http://www.influxinsights.com/blog/ 2008-10-10T23:07:36Z http://www.influxinsights.com/blog/article/1751/influx-interview-designer-series--phil-lu--starbucks-iphone-application.html In the last few days, just ahead of Macworld , a series of fantastic visuals were sent around the web at lightening speed. <br><br>People wondered if they were real, that's how good they were. <br><br>The visual concept was for an iPhone Starbucks quick ordering system, using Wi-Fi.<br><br><a target="_blank" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/edcotton/2194504176/" title="Starbucks/iPhone Quick Order Visual Exploration by ed100, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2143/2194504176_089b09b9c2.jpg" alt="Starbucks/iPhone Quick Order Visual Exploration" height="356" width="500"></a><br>It made sense because the technology basically exists and some people are already aware that Apple recently applied for a patent to do something similar.<br><br>I tracked down the designer of these images, <b>Phil Lu</b>, (<a target="_blank" href="http://www.genoco.com/link/interactive_quickOrder.html">to see a fully animated version of the Starbucks application, please look here)</a> for a very short interview. <br><br>This is one in a series of interviews Influx is going to be conducting with designers over the coming months. <br><b><br> 1. Briefly describe your background and what you do?</b><br><br>I'm a multimedia designer currently living/working in San Diego, CA. My backgrounds is in media art and graphic design. I did a little bit of graphic design before moving on to multimedia design. <b><br><br> 2. How do you come up with the idea for the Starbucks iPhone application?</b><br><br>The "what if?" thought came to my mind when I was waiting in line at Starbucks. I spend more time waiting to order than waiting for the drink. It got me thinking, since iPhone supports iTunes download over wi-fi using iTunes account; why not order my coffee over wi-fi with the same account?<br><b><br> 3. How did you work out the conceptual design?</b><br><br>I looked through various interface design and studied the Starbucks' brands. I wanted an interface that feel like the iPhone interface with the touch of Starbucks' branding, The reason behind the design is that I don't want QuickOrder to feel like a 3rd party application. Instead, I want the application blend in seamlessly with the current iPhone interface. <br><b><br>4. How long did it take to make?</b><br><br>Once I have the concept worked out, the design phase goes rather quickly. <br><b><br>5</b><b>. What's next?</b><br><br>I'm currently working on different online-social networking site that will bring like-minded people together.<br><br><br><br>Posted by Ed Cotton Influx Insights 2008-01-15T12:34:27Z