Sounds like a swarming disaster to me...

[xwb]

http://www.fastcodesign.com/1665353...-have-a-swank-gadget-for-keeping-bees-at-home

 

[Poly Hive]

For goodness sake who thinks up rubbish like this?

PH

 

[TOBY-3652]

People that make loads of money

 

[victor meldrew]

For goodness sake who thinks up rubbish like this?

PH

Who piled the artificial combs in there I wonder?
VM

 

[Andy Duff]

Idiots and there money are easily parted. That's the number one rule of how to become rich.

Now that product placement is allowed on TV no doubt we will be seeing one on Eastbenders.

 

[user 6228]

from the bees point of view:


is the entrance the right size (possibly)
is it warm (definitely)
is it 40 litres (looks it)
is the entrance 5m above the ground (first floor and above tes)
is the entrance at the bottom... (yes)

they'd be up for it...
after seeing the colony between the shutter and the window I dont doubt the bees would be ok....

but the house occupants are in for a bit of a shock when 50+ bees get released into the house when its opened for the first time.

 

[Swarm]

Or Fido knocks it over, releasing 50,000.

 

[bobster]

Hmm, some people have too much time on their hands methinks.

Philips urban beehive

I'll be more impressed when I see bees in it and honey harvested. Though the flower pot at the bottom is a nice touch.

Bobster

 

[Andy Duff]

I do like the woman's bee-keeping suit.
I suppose it would work if it was only filled with house bees.

 

[jakethedog]

i can't believe that any company would allow such a product to market. got to be just about the most irresponsible idea i've seen in years, infact i'm struggling to think of anything comparable.

as xwb stated, swarm disaster waiting to happen, and that's probably the least of the problems instore for the gullible that buy it. as for being 40ltrs, so what if it is? might be fine size for a swarm to seek out but lets remember that they will actually be looking for an optimum size which in itself will create a further swarming trigger when fully occupied....

 

[oliver90owner]

jakethedog,

being 40ltrs, so what if it is? might be fine size for a swarm to seek out

You are quite right. Appears that some don't even consider that bees normally need extra space to store honey. 40l might keep the bees, without swarming, until perhaps the beginning of April!

RAB

 

[JamezF]

I get the impression it has been designed by someone who has never kept bees nor read any beekeeping books. Actually, it looks like it was created by a designer who has had a beehive described to him and who will no doubt be disappointed when the bees don't want to use it the way it is intended.

I notice that on the Philips page, the "hive" label just points to the orange "cone" section bit at the bottom. They're surely not expecting all the bees to live in there and just come out and pop a bit of honey in the comb for the owner every now and then?

James

 

[JamezF]

Oh dear. The orange flyer linked on the left of the Philips page has extracts from a discussion with a beekeeper about the concept. They showed him the idea and asked what he thought. His response is along the lines of "It's a bit like an observation hive. It's not suitable for large scale honey production. It's not sustainable due to the small number of bees."

The designer's response? "So it looks like the concept could work."

James

 

[jakethedog]

The designer's response? "So it looks like the concept could work."

Classic! Another example of someone with an idea but lacking the ability to hear what others are saying.

 

[CB008]

Should look really great when all of that cool glass is coverd with propolis and random bits of comb. Presumably when opened the bees know the way through the various rooms in the house, out of the door and round the back to their flower pot.

 

[Chris B]

I like the little cord at the bottom for releasing smoke. Could that can be adapted to release petrol vapours when they get AFB (not that you'd know because I can't see how you get those "frames" out)?

I also wonder why they got an Amanda Knox lookalike for the promo photo in the first link.

And did nobody tell them about bee space, vertical comb and ventilation?
The word "concept" appear quite a lot. I think that just about says it all. It's a perfect home for those types of bees that live in the fertile imaginations of arty designers.

 

[Luminos]

Not much to forage from that pot plant

 

[match]

Review?

I saw this last night, and was so annoyed by it that I wrote a long post about all the things I think are wrong with it here:

http://www.woodwose.net/thatremindsme/2011/11/philips-microbial-home-beehive/

OK, so for some of them I might be making assumptions that the designers have thought around, but I don't think I'm too far off the mark!

Any comments, changes, extra suggestions appreciated! I might just send it to Philips for them to have a read

 

[Travelator]

Relax, guys - I'm pretty certain this isn't a genuine product!

It looks like an exercise by some "product designers" to show off their talents in the hope that someone will hire them to design an actual real life product. You could argue that they're not helping themselves very much because it's obvious they didn't do enough homework. On the other hand, if it was generally workable it might be a real product and not just a "concept"

Maybe they should have started their research on here like that design student from Loughborough...

 

[jakethedog]

Maybe they should have started their research on here like that design student from Loughborough...

yeah, my oppinion of that design brief wasn't very high either!