Design, citizenship and the city
12 September 2008
I’m quite sure that very few technology enthusiasts have missed out on the phenomenon of unboxing videos, whereby enthusiastic customers record the unpacking of their new products with trite and inane commentary. But what happens a few months down the line when your latest darling has been superseded and you’re selling it to be able to buy the latest, greatest model?
Recently I sold my Asus Eee PC 701 netbook and it took me longer to get it back into its complex cardboard home than it did to work out how to restore the operating system and run it. In fact, I never did work out the various flaps and folds of that box properly — I just packed the power brick and battery in a separate box and gave up.
So here’s to a practical application of unboxing videos beyond conspicuous consumption. Play them backwards and work out how to get the spaghetti back in the box when its end comes.
Bring on the reboxing videos.