Famous for his phrase “Weniger, aber besser” (Less, but better), Dieter Rams was influential industrial designer. A number of the products he designed while at Braun A.C. went on to become consumer classics and, though we’ve moved on from turntables and tape recorders, many of these have been honored with a place in museums. While he worked almost exclusively with office and consumer products, his ten rules for good design speak to designers of all sorts.

Dieter Rams at Vitsœ (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

1. Good design is innovative
2. Good design is honest
3. Good design helps a product to be understood
4. Good design is thorough to the last detail
5. Good design is unobtrusive
6. Good design makes a product useful
7. Good design is durable
8. Good design is aesthetic
9. Good design is concerned with the environment
10. Good design is as little design as possible