Core77

Device compensates for poorly-designed packaging

By Rain Noe - October 2, 2007

in Object Culture

We're big fans of Zibra Products, a sort of for-consumers, by-consumers collective of people that take a hard look at problems in the way of traditional industrial design. They essentially zero in on Situations that Suck, and try to design products that fix them.

Packages are often designed with wrapping that fails to take into account that someone will actually have to open them; the worst offenders are computer peripheral manufacturers, who love vacuum-forming things with a hermetically-sealed bond Houdini couldn't crack open. For this (and other packaging challenges) Zibra has come up with the OpenIt, a handy multi-tool that replaces the boxcutter, scissors and tinsnips your correspondent actually keeps under his desk.

The OpenIt's main scissor-type blades make short work of unopenable vac-pacs and the zip-ties that often bind new tools, while hidden in the handle is a retracting boxcutter-style blade for slicing through packaging tape. At first we thought the boxcutter-in-the-handle would be dangerous, but closer inspection revealed it can only be unsheathed purposefully and with the tool held backwards, making it idiot-proof. There's even a plus/minus screwdriver to pop the covers off of small electronics. Check it out here.

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sabih

17 years ago

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that's pretty great, but i saw the "OpenX" utility knife/cutter thing advertised on tv last year and for $6 it was a dream for slicing through those blasted blisterpacks!

http://www.asseenontv.com/prod-pages/openx.html?gid=HOUSEHOLD

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daniel

17 years ago

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and this one company invented these cool things called "scissors" that you can use for other stuff too!
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donnie

17 years ago

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poorly-designed seems a little harsh. function over form. maybe "theft-deterring."

btw, I would love to be slammed with some cost effective, tamper-proof, packaging. seriously.
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