Designers Reimagine the Task Light—And It’s Gorgeous

[Narrator] You probably don't give your lamp much thought

when you switch it on.

But the San Francisco design firm,

Box Clever, recently spent two years designing a lamp

that would suit their needs perfectly.

We set out to do a lamp

that was really just about the light.

About pure light.

It wasn't just about reading,

it wasn't just about working next to a computer,

it was about the versatility of a workspace.

[Narrator] This desire for control over light and movement

would eventually give rise to The Fade Task Light.

(electronic music)

The Fade Task Light will set you back $250 bucks.

$250 is was less than you're going to pay

for a lot of other designer lamps.

But even more impressive than it's price point,

is how much versatility this thing packs

into its simple, sleek design.

[Narrator] But designing something so simple

required countless hours of prototyping.

First step we took was to take

these two pieces of material,

and then create a dynamic hinge

that could be set in any position.

And we quickly realized that we needed more distance here,

between these two pieces to have more movement.

So the next step, we created a different mock-up.

You can see a lot more of the sliding in and out,

and smoothe adjustability

the more distance we created here.

[Narrator] The lamp's form

isn't the only thing that's adjustable.

With the push of a finger

you can dim the light's brightness,

or change it's temperature from cool to warm.

[Bret] The interface initially was a disk interface,

where you would press and hold to turn on,

and then you would rotate so you get your brightness level.

Its simple mechanics, and its clean lines

make The Fade Light a beautifully conceived departure

from the springs, and hinges, and cables

that have defined the task light's form factor

for close to 80 years.

The goal was always to have that adaptability

with the most seamless motion,

and the fewest amount of parts.

When we approach any project, the ideal is nothing.

(laughs)

Nothing except the function.

And every step along the way was trying to achieve

that core idea.