I am working on assignment for assessing usefulness of AI tools. It would be really helpful if Industrial Designers could respond. Assuming that you are using AI for your design process I would like some in puts. What AI tools do you use? Do you pay for it? What is the most frustrating and useful part of using AI tools? Has it effected your work flow positively or negatively? What would be your ideal AI tool?

I used to previously:

• Go to design award websites -> see winners -> find portfolios of projects I liked

• Find LinkedIn profiles of people from seeing the listings of industrial designers at a specific company / consultancy and search their name trying to see if they have a public portfolio.

• Skim through the graduating class of select schools (Umea, Delft etc.) to see what the students did for their thesis but this is posted once a year.

• See profiles on Upwork and past projects they worked on (but these barely touch on the process work, only showing final designs)

These are all tedious and I was wondering if there’s an easier process to see high quality portfolios from students and professionals, not the Behance render heavy concepts that’s gets all the views on social media but actual design research and prototyping process work to solve problems.

Im in high school - 17 - and I have been aspiring to apply for an Industrial Design course in Uni - TU Eindhoven or TU Delft are the main 2 - Any advice on what to put on my portfolio / CV or any advice on any internships i should do ?

I’m gonna buy a new PC (I’ve had the same Asus Vivobook since 2020, it’s broken down and so slow) but I’m torn in terms of what to get. I will be running 3D modeling and rendering software like Rhino and Keyshot, and my top budget is 2000€. I have been recommended some gaming pc’s but they are clunky and extremely ugly. I’d like to buy a Mac Pro, but I’m unsure if it is suitable for Industrial Design work, so I’m also considering a Lenovo Yoga with a Nvidea graphics card and 32gb of RAM. Any advice?

Assuming this wil vary a lot by subfield but results will be consistent with in-house vs consultancies.

I've used many programs over the years. I'm considering some new programs and workflows. Subscriptions have gotten way too expensive.

Firstly, I know there are a few posts over the last year asking similar questions. I’m sorry to post again! I’m coming across from the Apple universe and very naive about windows machines.

I’m just finding all the information that has been provided a bit overwhelming and confusing. I don’t understand the difference between single cores and multiple cores, GPU vs CPU for ID, etc.

My course won’t recommend a certain computer but I’ve been told that the following specs are ideal:

• windows based
• i7 processor
• 32gb RAM
• 512gp HD (at least)
• dedicated graphics card

I’ve got a budget up to $4K AUD (roughly $2.5K USD) but I’d rather not spend that much unless really necessary. However, if it’s worth it, I’m more than happy to fork out the cash.

I’m not entirely sure of the programs I’ll be learning, but there is a component of product/UX design in the course, not just ID (if that changes things at all).

I also use the adobe suite as I occasionally freelance as a graphic designer (I’m a mature age student transferring fields).

I would really love to buy a laptop at the Boxing Day sales next Thursday.

Thanks in advance hive mind!

I am currently working on a medical device and I have found multiple critical issues with the product. But the client is not ready scrap the design nor he is ready to accept the issue. I can give a solution that would make him feel good and will solve issue for time being but in long run will effect them. It's a ethical dilemma for me that I want to convince him take different approach but client is stubborn, what to do ? He is fixated with cost and he contradicts himself how to deal with such clients? Please guide me

I get a lot of clients who's product concepts include low to medium complexity softgoods. I was speaking with some USA vendors about tech packs and they suggested that they work entirely in Solidworks. I am proficient with SW and my first thought was using the Sheetmetal tools to create patterns. I am curious if anyone else has experience with this. Am i doing it right? Is there a niche tool/plugin that I haven't heard of? I'd love your insights if you've got them.

Hi, I attended a three-year degree in product design in Italy, then a one-year master's degree in design engineering in Politecnico, Milan. Now I find myself lost, I don't seem to have adequate skills for the changing times, given that I struggle to find work, other than modeling, rendering, and the experience (not much) that I have gained in projects. I therefore thought that A.i. and Vr could be fields in which to specialize, but maybe I'm wrong, Thanks!

"I'm planning to pursue my Master's in Industrial Design after completing my bachelor's in Product Design, but I'm stuck deciding between M.Des, MFA, and M.A. Which degree do you think is the best fit for advancing a career in Industrial Design and landing great job opportunities? I'd love to hear your thoughts and experiences!"

A small problem with the suitcase hook: A brilliant idea has gone wrong. When you add a hook on the handle to hang your drink, it becomes tricky when climbing stairs! The hook will slide off during the process of climbing stairs. 😅 I have to retract the handle, which means taking off my backpack and drink—there's no third hand available.

Would a smarter design be better? 🤔 Maybe integrating the hook into the handle could be a solution?

https://reddit.com/link/1hgw9k6/video/p4svacc6fk7e1/player

I'm interested in doing a 180 from my current field in speech language pathology to industrial design. i have been looking at a few universities with design/industrial design programs, but given how small their upper division programs are, I believe it would be even more difficult to get admitted. Coming from a field that is more healthcare focused, I have no professional experience in any type of design. I plan on applying until next year. Any advice on what types of jobs or professional experiences would provide good experiences with anything design-related? Or any other advice? Again, I have no degree or certification in design/arts - only hobbies in ceramics/pottery, crocheting, and drawing. Thanks!

Hello, I'm a 3rd Year Industrial Design Student currently panicking about what to do.

I'm sorry if this question was asked before. I'm very passionate about the automotive industry and would like to know whether transport design studios use Alias SubD for concept modelling. I've heard many studios have begun hiring people who use Blender instead of Alias (because it is free and considerably better at rapid conceptualization). I've been learning Alias NURBS for a month and realized it's far from what I want to do (raw design work) and since I was already used to the Alias workflow and liked it very much, I decided to learn the SubD tools. However, I'm now debating whether I should make the switch to Blender, as it is a more affordable and versatile option.

Therefore, my question is this: Is Alias SubD more valuable than Blender for concept modelling or is it the opposite?

I created a visual for a presentation of a shoe project I worked on. It's a bit crazy, but I really like it. I hope you like it too!

https://reddit.com/link/1hgj9ha/video/mxvxq61prg7e1/player

I'm a biomedical engineering graduate, with experience prototyping and designing in rhino/solidworks plus rendering in different softwares. After a few years I've realized I much prefer working in a more design role although I'm still capable of doing mechanical design.

However my location isn't a hub for either, so I'm wondering if anyone has experienced similar and thinks a portfolio is enough or I'll need a masters degree in product design or some similar field. And if so, where is a good location to be?

Spent like 5 min trying to explain my teacher that: the liquid volume wont be the same if the height of the liquids are the same in 2 cups but the radius of the cups are different.

I just can’t comprehend how he couldn’t understand it. I tried to explain it in a easier way but than he got mad at me.

Now i don’t even know what to do, the feedback he gave is comically stupid. I already “ignored” his feedback once before and i know he doesn’t like that. I can feel he doesn’t like me and already gave a barely passing grade for the midterm, now if i go his way my project will be ruined but if i go another way he will be more and more offended and grade me lower…

Choose you preference for sketching and everyday use.

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I have a project where I need to design an enclosure for some electronics that will sit inside a stuffed toy. Their major concern is the sound quality and price, and the user interaction with this enclosure is minimal.

I am considering making a symmetrical enclosure, 2 parts from the same mould that would fit together. Looking for some resources or practical advice on building something like this.

Is this a good approach or can there be some downsides to this?

i have a concept of a phone dock i would to work on in the future but have no clue where to start… i’m a fashion designer but i like to design products as well.

is this something a industrial designer would take on?

Just finished first semester of sophomore year in ID. My school gives a ranking of everybody at this point in the year, and at the end of the year, the top 24 make it to finish the major, the rest have to either find another major or try again next year. I ranked 14/~45 total, but actually 14/24 if that makes sense. After being on this sub for a while it has become very clear that upon graduation, only the top 10-25% (so 2-6 students) of each class actually get a job pertaining to ID and basically the rest of the ID grads have to find a completely different career than ID that has nothing to do with the major they just worked so hard to get. I’ve seen the work of those classmates who finished in the top 10-25% because every day I sit beside them in class, meet with them after class and in the studio, and try my hardest to emulate them, work as hard/long as them, and basically live up to their standard, and in all honesty, I’ll never be as good as them sketching/design wise I just know. It feels so demoralizing and honestly depressing to work so hard and have this overwhelming feeling of it still not ever being good enough no matter what, and all these long hours and all nighters and stress i have will be for nothing. Basically my question is what advice y’all have for me, what should I do, etc. Thank you in advance!

Hi, I'm currently looking into redesigning my industrial design portfolio and was wondering what is the best platform to do it on. My last portfolio was designed on InDesign but I have a feeling this is a bit dated.

I have heard good things about Canva, Squarespace, Wix and Behance. I am currently prioritising creating a PDF portfolio but would like to put it on a website in the near future. What is the general consensus on the best and most modern place to create a portfolio?

Any Book or article or video or factory , or book about material engineering

i realized on the job, post-grad that i do NOT like the avenues my degree has set me up for. i don't have enough research or engineer experience to get a high paying engineer job, nor did i find any passion or motivation to learn those skills for such a career once i graduated and started working. i first worked as a lab tech and the position definitely opened the door to gain an engineering role down the line--but as i learned more, i realized that this isn't what i want to do.

i was always very artsy growing up, mainly drawing portraits, but sometimes i would also draw objects. i recall the feeling of coming up with a design idea to improve on a current product being very rewarding and interesting. also, the more hands-on projects for creating things were the ones i found myself hyper focused on. i learned that these are all relevant to what ID students do (product design, sketching, prototyping, etc) but i didn't even know industrial design was a degree until i graduated in physics ... so i'm trying to think up a plan on what i should look into to REALLY find out if i want to pursue this new path. some concerns i have are the following:

unfortunately, i have minimal experience with solidworks and did not utilize the free license enough in college. i created and 3d printed simple shapes to make a ramp for an automatic pet feeder project--and that is basically the extent of my experience. what software would be accessible and actually useful to learn?

would my physics degree help me in this field? either in standing out, with understanding concepts on a deeper or faster level, etc. the only physics subjects i can think to be related to ID is mechanics and possibly material science (which we learned on the atomic level, so is that actually something useful? it was not taught in a very practical way to me and it was 1 class 😐). i hear that mechanical engineering and industrial design are quite intertwined too. can anyone show examples of how they are, from their own job experience?

thank you for reading if u made it to here. this is just a cry for any insight so anything is much appreciated

So what I intend to do is to show a non-technical person how furniture pieces are made. This would include a log going thru a sawmill, cutting and ripping lumber to size, routing for joinery and shaping for ornamentation with various blade profiles and finally the glue assembly. Realistic rendering and dimensional precision are also required. Which software would be the best for this purpose if I will be making the models in SW or Rhino ? Thank you so much!

So I changed up my renders and I’m starting to get more confident about my portfolio but I am open to constructive feedback

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1Q7bAN06G4R1XqkbelYY2KhuzRGK9clcG08NlGrfMi7I/edit

Do employers/recruiters care? Do they base their selection on who has the best portafolio? Does it make it a lot easier to land a job? Or is it just a plus that doesn’t influence that much?