The guy was sitting in a Dean Street bar soaking up the admiring
glances from the early evening Soho crowd - he was young, handsome and
alone.
I looked and suddenly felt an unexpected dart of excitement.
As I sat next to him he must have picked up my mood like fingertips
attracting the crackle of static electricity. He knew what I wanted and
I knew he could read me as easily as a checkout girl scanning a barcode.
There was just one thing on my mind: the IXUS camera slung casually
round his neck.
Its not often that a brand inspires the old, child-like emotion of ’I
must have’, but the IXUS is one of those rare animals. To touch it is to
want to use it. The love affair really begins when you press a button
and the camera has a little erection; the neat zoom lens moves into
position with an understated buzz. Hold it in the palm of your hand and
it practically glows with sex appeal. It has the precious quality of a
piece of exquisite jewellery, the precision of a Swiss watch and the
cool image of the miniature Erickson mobile phone. The metallic finish
gives it just enough weight to convey value, but it still feels light
enough to wear round your neck or carry on your wrist.
It’s an old truism that keeping a dog helps you make friends. But why
have the inconvenience of keeping an animal on a lead when you can have
an IXUS on a strap? Like the guy in the bar, I have not been able to
take it around with me without people stopping me and asking to see
it.
Canon turned 60 last year and, to celebrate, it chose to give IXUS the
ultimate accolade by making a special limited-edition, gold-plated
version.
I’m not sure if it would make you more successful at making new friends,
but it certainly means that IXUS is on the shortlist for ’design icon’.
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