Jon22: The Website of Jonathan Dobres

Today I unpacked and set up the Mac Mini I’ll be using to run my experiments. The Mini is ideal for the kind of work I do, but that’s another post. The Minis use DisplayPort connectors for their video out, and we use CRT monitors for their higher refresh rates. But this, also, is a separate post. The point is, I had to order a separate DisplayPort-to-VGA adapter from Apple. The adapter is the tiny white object resting on the big brown box, above. That box, incidentally, was used to ship the tiny white adapter to me.

I know, right?

In Objectified, Jonathan Ive points out that Apple’s attention to design extends far beyond the meticulously rendered interface of the iPhone or the flawless finish of the MacBook Air. The manufacturing process is engineered to maximize efficiency and minimize waste, and even Apple’s packaging has shrunk considerably as the years have passed. The Nano’s packaging is tight and minimal, and the packaging around the Magic Mouse is practically its own display case. Apple boasts that this attention to detail keeps waste down and makes the company greener. It also allows Apple to ship more product in less space.

The iPod Nano sits in a beautiful, custom-made plastic case, and gets shipped out in a cardboard box barely larger than that. The Mac Mini also gets this treatment. The adapters, however, are packaged in needlessly bulky plastic bags, which are then shoved into computer-sized boxes filled with nothing but air. I’m sure that Apple sells far more Nanos than VGA adapters, but still, isn’t there a smaller box lying around the warehouse? In the long run, wouldn’t it save money to shrink this down?