Live data from Hacker News

BMW’s new flat logo is everything that’s wrong with modern logo design

theverge.com

141–150 of 193 posts

Re: BMW’s new flat logo is everything that’s wrong with modern logo design

#142
post #93
post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Additionally it isn't well composed. I learned graphics design from a guy who actually learned it by using his hands to pit down the letters. He had us move one black square around on a white page for 3 hours and explain why we put it where we did. Then we were allowed two squares of arbitrary size, later colors etc. If you are learning it from that basic level you cannot unsee badly unbalanced design. You cannot jus…

Okay, help someone who never learned anything about graphic design from anyone. why isn't it well composed?

IMO, it's because the black of the original logo takes up space, and keeps the BMW text and the inner circle grounded to a larger context.

Without the black, the text and the circle are just hanging out at the top of the outer circle, unbalanced against a large empty space at the bottom of the outer circle.

EDIT: Another way of putting it is that it looks like the text and inner circle could just bounce around inside the outer circle—they are "loose", and, as I said above, ungrounded.

Re: BMW’s new flat logo is everything that’s wrong with modern logo design

#143
I'm not convinced it is a "new logo". It appears to be the old logo, with some new styling. To my eyes, a line drawing of the new version would be no different that that of the old one.

As much as I value my design education, stuff like this really rubs me the wrong way. Not the new appearance, but just the idea that this variation counts for even a day's work.

Re: BMW’s new flat logo is everything that’s wrong with modern logo design

#144

According to BMW[1], it looks like this is only designed for brand communication. I wouldn't expect to see this pushed to non-concept cars, at least not for a long time. [1] https://www.bmw.com/content/dam/bmw/marketBMWCOM/bmw_com/cat... from here: https://www.bmw.com/en/automotive-life/bmw-logo-meaning-hist...

Those article quotas aren't going to reach themselves...

Re: BMW’s new flat logo is everything that’s wrong with modern logo design

#145

BMW builds _cars_, not Apps. They pride themselves in craftsmanship. The Logo badge on the actual car is a three dimensional, physical thing. Instead of embracing that, they made it flat like an App icon. It will look shit on cars and it does not communicate that BMW builds _real machines_. Everybody is going crazy about going digital and they forget what they are good at and what the customer likes them for.

Through the ‘90’s BMWs were well thought out and made. Some time in the ‘00’s that changed.

Re: BMW’s new flat logo is everything that’s wrong with modern logo design

#146

BMW builds _cars_, not Apps. They pride themselves in craftsmanship. The Logo badge on the actual car is a three dimensional, physical thing. Instead of embracing that, they made it flat like an App icon. It will look shit on cars and it does not communicate that BMW builds _real machines_. Everybody is going crazy about going digital and they forget what they are good at and what the customer likes them for.

This article is just a guy whining about how he personally doesn't like a logo. This logo is just fine, and it's certainly better than the old one that tried to look like it was made of physical material. Obviously the logos that are applied to the cars will look metallic because, well, they will be made of metal. This is a better logo in general, especially for print and online purposes. No excessive fake gradients and material renders, simpler lines and colors that will reduce well, and it goes back to the original state of their logo before they piled a bunch of fake chrome on it in the last couple decades.

Re: BMW’s new flat logo is everything that’s wrong with modern logo design

#147
post #93

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Okay, help someone who never learned anything about graphic design from anyone. why isn't it well composed?

Compare the lettering on the two versions. The use of 3D-ish black and fake embossing on the original makes the letters pop. The lack of both on the new version makes the letters look like they've been crammed into a tiny space at the top of a big empty ring. This might have worked with new lettering with different proportions. But it's literally just a flat copy of the original letter shapes, without any of the orig…

Hate to break it to you, but all these "problems" with the logo were exactly the same in the old logo. You got distracted by the ham-fisted layer styles and fooled into thinking that made it good.

The fact that you said "makes the letters pop" would send shivers down any designer's spine.

Re: BMW’s new flat logo is everything that’s wrong with modern logo design

#148

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Fake shadows and fake light is not good craftsmanship. It makes sense for a logo on a flat piece of paper to look flat and look beveled and shadowed on a badge. This evolution of the logo is bad, but not because it's flat.

yeah, they could have easily made the existing design flat[ter] but left the rest intact. the new look looks very cheap, but i bet they paid $200k for the redesign.

Thats... almost exactly what they did though.

Re: BMW’s new flat logo is everything that’s wrong with modern logo design

#149
Lots of definitive-sounding opinions from people who clearly don't have design experience. It's fun to be equipped to see through comments that sound good but are total bullshit to someone who knows what they're talking about - I don't often get that on here :)

Re: BMW’s new flat logo is everything that’s wrong with modern logo design

#150

BMW builds _cars_, not Apps. They pride themselves in craftsmanship. The Logo badge on the actual car is a three dimensional, physical thing. Instead of embracing that, they made it flat like an App icon. It will look shit on cars and it does not communicate that BMW builds _real machines_. Everybody is going crazy about going digital and they forget what they are good at and what the customer likes them for.

Even in apps you could argue if flat design is the best way to go. Since Google maps changed their icon I have a hard time finding it instantly between the dozen other flat app logos on my screen.
Post reply on HN