Deconstructing Product Design

Mouse M0100

Dean Hovey, David Kelley, and Apple, 1984

1. The mouse, the name inspired by the resemblance of early models to laboratory mice, had long been invented prior to its adoption by Apple in the early 1980s. But, as with the graphical user interface, it was Apple that transformed a largely experimental input device into a practical consumer-based product. In a textbook example of rapid prototyping, Apple commissioned pre-IDEO David Kelley and Dean Hovey to set about transforming a niche $400 Xerox PARC mouse into a mass-market $25 mouse — while also improving usability and reliability. Rapid prototyping is messy, based on developing numerous makeshift models versus formalized specifications. The premise is that each prototype teaches ...