When HP previewed its new lineup of notebooks, Dana Wollman and I had a chance to sit down with Stacy Wolff, director of design for HP mobile products, and asked him about the creation of the new Envy 13 and the Envy 15. He talks about how HP took the original VooDoo Envy, and updated the design to the models that were announced today.
Wolff takes us through the entire process, from some early sketches, to wood prototypes of the exterior, to the finished product--which includes the packaging.
We've broken up the interview into several segments. Take a look after the break.
How the Envy evolved from the VooDoo Envy 133 to the HP Envy 13 and 15--why the carbon fiber chassis is no more, and how thinness isn't the end-all, be-all when it comes to notebook design.
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How designers arrive at their decisions regarding the ultimate shape of a notebook. In the case of the Envy, "less is more":
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A look at an early prototype, and why some of its features were changed. Also, a look at some concept sketches.
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How the chassis evolved from milled aluminum to a molded magnesium alloy:
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Finally, Wolff does an unboxing of the Envy 13, explaining how even the packaging was given serious thought.
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