BY David Weinberger
New Logo in .4 Miles
Garmin, the company that makes many of the portable GPS and navigation systems for your car, has been doing pretty well lately. So well that they have recently announced that virtually all of its employees will receive bonuses equivalent to a month of their salary. Garmin has also been spending some branding and marketing dollars as they have just announce a new logo, an ad campaign to air during NFL games and their first ever retail store.
The Press Release:
DATE: Nov.05.2006
CATEGORY: Technology 55 COMMENTS
Anonymous’s comment is:
The new logo is a vast improvement over that Review-ish, slanty nightmare. The new typeface says "sturdy" and "reliable," but balanced and a little soft around the edges. The little triangle looks like a nav-device button, and it's position over the N lets it double as reference to cardinal direction and the GPS devices they make.
I don't really see the need for gradient in the triangle, but I assume it was put there to make the triangle more literally resemble a button on a device.
On Nov.06.2006 at 03:46 PM
Doug B’s comment is:
I wonder how it would look if the triangle was 20% smaller. My guess is better...
The letterforms are strong.
On Nov.06.2006 at 04:02 PM
Pat Broderick’s comment is:
I kinda wonder why they dotted the N instead of the I.
On Nov.06.2006 at 08:07 PM
Steve Hsu’s comment is:
First thought: Viagra.
Pat, perhaps it was to suggest a compass? North? I don't know.
On Nov.06.2006 at 09:04 PM
Kyle Hildebrant’s comment is:
Great concept.
The navigation "n" pointing north button on my console works for me. The typography is worlds better.
Simple and direct. Overall, a vast improvement.
On Nov.06.2006 at 11:50 PM
felix sockwell’s comment is:
has slight AOL nod, but vast improvement.
does it matter who did it? is this new blog positioning itself as
another enabler of the authorless press release? if so, fine but i for one prefer to know who did it and why whoever wants to critique it might be doing so. Ironically half of the work thus far are chicago-based companies.
On Nov.07.2006 at 11:30 AM
Dustin Boston’s comment is:
I definitely like the new logo. I think Steve was right about it being north, like a compass. The old logotype looked like a razor logo to me. The new type is a little more formal and a little more techy which I think makes sense given the nature of the product. Easily scalable, and it probably looks just fine in black and white.
On Nov.07.2006 at 12:28 PM
Marco’s comment is:
Hi there!
i work like a strategic planner in an italian advertising agency.
We have a graphic design unit, but usually planners dont't work with it.
I think it's a very interesting field and I would like to bring my added value to their job.
They said they are workink about a redesign of the logo of a Mechanic company.
Do you know where can I find some stimulous or resources in gneral, about redesign process (blog, websites, or whatever?)
Thank you very much,
Marco.
On Nov.07.2006 at 01:52 PM
Argee’s comment is:
Wow, much better!
Too bad about the shading on the triangle, but kids these days, they love themselves some 3D.
Nice to see Pat Broderick is still alive. I've been a fan for years.
On Nov.07.2006 at 02:06 PM
Armin’s comment is:
Felix, whenever we can, we will credit the designer or design firm. But, as you know, a design credit is a hard thing to find in press releases.
On Nov.07.2006 at 03:29 PM
Dave Werner’s comment is:
Simple, sophisticated and conceptually smart. I really like it.
On Nov.07.2006 at 09:48 PM
Ryan’s comment is:
A vast improvement, although the 3D effect probably isn't needed. The concept is simple and to the point, and that's why it works.
On Nov.08.2006 at 01:57 AM
Massimo Fiorentino’s comment is:
Simple but strong. A lot of care seems to have gone into it. The "A" also bearing resemblance to the triangle and so forth. A bit anonymous perhaps, but Garmin doesn't have to brand themselves on the logotype. I am not keen on logos that use things like swooshes etc. on top of the name (like Citibank, even though the "bank building"-thing is kind of - ok - I guess), but the "North", I like because it is an integral part of their products.
On Nov.08.2006 at 02:46 AM
M.A. Turner’s comment is:
The Citibank logo was done by Paula Scher and doesn't incorporate a swoosh. If anything it is an umbrella. Here's some proof. Here's a video about Paula and her process.
As far as the new Garmin logo, not feeling the blue in the triangle. Should have been red. Overall the "Gothamy" font is a 90.3% improvement.
On Nov.08.2006 at 09:44 AM
Insider’s comment is:
The new logo was largely an in-house effort with support and guidance provided by a small (but talented) branding agency.
Thanks for all of the feedback!
On Nov.08.2006 at 11:40 AM
Bill Murray’s comment is:
Indeed, the original concept included a red North pointing arrow, as magnetic compass arrows tend to be, but the blue was part of the client's culture, and the color was useful to distance itself from competitors' marks.
As is sometimes the case, this was the first idea developed. 20 or 30 different approaches were employed afterward, and ultimately, it came full circle back to the original.
On Nov.08.2006 at 02:53 PM
JonSel’s comment is:
I could be flippant and say that since MorganStanley dropped their triangle logo, one was available for the taking. But honestly, how much simpler and on-point could this have been? Nice job.
And who knew Bill Murray was into logo design. I wonder what Dan Aykroyd thinks of it.
On Nov.08.2006 at 03:47 PM
Paul’s comment is:
Nice echoing of the arrow in the "A" as well.
On Nov.10.2006 at 01:29 PM
Mark’s comment is:
Looks surprsingly similar to that of Suunto, www.suunto.com
On Nov.11.2006 at 12:42 PM
designer’s comment is:
The logo is embaressingly similar to Suunto. Especially because Suunto is in the same business as Garmin. Totally pathetic copycats...
On Nov.13.2006 at 01:50 AM
dtwood’s comment is:
Suunto... that explains why they didn't go with a red triangle. yikes.
On Nov.13.2006 at 03:08 PM
catalyst’s comment is:
Nice upgrade. Too bad they upgraded to the Suunto logo. I'm surprised their attorneys haven't called.
On Nov.13.2006 at 04:42 PM
Kosal Sen’s comment is:
Garmin ripped Suunto. Suunto ripped Bass. All kidding aside, does anyone else see the A as topheavy? A letter's transparency has priority over the harmony to the proportions of a mark. At least they should be equal. I like the improvement, but doesn't seem quite refined yet. I wouldn't call this a smart concept. It works because it's clear and direct. Or... is that what makes it smart?
On Nov.14.2006 at 10:42 AM
Tikuz’s comment is:
I like the clean typeface. But does it kinda remind you of Garnier?
On Nov.17.2006 at 04:55 AM
stock_illustration’s comment is:
The "a" is striking a bad chord...it is too top-heavy as stated above, IMO. Otherwise, an improvement over the old logo and a clean, obvious solution.
On Nov.17.2006 at 10:13 AM
Scott’s comment is:
The Suunto one is similar but I don't think it works as well. The red triangle floating far away and centered works in isolation but doesn't have enough gravity to keep together on something like their web page.
On Nov.30.2006 at 12:02 PM
Jesse’s comment is:
What font is it?
On Dec.01.2006 at 08:49 AM
Ben’s comment is:
Doesn't it bother anyone else that the triangle juts out of the otherwise uniform shape? And that it doesn't even resemble a compass rose? So what's the pay-off?
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uncleplayground’s comment is:
I'm seeing the hole in the A as a repeated shape, reinforcing the north arrow triangle. As much as I would like to see the cross-bar on the A level with the cross-bar on the G and the bottom of the loop on the R, it would remove the repeated shape from the lockup. I think it's a stonger logo with the "top-heavy" A.
On Jun.19.2007 at 01:09 PM
Jim’s comment is:
Does anyone know what typeface that is?
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I don't like the way the A has 'E.T legs' but overall a much nicer logo for my eyes.
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I'll throw my two cents in on the improvement side as well. Smart, Clever, and Simple. Well played.
On Oct.01.2009 at 12:08 PM
sahil khan’s comment is:
what's the font being used for the old garmin logo? the N looks similar to http://nenonline.org
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Thank you for your great article. I also must say that your layout is a pleasure to view. Keep up the good work.
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