To keep it on record, and just in case you haven't heard about it and wish to know the long and short of it, here you are:The Good Design Award of Japan is one of the world's three prestigious industrial design awards, the other two being Germany's IF and Red Dot Award. GRDII won the highest Gold Award while GX200, R8 and G600 won the Good Design Award. There are a total of 29 photographic tools given the award for 2008, among which four are Ricoh's. 
That was really an achievement. Well done, Ricoh's designers. Next time, when you carry around your Ricoh camera, there is another feature to boost about: the design. (Yes, unrelated to photography. This is something on top of photography)
In parallel, GX200 and R8 have won a GQ Select Design Award given to 10 digital items by a GQ Magazine in Taiwan.
GRDII: Gold Good Design Award
(Among the Best 15 selected from 3,023 entries)
Designer's Comment:
We want the GR series, which has earned a broad base of supporters since launch, to remain an effective tool for expressive photographers. For this reason, we think it's important that each generation retain the aspects that people have grown familiar with while incorporating new features and refinements in the details, for easier and more enjoyable shooting, so that we can offer an increasingly polished instrument. Avoiding unfounded updates, ensuring key elements remain intact, and taking a hard look at the aspects to refine are elements in an orthodox approach to refining products, and they are essential for successful product development.
Jury's verdict:
That was really an achievement. Well done, Ricoh's designers. Next time, when you carry around your Ricoh camera, there is another feature to boost about: the design. (Yes, unrelated to photography. This is something on top of photography)
In parallel, GX200 and R8 have won a GQ Select Design Award given to 10 digital items by a GQ Magazine in Taiwan.
GRDII: Gold Good Design Award
(Among the Best 15 selected from 3,023 entries)
Designer's Comment:
We want the GR series, which has earned a broad base of supporters since launch, to remain an effective tool for expressive photographers. For this reason, we think it's important that each generation retain the aspects that people have grown familiar with while incorporating new features and refinements in the details, for easier and more enjoyable shooting, so that we can offer an increasingly polished instrument. Avoiding unfounded updates, ensuring key elements remain intact, and taking a hard look at the aspects to refine are elements in an orthodox approach to refining products, and they are essential for successful product development.
Jury's verdict:
In the digital camera market, where new products appear in rapid section, this series has always aimed for long-lived design with the high-end amateur users in mind. Ricoh doesn't want its cameras to become mere commodities. I appreciate Ricoh's effort to lengthen the life of their products from an industrial designing standpoint.
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