Can Digital Products Be “Timeless?”

Do websites and apps belong in the MoMA? (They do)

Working at HODINKEE, I’m exposed to iconic, timeless designs nearly every day. From vintage watches and design objects that come by my desk, to the classic cars I get to drive on the weekends, I’m fortunate to be surrounded with timeless design.

However, before working here, “iconic” and “timeless” were never words I would use to describe digital products during my years working with startups. “Does it solve the problem?”, “Is it useful?”, “Is this design easy to understand?” certainly come to mind, but never in my career had I wondered, “Is this design timeless?”

The Rolex Submariner, a timeless design.

What is timeless design?

For a product to become timeless, it must first have fundamentally good design.

Second, it must be iconic, in that it sets a new benchmark in the field and is instantly culturally recognizable.

Then, (this is crucial part) it needs enough time to prove it’s as good, or even better, today as it was 10, 20, 50+ years ago. No easy task!

So, I wonder, as the consumer internet approaches nearly 30 years old at the time of writing this, why don’t we ever think of digital designs as “timeless?”

Digital design’s handicap

Well, most digital designs are never intended to be timeless in the first place. The web is living medium and probably the fastest changing one designers have ever had to work with. Entire paradigm shifts can happen over night, platforms come and go, and designs can get flipped on their heads in order for a business to survive.

However, that’s not always the case. Sometimes digital designs endure against all odds. And I would argue, may one day be considered timeless.

Porsche 911 vs Google Homepage