“It’s hard to imaging Coke without the classic red label and white, old-time Coca-Cola script that goes back more than a century, or Apple without, well, its apple icon that has a small piece cut out,” Rex Crum reports for MarketWatch.
“Then there is Microsoft, the world’s largest software company,” Crum reports. “Microsoft hasn’t always been known for being the most innovative tech giant, but it is seeking to change that with a new slate of products and, as of Thursday, a new logo for the first time since Ronald Reagan was president.”
Crum reports, “The new logo is the fifth one in Microsoft’s 37-year history, but the first new logo since 1987.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: They need a lot more than a new logo.
The Titanic needed new racing stripes too.
Last one was a distorted flag. Now these squares. Both means Windows. But windows analogy is gone (see iOS), so makes no sense, maybe tiles… but still the same stupid colors as Google. Lame as usual.
Wow… if you think those colors are the same as google’s well…
I guess it’s just their official recognition of what we always knew:
Microsoft = Windows.
The new logo reminds me of Europe: hold on to past glories, reject the future. They have bet their entire future on office bothered is nothing in the logo that remotely evokes innovation, the future, seduction (Eve’s bite of the apple gave us sex, yea, Eve!) technology, connection, mobile, sexy curves, NOTHING, The lack of imagination in t logo states the obvious: we are of, by and for the mediocre. even the name of the company is has-been.
Of course, Microsoft must have gone for this explanation – even though the link below refers to Google choosing those colors…
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_the_explanation_for_the_Google_logo_colors
“…the explanation might be that colors are assigned to letters according to whether their positions represent a prime number or don’t.
Thus letters number 1, 2, 3 and 5 (all of them prime numbers) have a distinctive or “prime” color assigned: blue, red, yellow and green. Letters number 4 and 6 (not prime numbers) repeat colors -no longer “prime colors”- in the same order that such colors were assigned in the first time: blue and then red.
If the sequence were to continue with new letters, the next letter, number 7, should have a new or “prime color” since 7 is prime; letters number 8, 9 and 10 should repeat colors in the preestablished order: yellow, green and the same as 7’s; letter number 11, also a prime number, should have another new color, and so forth.
Both of the above answers are plausible. Most people think there are three primaries (the additive primaries are red, green and blue; the subtractive primaries are cyan, magenta and yellow; and the artists’ primaries are red, yellow and blue). However, there is no reason to pick out red, green, yellow and blue on this basis. However, there are four psychological primaries associated with the unique hues: red, yellow, green and blue. These psychological hues have far more visual/psychologal importance than the three primaries of any colour mixing system. The correct answer is therefore that the four colours have been chosen as the four psychological primaries.”
I think copying the “Simon”tm makes more sense.
So who is Microsoft trying to “psych out” by using those colors?
Their shareholders. This new logo is designed to keep them off Ballmer’s back. The logo was made on a Mac mini.
It must have taken dozens upon dozens of highly paid designers to come up with four color squares. Wow!
A company with no taste trumpeting yet another makeover/boring iteration of their thoroughly corporate logo.
To celebrate this non-event, various MS VPs are virtually fellating various senior VPs via email right now.
“It’s good enough.”
Beautifully done with MS Paint I’m sure (not that there’s anything wrong with that)!
Has committee written all over it. Can’t imagine trying to drag a decent design through the bureaucratic sludge at MS. I’d say a student could do better and they did… http://www.fastcodesign.com/1670245/a-students-smart-microsoft-rebranding-is-better-than-the-real-thing#1
1. who gaf
2. is that all?
why spend all that energy/time/money on revamping an ugly logo, nearly as stupidly designed as the London Olympics logo, instead of
a. spending it on more useful stuff i.e. education
b. a brain transplant for most staff
3. why bother?
MSFT has failed more than achieved over 3 decades, only surviving thanks to license deals…
if the Microsoftian nerds wish to veni, vidi, vici,
they better cum, leave, self-destruct & restart!
I guess they think it’s hip to be square?
I’m not sure why all the negativity on this logo update. I am in no way a Windows fan, have been Mac since ’99 and own just about every iDevice produced. However, as a graphic designer, this design is clean, simple, refined and ties in with the Windows 8 and Metro tile look unifying their brand. Less is more (think Apple specifically) and this logo update portrays that. I for one, like this new look.
What Steve Jobs said Decades ago, still holds true today.
“They just have no Taste, they have Absolutely no taste” and this Logo Proves it all.
Not Classy, Not well Defined, Not Unique or Creative & Does not Stand out.
(May Monkey Boy Remain @ the Helm 4 as long as it Takes)
Leave it to MS to even mess up the video of their new logo, notice that one square has no meaning at all. That must be Ballmers secret hidey hole.
But, you, know, at least they are not Shamdong or Gurgle.
What a snoozefest, yawn
It’s just the bootcamp logo rotated 45°.
I’ve been down the logo definition path a few times. A logo that includes the name is weak, though sometimes required for a new company with an unrecognized name. I fear that the four squares are not distinctive enough to stand on their own. Microsoft appears to be very confused right now about their future.
Their managers realized that Microsoft is sort of a cult, and its followers are blind believers. Because of this they decided the logo better look like a church Logo (with a cross).
If I have had that exact pattern in my bathroom wall’s tiles for over 5 years, may I sue Microsoft?
For being forced to retile? Yes.
What’s that saying about polishing a turd? X_O
a new logo for the first time since Ronald Reagan was president
What exactly is new here, apart from a change in font? What we actually see in this ‘new’ logo is the retrograde ugly window graphic that we all hated back from the Windows 3.1 days. Clearly this is another sign of company decay.
Old joke:
New joke:
http://www.nerfnow.com/comic/image/825
Might have been more accurate to put it on the “green screen”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Windows_NT_3.1_logo.svg
Still broken…
As a graphic design pro of 32 years experience, I have to say the new MS logo is absolutely, positively and completely…
underwhelming.
It gave me a sense of deja vu when I saw it… probably because it looks like something that might have appeared on their very first software packages.