7 ms·
The New Airbnb
- FeatureRush 12y agoOn airbnb.pl were the prices always displayed as zł1090 etc? The proper way is 1090zł.
- mrdmnd 12y agoThanks for the bug report! I'll relay it to the proper engineer.
- brandonmenc 12y agoIs the new symbol an attempt at some contrived post-millenial hobo code? "Look, honey! The Bélo! We've found a safe-house!"
- gdubs 12y agoI actually was thinking this, because of a Mad Men episode[1] and came here to mention it. Overall I like the logo, but the idea of something akin to the Hobo Code in particular is pretty brilliant IMHO. It's a very Don Draper idea :) 1: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1097128/ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1097128/
- george88b 12y agoI am not really a fan of the pastel colors and the new logo. I know they were trying to make photos and such more prominent but I find it harder to navigate.
- pimlottc 12y agoThe new logo just looks like a paperclip to me.
- bsmith 12y agoThe site looks great. However, is it just me, or do the videos in the mantle not really add much? I find the movement in some of them distract from the space itself, while others just seem a little staged or even a bit creepy. I think I would have much preferred photos.
- thathonkey 12y agoAs a counter-point, the videos were my favorite part but I agree some of them look a little too staged. Possibly blurring them a bit or adding a slightly translucent overlay as another poster suggested could make them less distracting and increase the prominence of the white text overlay. Just don't throw the baby out with the bath water.
- trustfundbaby 12y agoNot bad, but I have to say the old design/logo/identity just seemed like more ... fun.
- aganders3 12y agoI agree, but I could see (for example) my parents trusting the new design more. It seems more like a legitimate short term rental service rather than a couchsurfing site.
- neilk 12y agoAnd yet it retains the informality you want from an AirBnB. It's almost perfect. IMO the design process seems way over the top, but it seems to have produced results.
- antr 12y agoWhat was wrong with the old design? IMHO, the current site doesn't look as good.
- alphonse23 12y agoI can't say I really believe in Airbnb as a company and idea, but that is a damn well designed website -- I guess you could say the best money could buy..
- jmathai 12y agoWhat is it about the company and idea which make it difficult for you to believe?
- alphonse23 12y agoWhat the company is doing is essentially illegal. You can't rent out a living space without applying for rezoning, and then it still has to be with the approval of the city planning department of the city. You can't just let people turn their places into rentals. I live in a large city, and I would mostly agree that city planning in necessary in order to avoid problems with traffic, parking, and all the other problems that happen in dense urban areas. I think the idea is great, but it's not going to work, maybe in a more relaxed country where they don't care to do any city planning, but not in the United States and other more densely populated cities. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/05/nyregion/the-airbnb-economy-in-new-york-lucrative-but-often-unlawful.html http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/05/nyregion/the-airbnb-econom...
- visakanv 12y agoI live in Singapore, where Airbnb will remain illegal for a long time. That said, is "that's illegal!"necessarily watertight proof that something isn't going to work? Could it be possible that people might like the idea of something enough that cultural attitudes change, and people demand different things, and laws shift and change to accomodate what people want?
- zheshishei 12y agoThe thing is, the reasons why Airbnb is illegal (e.g. the zoning laws that the parent mentioned) aren't really subject to shifts in cultural attitudes. It boils down to city planning and structuring (the flow of traffic, the layout of utilities, etc.), all (or at least most) of which are put in place to try and make our horribly inefficient cities just a bit more efficient.
- alphonse23 12y agoI can't say I really believe in Airbnb as a company and idea, but that is a damn well designed website -- I guess you could say the best money could buy..
- stevenkovar 12y agoNot a critique of the design overall, but if someone responsible for the home page design is reading this: it might be worth applying a slight translucent layer over the background images/videos to help make the white text more readable (something like (0,0,0,0.4)!
- mfisher87 12y agoI think because the background is such a long, varied animation, it works as-is. None of the letters are unreadable for more than a moment, and only occasionally do small portions become unreadable. The exception, I think, is the Signup|Login|Help navigation section in the top-right. Sometimes whole links become unreadable for like 5 seconds!
- lukethomas 12y agoIt seems clear to me that this is a step towards a bigger vision (example: http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/06/05/us-airbnb-dinner-idUSKBN0EG29320140605 http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/06/05/us-airbnb-dinner-i...) I just saw the event they had, and while extremely awkward and painful to watch, they continually eluded to a broader concept bigger than "renting rooms."
- azharkhan 12y agoI think this was a well thought out rebranding, especially seeing as they are becoming a larger global brand, and their identity needed to reflect that as well. The site is beautiful, the new logo is simple yet unique and fits their brand well, and I personally cannot wait to use their services next year for my trip through Europe.
- deleted 12y ago[deleted]
- gkop 12y agoFrankly I did not see this coming [0], I always figured Airbnb would aim to be a universal marketplace, rather than carving out a niche in "authentic", "unique", "truly amazing experiences". Anyhow, I read "belonging" as a coded word for "community", and wonder how Airbnb thinks they are going to culture their own community... Maybe they will make a strategic acquisition? Lonely Planet, for example. Or maybe they will bleed some of their profits into a virtual currency / karma that folks can earn, trade, and apply toward accommodations? Airbnb could tweak the karma economy to maximize profits while still infusing enough karma to bootstrap their community. [0] http://blog.airbnb.com/belong-anywhere http://blog.airbnb.com/belong-anywhere
- mbreese 12y agoWell, unique and amazing experiences will probably cause them fewer legal issues for Airbnb over the long-term. As opposed to being a universal marketplace where people aren't necessarily abiding by their own leases.
- gkop 12y agoA $10 billion dollar company ought to be able to work that stuff out.
- mbreese 12y agoThey are valued at $10 billion. They don't have $10 billion. If NYC or SF decided to crackdown harder on Airbnb hosts, then that valuation would drop. However, if they can move into the slightly more predictable (and defensible) position of providing unique getaways, then they would be in a better position for when that inevitable crackdown does occur.
- gkop 12y agoAnother thing that might affect their valuation is whether or not investors believe Airbnb may grow to serve a universal market or just a niche market.
- 12y ago
- untog 12y agoFor so long, people thought Airbnb was about renting houses. But really, we’re about home. You see, a house is just a space, but a home is where you belong. I hope they didn't pay very much for this, it's nauseating.
- bellerocky 12y agoI certainly can't imagine Don Draper pitching something like this, it is pretty awful.
- antonioevans 12y agoDon Draper is a fictional character. The reason they used home is to increase auxiliary market share such as home cleaning, key exchange, food delivery, etc services.
- devindotcom 12y agoYeah, it's pretty bad. Reads like a high schooler's Livejournal.
- rhizome 12y agoThe house-home pivot is pretty pedestrian, but nothing I've seen about the rebrand tells me it was anything but expensive.
- wuliwong 12y agoNaming the logo is pretty pretentious. Though, it doesn't matter much, I have a feeling Bélo isn't going to become a household word.
- rhizome 12y agoIt doesn't have to be, it's a mascot, which in my experience means it will be an officehold word. Also, since it has a name, I'd say the smart money would be to look for it to play a role in future marketing and advertising collateral.
- hellojeanpierre 12y agoThe change is neat, giving more room to expand towards their bigger vision. But, what I don't understand is why the hell they moved the most important element in their site down to a secondary place ("the search").
- rhizome 12y agoTo increase on-page metrics as a driver of "engagement?"
- mikeash 12y agoSo it's... a new logo? Sure seems like an awful lot of fuss over a very little change.
- wnissen 12y agoYeah, I thought they were going to do something meaningful, like waiting at least a minute to forget the dates I've already entered at least a dozen times.
- mLewisLogic 12y agoNew logo, new fonts, new colors, new message. All apps and web properties skinned and released in unison.
- Nomlab 12y agoThe new logo looks like a spaceship ... they are preparing for selling trips into orbit.
- minimaxir 12y agoIf you've been following the commentary about the logo on Twitter, that is the exact opposite of what people immediately interpret as the symbol.
- deleted 12y ago[deleted]
- knowtheory 12y agoWell, this should go down in the annals of logos which should have gotten some wider impressions before launching. Since nobody else on HN has mentioned it, all of twitter thinks the new logo looks like a vagina. It's hard to unsee.
- azinman2 12y agoGlad I wasn't the only one, although for me it wasn't so specific -- it just suggested sexual.
- bellerocky 12y agoI thought the new airbnb logo looked like boobs.
- deleted 12y ago[deleted]
- deleted 12y ago[deleted]
- rhizome 12y agoSex sells, after all.
- ollerac 12y agoWhat's wrong with a logo that looks like a vagina? Apple's logo looks like an apple, which isn't really related to their business.
- eduardosasso 12y agoAre they into space technology? No joke, that was the very first thing that came to my mind when I saw the new logo.
- tripngroove 12y agoTrivia: the new logo is called the "Bélo"; the old one was constructed from the typeface "Bello" by Underware. http://www.underware.nl/fonts/bello/preface http://www.underware.nl/fonts/bello/preface
- keehun 12y agoThe coincidence is startling. Old typeface Bello by Underwear. New logo is being called a vagina and is named Bélo.
- hansy 12y agoI love the new site. I was never a fan of the old one because I felt overwhelmed with all the information on the screen. This feels cleaner, more minimalist. One gripe I have with the new site is the fixed booking form on the right side of the screen as you scroll through a listing. I find it really distracting (perhaps that's the point?). Because of the fixed form on the right, there's also a lot of wasted space in the column. I dunno, maybe I'll get used to this over time.
- deleted 12y ago[deleted]
- namidark 12y agoAirbnb: Watching you sleep!
- ElComradio 12y agoThink of how many meaningful connections you could make if you charged below market rate for lodging in high demand areas. Until now I thought airbnb was about making money for themselves and their hosts, but now I see it's about connecting the world through meaningful experiences and the money is almost not even a factor! Amazing!
- 51Cards 12y agoHow much bandwidth does one need to be able pipe down a 22.9 Meg WebM video file with every home page impression? Oi. Looks beautiful though.
- psherman 12y agoI'm not sure why so many people seem so intent on sexualizing a logo. I think that it's pretty clever to incorporate the location marker into the A.
- ssmoot 12y agoI clicked on the link and saw the "Welcome Home" message with a lady sleeping in the background. A second or two later she moved and I realized I'm watching a short video of some lady sleeping. Which felt very creepy. I just thought that was noteworthy since that's not a feeling that comes up all that often clicking on a link for a business's home page. On the new logo: I think it's surprisingly nice. The video introduction was good too. Except for a couple things: 1. The flashing font-color/background-color sequence bothered my eyes quite a bit. It's almost offensively intrusive? It seems like one of those "persistent vision" pictures/illusions. Except you don't expect it. 2. The "four things"... took a nice (if a bit cheesy) message, and really made it feel forced. It clued me into the intent that they want little Bélo stickers plastered in the corners of windows... but I feel like that sort of thing happens organically, or not. If you distribute free stickers to owners, with that suggestion on the back of the peel-away, I bet it's as effective. If you don't distribute them, then the video isn't going to make it happen anyways. Just my 2c.
- zheshishei 12y ago>I clicked on the link and saw the "Welcome Home" message with a lady sleeping in the background. A second or two later she moved and I realized I'm watching a short video of some lady sleeping. Which felt very creepy. could not reproduce.
- jordanthoms 12y agoIt seems to cycle through different videos, I think this is the one they are talking about: https://a0.muscache.com/airbnb/static/Paris-P1-0.webm https://a0.muscache.com/airbnb/static/Paris-P1-0.webm
- wgoodwin 12y agoYeah, how has this not generated more comments? I felt like an absolute stalker as soon as that woman moved, and the subsequent images have made it only worse. Bizarre is an understatement.
- nicarus1984 12y agoThe ones with the people walking around outside or working at the cafe are fine, but yes that sleeping woman one makes it seem very creepy. Poor choice by the design team.
- mikeleeorg 12y agoI haven't used AirBnB extensively and don't really remember the old UI, but my immediate thought is this new UI will probably appeal to their target audiences. It looks like it's designed to convey an emotion - that giddy feeling when you're traveling and seeing something new, coupled with having a homey experience from a local. It's got great big photos, that big hero video, and is emphasizing both people and landscapes pretty well. Overall, I get the sense that the brand is growing up and expanding from a sub-culture to a larger market of travelers now. And they've managed to look better than an Expedia or Travelocity. With that said - darn it, now I can't get the "private parts" comparison out of my head now. (Conspiracy theorist note: Unless, that's what they wanted to put into your head... Ooo...)
- kevinwang 12y agoThe white text in the main headers sometimes blends in with the video background.
- colmvp 12y agoLogo similarity: https://www.automationanywhere.com/ https://www.automationanywhere.com/ They've had this re-design at least since March (based on their Facebook page).
- gamegoblin 12y agoThat is nearly identical. Would anyone with legal experience like to chime in about trademarks or something? I don't have much knowledge of it.
- anigbrowl 12y agoNot a lawyer, but I do have a long-standing interest in trademark law and know a good deal about it. Courts look at the potential for confusion, which is often avoided if the two companies are in completely different markets, eg Apple Computer complaining about a store that specializes in apple pie and uses the word 'apple' in their business name. Trademark owners essentially have to make a showing of defending their mark or risk being accused of abandonment by someone else who wants to appropriate it, so typically they write a huffy letter, the small business with a vaguely-similar mark protests, and a court or national trademark arbitrator says 'there there, your businesses are totally different and it's OK to have slightly similar names because consumers will be able to tell them apart.' However it's quite unusual to see two logos that are virtually identical as in this case, and arguably AirBNB is in the business of automating short term lets so there's a possibility of confusion with this firm that offers automation services. The automation firm might have a legitimate complaint for having been using their logo first, but it also depends on which company filed the mark with the USPTO first (which I haven't checked). I'd guess a likely outcome is that AirBnB pays the automation firm some cash to avoid a dispute.
- thousandx 12y agoLooks like Airbnb and Automation Anywhere are already working together on this. http://venturebeat.com/2014/07/16/airbnbs-new-logo-looks-a-lot-this-other-companys-logo/ http://venturebeat.com/2014/07/16/airbnbs-new-logo-looks-a-l...
- ereckers 12y agoThe front page looks like a designer/agency portfolio site and not like the tool/application that it really is. It looks like the actual result pages haven't changed much, so that's a good thing. I'm in the middle of redesigning my own website this week and I've seen plenty of this stuff. Too much really.
- soneca 12y agofirst impression of logo: it nauseates me. It makes me uneasy. I don't know why, it looks like too random to me, to doodled. And their initiative to people draw it by themselves make this even worse. I ain't no designer, or any kind of expert, but I keep looking at it and it confounds my eyes. Terribly.
- adamesque 12y agoI'm not sure I've ever met an opinion on a logo, name, or anything creative less than a month old that was worth a damn. When faced with something new, the tendency is to focus on the superficial, the easy joke, and it's too easy to let other opinions steer your own; they're momentarily on equal footing, you see. But the work will last longer than this moment. Your own opinion will evolve. The crowd will move on to the next easy joke and hip-shot reaction. That's why I like to avoid making more than cautious, small statements until I've had a while to reflect. This work looks nice to me. There's potential for great marketing in an individually customizable — but still distinctive (or distinguishable) — logomark. Most of this commentary feels like the person in the code review who hasn't taken the time to digest the intent of the code, so they comment on formatting. Whitespace. Trees. Not the forest.
- bellerocky 12y agoYou are correct because first impressions don't matter.
- personjerry 12y agoI can't tell if this is sarcasm, but if it is, well keep in mind that biting sarcasm isn't really constructive discussion. If it's not, I apologize for misunderstanding. You may want to explain your thoughts a little more next time.
- OrwellianChild 12y agoThis is on-point for most logo designs, if not all. You can only really see the bad ones in retrospect (the London 2012 Olympics logo comes to mind [1]). That said, I think the motion-picture used as the background to the call to action is going to be very short-lived on basic UI principles. It's distracting, low-contrast, and pulls people away from the text, button, etc. I'm sure A/B testing will resolve the issue pretty quickly, but it's very trendy right now - Paypal is doing it too. [2] [1] http://www.adweek.com/adfreak/london-2012-olympic-logo-was-it-really-so-bad-after-all-142610 http://www.adweek.com/adfreak/london-2012-olympic-logo-was-i... [2] https://www.paypal.com/ https://www.paypal.com/
- danecjensen 12y agoThis feels faster. Is it?
- wuliwong 12y agoI like a lot of the design but some of those videos are super creepy. Just felt like "AirBNB, we watch you while you sleep." :)
- cnaut 12y agoThe ethos of the redesign is more important than the redesign itself. The new logo is more than airbnb's take on the hobo code. It is an attempt to move beyond being a commodity and into a brand people can aspire to.
- plusbryan 12y agoI absolutely love the new branding & fluid logo. This is one of those gigantic branding leaps that makes everything that came before look instantly outdated. Nice work.
- DigitalSea 12y agoI think this is a step in the right direction for Airbnb. It has more warmth and personality, feels more accessible and less like a website created in 2005 (the existing button styles always irked me). A minor nitpick I have with the design is that video background header, on my desktop Mac with a screen resolution of 2560 x 1440 viewing in Chrome at maximum width and height the scaling bugs up and the heads of everyone are being cut off. As I drag the sides of my browser in, the heads come into view and looks much better. It looks a little strange with the cut off heads, perhaps centring the video would be the most ideal fix. The video content seems a little strange as well (especially the one of the woman sleeping). I am loving that explore view and the subsequent single listing pages with the sticky quick book form. Definitely leaps and bounds better over the existing site. I don't know how I feel about that logo though. I love the story behind its creation, I love the versatility of it as a brand mark, but it kind of looks like a vagina/rocket ship. Hate to be crude, but once you see it, there is no unseeing it. Based on Tweets I've seen about it, I am not alone in thinking that. Another thing that surprised me is the fact the site is only responsive to an extent. If you shrink your browser down small to that of an iPad mini, it kind of breaks. Surprised the site doesn't work at all resolutions considering the great teams they'd have to make it happen.
- brooklynjam 12y agoBootstrap, I guess it just over for now. What's the next look and feel? Things I ponder, late nights. :-)
- gtirloni 12y agoStar Trek? A stylized male genitalia?
- dasc 12y agoNot bad, but its WAY too over designed. The actual functional part on the front page is like a black bar that is 10% of the page. The start your adventure part is nice, but serves little functionality to me. Yes its cool to see all these awesome places, but I don't think I'll be going to Berlin anytime soon. The search page looks good still, just not a fan of the front page. Compared to Kayak which makes it super obvious where to start, and the "Start Your Adventure" equivalent is top cities people travel to. That section should be a supplement not a main feature.
- kewball 12y agoI don't really care about the new logo. But I do wish that the "new airbnb" allowed me to sort the listings by price. This is standard practice on any other site I can think of. Sure I can set a price range but this still forces me to have to think. I like the fact that when I sort results I know that as I continue scrolling the price is going to increase. That way when I find a place I am happy with I know that there is not going to be a place further on which is better value. Please let me know if I am just being stupid and have not figured out how to sort the results.