Olinda: Modular “Social” Radio

Social networking in physical products is an idea that we’re watching; and Schulze & Webb’s Olinda is an interesting example of how it could be implemented in everyday product design. Olinda is a digital radio that displays not only the music the listener is playing, but what his/her friends are listening to, too. Using wifi and Radio Pop, the BBC website that displays ‘now playing’ information, the Olinda registers what the listener’s set of friends are listening to. The site explains:

Each light is a button: you can tune in to listen along with them, discovering new stations via your social network. A friend will always appear at the same light, so you can write or draw on the radio to label it, and the lights are bright so you’ll know a friend has started listening from across the room. Olinda includes a connector on the side to allow for all kinds of extra modules adding functionality to the base radio, and – because the interface is simple – home adaptation too…

[Olinda's] hardware interface joins the base unit with the friends module. By buying extra modules – or by making their own using the open interface – listeners can adapt their product over time, perhaps adding a remote control or recording.

Modular, open-interface, and social - Olinda is a reflection of the future of product design; we’re excited to see other devices (DVD players, gaming consocontinueles, MP3 players?) continue going in this direction as well.

Olinda (Shulze & Webb)