The 76° trick Apple uses to make you touch the laptop (and 5 European products) #86

Welcome back to this week’s latest installment of what’s hot in brands and products.

I came across a tiny Apple Store detail this week that’s… annoyingly smart.

Apparently, the screens of all laptops in Apple Stores are set to an angle of exactly 76 degrees.

Not 75. Not 80.

76.

It’s just awkward enough that your brain goes: “wait, that’s not right.”
So you tilt the screen back a little… and without noticing it, you’ve taken the first step: you’re touching the product. You’re already interacting. No pushy salesperson. No “TRY ME” sticker. Just a quiet nudge that turns you from passerby into participant.

That’s basically the energy of this week’s picks too: objects that don’t shout, but still pull you in once you get close.

If you’re new around here: Every week, I share 5 of the coolest products from Europe I’ve discovered in the past 7 days.

I scout, you explore. Let’s get to it!

With love 🌞
Jakob

P.S.: Missed the last edition? The 2026 Linen Diary by Mark+Fold was the most-clicked product.

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If your desk chair currently looks like it came free with a printer in 2009: this is your redemption arc. Audo Copenhagen’s Co Task Chair is designed by Norm Architects & Els van Hoorebeeck and does the whole “minimal, but actually comfortable” thing—armrests, flex-tilt, height adjust, proper casters.

If I had an extra room for a home office, this would be my chair.

A planter that looks like it ate a cartoon marshmallow and then got a glossy top coat. PIERRE is part of Home Studyo’s Blow Up Collection, made in ceramic/earthenware, produced in Portugal, and comes in colors with names that sound like gelato orders (Yolk, Bubblegum, Carrot…).

It’s “food approved” too—so technically it can hold snacks if you don’t have a green thumb—just saiyng…

Mass-produced green glass bottles… but make them one-of-one. Dutch designer Klaas Kuiken re-blows ordinary bottles into new shapes—each one ends up slightly different, like the glass is improvising (and winning). The broader Bottle Collection spans 17 models.

Check it out in Klaas’ shop.

Mono doing what Mono does: quietly iconic, a bit nerdy, and timeless. This set (spoon, fork, knife, tea spoon) is teak wood + matt brushed stainless steel, designed by Peter Raacke and originally published in 1960. Mid-century, but still looks sharper than most 2026 flatware.

Take a look.

Copenhagen’s STAMEN made a trimmer Dieter Rams would’ve nodded at: clean, quiet, and nothing shouting for attention. Oh and the tiny wheel let’s you adjust the length seamlessly which I like.
If my current trimmer dies, I’d put this one on the shortlist. What I’d need to clarify before though: if the blades are smooth enough for the neck without snagging. (That “stuck” moment is… memorable. Ouch.)

Meet your next bathroom design object

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