Mission Mini
Mission Mini is the second computer released under the Mission Brand. It uses a smaller, cheaper board and chipset to hit a lower price-point than its predecessor. The design reflects this lower price point in steps taken to reduce manufacturing costs while retaining the same brand aesthetic.
Role: Lead designer
Year: 2016
Goals
01
Unique
The use of natural materials were aimed at creating a device that was inviting and stood out from a market of black boxes.
02
On Brand
The Mission brand had established itself with its use of bamboo and patterns to create a modern looking computer. Mission mini looked to elevate that aesthetic.
03
Accessible
Mission mini would need to be significantly cheaper than its predecessor to be accessible to a larger market.
Concept Development
Mission Mini is built off of the chassis from a smaller spherical computer (endless mini). There was a challenge in retaining the more geometric form of the Mission brand while also incorporating the components from the circular PCB.
Design Development
Many decisions were made during design development to help reduce the overall cost of the device. The hole pattern from the previous device was moved to the injection-molded body to save cost on laser cutting. The bamboo element was moved from covering the whole body of the device to being a slab on top. This reduced QA rejects in assembly.
Packaging Design
I also designed all of the packaging for the Mission products. This packaging was designed to be cheap, simple, and fully recyclable.
