The Spector, A Handy Device That Turns Fonts and Colors From the Written Page Into Interactive Data

Frustrated with the lack of digital tools available for her craft of designing for print, Royal College of Art MFA student and designer Fiona O’Leary took matters into her own hands and created the Spector to solve that problem. The Spector is a handheld, bluetooth-enabled device that captures fonts, typefaces and colors from the written page or other inanimate objects, transforming the information into a digital form that can be manipulated and used for design purposes.

Designing for print on screen is tricky and always requires clarity. There is very little sense of the scale of typography and colours often look different. This results in multiple printouts to test the different font sizes and colours. Spector is a tool that helps bridge the divide of designing on digital screen and the finalised print. It is a hand-held device allowing various print materials to become interactive. If designing for print, it is best to start with print.

photos via Fiona O’Leary

via It’s Nice That