Supreme’s new feature phone is for hypebeasts only – The Verge

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A 3G feature phone with a massive Supreme logo.

ive been trying to get a working feature(ish) phone, with google maps and Spotify. my latest attempt was a Japanese domestic Sharp Aquos Keitai 2 flip phone. it is awesome, long battery, but unfortunately I can’t do security updates on it without a y!mobile sim on a Japanese domestic network… and no app installs.

I might revisit and see if I can install custom firmware or something… but for now, its calls and Line only.

 

Source: Supreme’s new feature phone is for hypebeasts only – The Verge

hikaru dorodango

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“[A]n artifact of such utter simplicity and perfection that it seems it must be either the first object or the last…”

— William Gibson

William Gibson is describing the haunting elegance of hikaru dorodango. His essay in TATE Magazine, “Shiny Balls of Mud: William Gibson Looks at Japanese Pursuits of Perfection” was my first exposure to this trend sweeping through Japan.

Hikaru dorodango are balls of mud, molded by hand into perfect spheres, dried, and polished to an unbelievable luster. The process is simple, but the result makes it seem like alchemy.

A traditional pastime among the children of Japan, the exact origin of hikaru dorodango is unknown. The tradition was dying out until taken up by Professor Fumio Kayo, of the Kyoto University of Education, as a means to study the psychology of children’s play. In the course of his research, Kayo developed a simple technique for creating dorodango. With the help of Japanese media, Kayo has revived and extended the popular reach of this tradition to the point where it is now an international phenomenon.

Source: hikaru dorodango

Market Cafe Mag — Market Cafe Magazine Issue 1

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Market Cafe Magazine is a zine about data visualization founded in 2017 by information designers and educators Tiziana Alocci and Piero Zagami.

Reading Market Cafe Magazine you will hear from different voices about what designing information means and where it’s going. Our mad research brought us to discover the most talented and finest people in the industry to guide you through this journey. Market Cafe Magazine is 100% independent, ad-free, self-published and distributed in London.

Market Cafe Magazine is not only a zine. It’s also an online and offline community: we organise workshops and meetups to discuss the different sides of working with data. Subscribe our spam-free newsletter, follow us on Instagram and Twitter or join our Facebook group Data Loves Zines to know about our next events.

Source: Market Cafe Mag — Market Cafe Magazine Issue 1