The other day I was sitting on the Metro watching people reading their Kindles. Why I was so intrigued by everybody else’s Kindle while I had my own in my hands, I have no idea — but it got me thinking about something. Why did Amazon decide to make the Kindle exclusively white for so long?

Most designers, when trying to tap into a market, will design their product to appeal to the masses — the reason so many computers, phones, and other electronic devices tend to be black. Apple shook things up with the iPod, introducing a white device with white headphones. I think from a design perspective, Apple recognized the need to not only create an amazing and revolutionary device — but to create an Iconic Product.

Iconic Products go against market trends to create a type of “cult following”. The design of the product stands out in such a way that it gets noticed as something we haven’t seen before. If Apple had designed the iPod to look like every other MP3 player on the market, I doubt it would have captured the market share that it did (even if it had twice the functionality). Amazon made a very similar move with its Kindle: ensuring that the device stood out from its competitors not only in functionality, but in design as well. This white e-reader wasn’t just another product on the marketplace, it was an icon blazing the path for the future of digital publishing and print-media.