Formation Flex
Client
Bowers & Wilkins
Year
2019
Type of Work
Design development
Design for manufacture
User interface
The Flex is the most versatile speaker in the Formation range. It can be used as a single speaker, as a stereo pair or as part of a larger home cinema set-up. Designed from the ground up to dovetail both sonically and aesthetically with the rest of the Formation range, the sound quality of this small speaker belies its diminutive form. Goodwin Hartshorn worked in close collaboration with the acoustic engineers at Bowers & Wilkins to design a product which integrates seamlessly into a broad range of interiors.
The glass top of the Flex hides a capacitive touch user interface. This activates when a hand approaches as well as when music plays. Integrating with the broader Formation range, beyond basic functionality, the UI also allows users to ‘pull’ music sources from elsewhere in your network.
Underneath, we’ve hidden all the connectors so that their visual impact is as minimal as possible whilst remaining accessible.
The simple form of the Flex hides a world of engineering complexity – beyond the drivers and electronics, the form has been designed to be structurally rigid (for high quality acoustic performance) and also allow effective dissipation of heat.
