DIY Gamer Kit: An Open Ended Product

For the Object Outcomes workshop, I would like to present the DIY Gamer Kit, a device designed when I was the lead designer at London based education tech start-up, Technology Will Save Us. It is a handheld games console kit, launched and designed for Technology Will Save Us. The device was designed to teach young children the principles of electronics, programming, and design. Launched in October 2013, to date it has been purchased and used by over 10,000 individuals. The device’s design is unconventional, since it is purchased in an unfinished state. It is up to the user to then complete the device by soldering it, gaining skills in the process of doing so. I will discuss the process of designing open-ended devices, and describe novel uses observed in the DIY Gamer’s user base.