collapsible for lens protection and portability. Its unique design provides flexibility for height adjustment. The lens is detachable for mounting either on a laptop or a PC monitor. Special features include a 300K-pixel lens, adjustable focus lens, built-in microphone and snapshot functions. Unique light-emitting diode (LED) lighting surrounding the lens provides for lighting in a dim environment.

Award: iF Product Design Award 2007

Product Name: Asus R2

Product Type: Ultra Mobile PC (UMPC)

Product Category: 02. Computer

Maker: ASUSTek Computer Inc.

Design: ASUSTek Computer Inc.

The ASUS R2H UMPC is an excellent 7-inch ultra-mobile PC (UMPC) companion for highly mobile professionals and media enthusiasts. Full functionality of a conventional notebook PC for today's mobile professionals. UMPC is a new device for the market and user. The product requirements are easy control and easy mobility. For this reason, the design concept is kept user-friendly, simple and easy-to-carry.

Award: iF Product Design Award 2007

Product Name: VIZIO VX32/37/42

Product Type: LCD TV set

Product Category: 01. Consumer Electronics/Telecommunications

Maker: AmTRAN Technology Co., Ltd.

Design: AmTRAN Technology Co., Ltd.

The VIZIO VX32/37/42 is a product that combines aesthetic harmony with technical innovation. A high-gloss black bezel creates a sense of purity and dignity. The VIZIO logo lights up when the TV turns on, then gradually dims to avoid distracting the viewer's attention. The eye-catching, wave-shaped speaker and the stylish stand make this TV even more distinctive than others. This elegant TV is especially designed to integrate harmoniously into any residential interior. VIZIO VX32/37/42 is for people who are interested in superior design quality, user-friendliness, and state-of-the-art technologies.

Award: iF Product Design Award 2007

Product Name: CHIMEI 19W4Y1

Product Type: LCD monitor

Product Category: 02. Computer

Maker: Chi Mei Optoelectronics Corp.

Design: Chi Mei Optoelectronics Corp.

As an absolutely new concept, the CHIMEI 19W4Y1 19" wide-screen thin film transistor-liquid crystal display (TFT-LCD) monitor takes advantage of a light and compact design to create a better choice for consumers. The brand-new concept involves a one-color design, with a polished and sanded surface for superior quality, attractiveness and individuality. The pearl-colored finish imparts a clean, beautiful image to the monitor. Moreover, the base can be folded up to 90-degrees and mounted on the wall, making it a convenient space saver. This design enhances the value of the product and provides users with a refreshing experience.