Giuseppe Russo
Giuseppe specializes in Industrial Design and User Experience. After a few years working on sports goods, packaging, furniture and yachts, he eventually decided to focus on consumer electronics. Over the years he designed for Motorola, Nokia, Microsoft and Logitech, working with world class leaders and mentors in Design, Engineering, Business and Marketing.
As a designer, Giuseppe is driven by the desire to contribute to the world purposefully, creating refined experiences and products that are a joy to use and own.
Logitech Circle View Doorbell
2020
Developed for Apple Home Kit, Circle View Doorbell delivered convenience and security to the door and it was designed to work well with any style of decor at your front door. The vision behind the doorbell was to offer a purposeful accessory to homeowners and a warm welcome to guests, concealing all its technology and its features in a clean, simple design. The doorbell is purposely discreet, but no sacrifice was made to its appearance. The front panel is made of seamless gorilla glass, the backlit button under the glass is easy to press with your fingers, your palm, or even your elbow if your hands are busy. The back housing of the device, designed in two versions with two different angles, is shaped to look and feel decisively anchored and integrated to the wall, without any screw or mounting feature showing after installation.
Logitech Circle View
2020
A home security camera with privacy in mind, made for people to trust and use with confidence, Circle View was designed to work with HomeKit, offering an app-free, simpler and more integrated experience to Apple users. It was not intended to stand out, rather to blend respectfully with any type of home environment and adapt to different decors, but without sacrificing a distinctive design identity and personality. To achieve this we combined playful design elements such as the arm, the base and the tilting camera head, that give functionality and life to Circle View. A quick privacy mode can be achieved tilting down the head. This simple gesture is at the very center of the design.
Logitech Harmony Express
2019
The Logi Harmony Express is a universal remote with a built-in voice interface. It was designed to deliver effortless control of home entertainment systems in an all-in-one solution, partnering with Amazon Alexa for voice. The design was a departure from the previous generations of Harmony products. With its essential button layout, it focused on the commands that are most commonly needed, such as volume or play/pause, leaving complex patterns used infrequently to the voice interface. A mobile app was created to allow an easy setup, simplifying the process of linking the remote to the TV and other devices. Harmony Express was a device for a niche market but it aimed to solve a very common problem with home entertainment, and it received a special mention from Time magazine's list of best inventions of 2019.
Logitech Rally
2018
A video conference system for large meeting rooms and board rooms, Rally represents a milestone for Logitech. It follows products such as MeetUp which disrupted the world of video collaboration and placed Logitech among the top leaders in this business. Rally delivered a refined approach to meeting spaces with a calm, composed design meant to enter office spaces unobtrusively and responding meaningfully to the cultural shifts of work. The design and engineering process lead to an innovative system architecture which moves unnecessary elements off the table and promotes orderly organized spaces setting Rally apart from traditional conferencing devices.
Logitech MeetUp
2017
Designed for small meeting rooms and huddle areas, MeetUp responds to the evolution of work and workplaces allowing people to easily connect from remote locations and travel less. The device offers powerful video and audio in an all-in-one, compact solution that minimizes clutter and is easy to use. Anyone can start a meeting just plugging their device to MeetUp via USB or Bluetooth and use any video service they like. MeetUp was an instant success for Logitech making video meetings more accessible and allowing to affordably equip multiple spaces with no effort. The design celebrates the technical and engineering qualities of the device harmonizing also with other Logitech productivity tools and creating a shared product identity.
Logitech Brio
2016
Logitech launched Brio in 2016 in response to the proliferation of remote collaboration and video streaming that required better video tools. It was designed to offer high end video capabilities and features. It was also marketed as Logitech 4K Pro and in 2019 another version was designed specifically for the Apple Pro Display XDR with a magnetic base and other minor changes. The high resolution hardware required a metal housing for thermal reasons, and the design takes full advantage of the premium material through a clean, extruded geometry.
Logitech Pop
2015
This little button controls connected devices such as smart-lights, smart-locks, wi-fi speakers, etc. Pop was one of Logitech's seed programs meant to experiment with new product categories and explore new business opportunities. The goal with Pop was to introduce simplicity in the complex world of smart-home devices, offering a product that could make wi-fi controls accessible by everyone. Designed to be versatile and unobtrusive, yet with a lively presence through color options, Pop is made from soft, tactile materials and embodies remarkable engineering solutions that allow it to be small and last for years with just two coin cell batteries.
Logitech Circle
2015
The first generation of Logi Circle cameras was conceived more as a home monitor than a security device. It was designed with a battery and a charging dock to enable portability, so it can be moved temporarily for the baby nap, keep an eye on the kids while they play in the backyard, watch the pets and so on. To make it easy to move, the docking system is magnetic and it can be mounted on a wall. The Logi Circle app also introduced innovative features such at the Day Brief. The industrial design inherits the iconic sphere body from traditional Logitech webcams and it was developed partnering with Minimal Design.
Nokia Lumia
2011 - 2014
Nokia Lumia smartphones were introduced in 2011 when Nokia decided to partner with Microsoft to develop Windows Phone devices. From 2011 to 2014 the Lumia design team had studios in Finland, the UK, the US and Asia. During these years Giuseppe worked both on regional and global projects. He was involved in cross-site activities aimed at creating design assets and strategies, establishing a cohesive design and brand identity, and developing technologies for new products. Lumia devices were particularly innovative in the use of materials, as well as the manufacturing processes which allowed to reduce parts, simplify assembly and yield cleaner designs. Lumia devices were bold and expressive, with distinctive surfaces and vibrant colors that created a powerful identity and won several design and engineering awards.
Nokia X Series
2011
The Nokia X-series line of phones was all about energy and music. It was Nokia's most expressive category intended for young people. It was deliberately loud, edgy and imbued with optimism and fun. These years were a transitional time for mobile devices. Touch displays were becoming more affordable and phones were shifting from traditional form factors, such as keypad sliders and flip phones, to all-screen devices. The experience of music, photography and connectivity was far from what we expect from phones today, and the concept of mobile apps was developing.
Nokia 600
2010
Initially kicked-off as an X-series phone, the Nokia 600 transformed through the design phase from a music-first device to a simpler, straight-forward handset that could appeal to a broader audience. The predecessor was the Nokia X6, from which it borrowed elements of the design language as well as some of the internal architecture. Now the surfaces are cleaner, part lines are significantly reduced and the surfaces are rounder, giving a softer feel in hand. The front cover was particularly innovative, seamlessly wrapping around the display and meeting the back cover without frames or trims. The edge transparency of the front cover inspired some of the solutions developed in the Lumia range. Unlike X-series devices, the Nokia 600 was not meant to be loud, instead it was unpretentious with an elegant playfulness.
Nokia X5
2009
The Nokia X5 was referred to as the Nokia Jukebox. Nokia experimented with this odd square design following trends in the market which seemed to indicate interest in smaller form factors. Nokia bet on a tiny 2.4 inch display to deliver compactness at an affordable price point. The X5 was meant to feel like a fusion between a phone and a music player, designed like a smaller version of the Nokia X6 for a younger public. It needed to be compact and affordable, yet feel trendy and cool through colors and a brushed metal back. Besides music, other top features were messages and chats. Colors and finishes were chosen to meet Asian market preferences in this category.
Motorola
2008 - 2009
Among the projects for Motorola, the Droid, or Milestone in Europe, was Motorola's first Android device which marked the company's official entrance in the Smartphone world. In its original vision, the design had an active attitude with an oversized lanyard hole and vibrant accent colors. This project was eventually selected as the flagship to lead the new Android adventure, and the design was updated with a more conservative tone which was more suitable for a broader audience. The work for Motorola in 2008 and 2009 also involved several other concepts and designs for phones and mobile accessories.
Yacht Design
2004 - 2007
Between 2004 and 2008 Giuseppe lived in Rome and Milan, freelancing and also contracting with a few design agencies. In Milan he worked at Design Group Italia and Hot Lab Design, in Rome he interned at Zuccon International Project.
Initially, Yacht Design was his top interest but other opportunities to design and experiment came along as interior design jobs and exhibition projects. Although these areas gave him the chance to work while completing his studies, Giuseppe really wanted to design products. By 2007 his attention had shifted to consumer electronics, attracted by the opportunity to innovate in tech and in fast paced industries, and the desire to reach more people with his work.
Other projects
2004 - 2007
Between 2004 and 2008 Giuseppe lived in Rome and Milan, freelancing and also contracting with a few design agencies. In Milan he worked at Design Group Italia and Hot Lab Design, in Rome he interned at Zuccon International Project.
Initially, Yacht Design was his top interest but other opportunities to design and experiment came along as interior design jobs and exhibition projects. Although these areas gave him the chance to work while completing his studies, Giuseppe really wanted to design products. By 2007 his attention had shifted to consumer electronics, attracted by the opportunity to innovate in tech and in fast paced industries, and the desire to reach more people with his work.
