Apple's Senior VP of Industrial Design Jonthan Ive has won yet another design award, this time for the iPhone. The Mobile Data Association recognizes "those UK companies and individuals who have made an outstanding contribution to the uptake and success of mobile data over the last 12 months." Ive won the MDA Personal Achievement Award for the physical "design of the Apple IPhone and its user interface" which "sets the bar very high for all present and future competitors and as such, is shaking the mobile phone industry."

You've got to figure by this time Ive is using things like this as doorstops, but it is yet another (completely unsurprising and thoroughly deserved) testament to Apple's design leadership.

[via Infinite Loop]

Several TUAW readers have reported after seeing midnight showings of Disney-Pixar's new and highly-rated movie WALL•E that when the robot boots up, he makes the standard Mac startup sound. That's not the only Apple connection with the movie.

Of course, Steve Jobs is the largest single shareholder of Disney after Pixar was purchased by the entertainment giant for $7.4 billion in 2006. He still serves on a steering committee for Pixar that oversees the Disney-Pixar animation businesses, and he's on the Disney Board of Directors. I'm not sure, but he may be tapped to be the first CEO of BuyNLarge...

WALL•E's job is to wander around an abandoned Earth, pick up trash, and compact it into small blocks. However, when he finds something nostalgic that he likes, such as an iPod or Rubik's cube, he keeps it.

The object of WALL•E's desire, EVE, was actually designed with the assistance of Apple Senior VP of Industrial Design Jonathan Ive, who apparently spent a day with the Pixar team in 2005 consulting on the ultra-sleek floating robot.

Thanks to Matt for the heads-up and inspiration for this post!

Hot the heels of Apple's recent double D&AD Black Pencil victory for excellent design the British newspaper the Independent interviewed Jonathan Ive, Apple's senior vice-president of industrial design and now holder of a record six Black Pencils. There's a charming sense of British lad made good about the piece, and it's always interesting to learn about how Ive approaches his craft.

He says that his "goal is simply to try to make products that really are meaningful to people. Ultimately there is something motivating and inspiring in seeing someone using an Apple product and enjoying an Apple product." And fortunately for our favorite fruit company Ive insists that he can't possibly imagine working anywhere but Apple.

[via Gizmodo]

Cooper-Hewitt, the design museum in New York, has just announced the winners of this year's Nation Design Awards and you might recognize a name of the list. Jonathan Ive, designer of such items as the iPod, the iMac, and the iPhone, has won this year's award for 'Product Design.' The designs for the iPod nano, Apple TV, the MacBook, and the iPhone seem to have cinched the win for him.

Kudos to you, Jonathan , and the whole team of designers at Apple.

Steve Jobs and Jonathan Ive have been identified as candidates for the next Time 100 Poll, which is a list of the nation's most influential business people. Both Steve and Jonathan have appeared in Time before (Steve made the cover five times), and Steve has made previous Time 100 lists.

Magazine covers, national recognition, a billion-dollar company...just another day at the office.

[Via MacNN]

British born Jonathan Ive, designer of the iMac and iPod, became a Commander in The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire today. According to a Macworld article, Ive received this honor at the Queen's New Year Honours ceremony.

Ive was recently promoted to senior vice president of Industrial Design at Apple. He has been with Apple since 1992 and was named 2003 Designer of the Year by the Design Museum in London. Ive originally studied industrial design at Newcastle Polytechnic.

Here's the rumor that won't go away. Unites States Patent Application #20060026536 (which features the signature of Jonathan Ive) concerns "...Methods and systems for processing touch inputs are disclosed. The invention in one respect includes reading data from a multipoint sensing device such as a multipoint touch screen..." Is an Apple tablet in the works (yes, I'm bringing that up again)? Hrmph! even has a very nice round-up of images related to using "gestures" with a touchscreen-based user interface. Note the iPod-like scroll wheel in Fig. 27D.

Seriously, though, who would you trust to deliver a tablet PC that's both beautiful and useful? Mr. Ive and Apple, that's who. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for this one.

[Via Engadget]

Every year, Britain awards influential Britons Orders of the British Empire, such as Knight, Commander, and Officer. The highest order is Knight, but also well-known and prestigious is the Commander of the Order of the British Empire, or CBE.

Jonathan Ive, Apple's creative designer behind many of its revolutionary products such as the families of iMacs, and the iPod, has become a CBE on this year's New Years Honours List.

Thanks to all those who sent in this news item.