Chapter 03
The decision trail
The project comes down to 25 steps, all noted on the day in a design journal. Each step has its decisions, their reasons and the options set aside. Choose a step to see them.
56 decisions
From the starting point to today
All these decisions date from 9 November 2026: the timeline follows the order of the journal, not dates. The decisions are reproduced as they were written (in French); some figures have been corrected since (05.5). Sources: 00-journal-de-conception/journal.md and decisions.md. The full register is in the appendices.
What I take from it
Six principles that held from start to finish
- 1
Start from real constraints, not from a technology
A corner of a room, a child's bedroom, four weeks: this frame guided every choice.
- 2
Check every shape by calculation before showing it
The facet was ruled out because the electronics did not fit inside it.
- 3
Go back to the brand's identity
The website's diamond rather than a technical compromise.
- 4
Put a number on image quality
In pixels on a face: this is what justified the Raspberry Pi 5.
- 5
Make trust a design criterion
A blended lens, a shutter, a visible indicator light, and the truth about what goes to the cloud.
- 6
Honesty as a safeguard
Today, the analysis happens in the cloud; AI inside the device remains the goal.
Source: design journal, “Ce qu'on retient pour raconter l'histoire” (what to keep when telling the story) (9 Nov 2026).