After he completed his Masters degree at the Institut Supérieur de Design in his home country, Maxence Derremaux left France for San Francisco, which he describes as "the intersection of art and commerce, high style and DIY, globabl awareness and local engagement." His concept for a new approach to earbud assembly, a personal project with a certain high-end audio company in mind, recently caught my eye.

Citing headphones' general lack of repairability, Derremaux set out to design a more versatile earbud, figuratively dismantling the glue-based assembly process of cheap 'phones.

Click to enlarge

Click to enlarge

The result is indeed worthy of B&O: the geometric form factor is based on a keystone-like wedge, which slots into a Y-shaped clamp element. Additional images in his personal website illustrate the parts—a series of rings, spacers, plates and caps—which strike me as perfect candidates for 3D-printable replacement parts.

The customer receives the earphone parts in a box, improving the overall consumer experience of technological products

His portfolio also includes a sleek table lamp concept, which features a slim series of eight individually-controllable LEDs along a multidirectional head that pivots on two axes, as well as an induction charging tray at its base.

The user interface of the desk lamp was inspired by touchscreen gestures: tap to turn on/off, or swipe for additional functionality. The slick renderings certainly sell the concept, though I'm not sure that a manufacturer would be capable of incorporating the high-tech elements at reasonable cost.

So too does the rest of Derremaux's portfolio consist of concept work. To be fair, he's had gigs at Marcel Wanders studio and Neil Pryde, and as far as his personal projects go, he's working on a prototype of the "Heights and Depths" coffee table, a kindred spirit to Tyson Atwell's "Ocean's Edge.

See more of his work—including more consumer electronics, a concept for an e-bike, and Ergonomic Crutches, above, were inspired by Blade Runner (the South African Olympian, not the sci-fi classic)—on Coroflot and over at his portfolio site.