Spotlight – Peter Clark

Welcome to the spotlight, where we’ll be talking to the people that make ASUS magic come to life. This time we’re talking to Peter Clark, who’s a designer with the company and therfore likely has had a hand in some of the cool products you’re using right now. Maybe even the notebook or tablet your viewing this on!

Name:

Peter Clark (柯彼德).

Role in the company:

Senior Industrial Designer.

How long have you been working with ASUS?

I’ve been with company for four and a half years now.

What’s your favorite ASUS product?

The ASUS W1. It’s one of our older products from 2004 (I think). It’s a 17” multimedia laptop, and was one of the first laptops to utilise aluminium for the case. What makes it special for me is the minimalist approach, which gives the product a sophisticated feel. The various hardware components (I/O ports, optical drive, etc.) are well laid out, showing the designers and engineers cooperated very closely.

If you could design one product all your own, what would it be?

Since our products often have to fit into our users’ existing home and office environments, I think it would be fun to create an environment with the technology already built-in. I would love to design a room or furniture with some means of computing integrated. Science fiction movies such as Blade Runner are a great source of inspiration, so it would be cool to design something for those worlds.

Predict one major tech trend for the next ten years:

I think the major trend will be cloud computing. Of course, this trend has already begun, but still needs more sophisticated infrastructure before it can really take off, which I think will take time. Nevertheless, I’m excited about the possibility of being able to connect to powerful applications through a mobile device such as a phone or tablet.

What is the single most important thing you’ve learned so far working with ASUS?

The value of clear communication is the most important thing I’ve learned. In isolation, it doesn’t sound very exciting, but in order to make exciting things happen, everyone has to work together and understand what we are trying to achieve. This has been particularly evident coming from overseas, as clear communication is easy to take for granted when working in a familiar environment.

And when you’re not working, what do you do for fun?

Taipei is a modern, bustling city so it’s great to go out and just wander around. I can always get a lot of inspiration to bring back to my design work. I also like hiking, being in the countryside helps me relax and appreciate the beauty of nature.

Thanks a lot Peter!