Unfold to zoom: map² is a beautiful map that lets you zoom in to a more detailed view without going digital. Help make one of New York!
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Unfold to zoom: map² is a beautiful map that lets you zoom in to a more detailed view without going digital. Help make one of New York!
About this project
UPDATE: 196 comments, 73 suggestions for new cities, 3 new rewards, 1 stretch goal... Find out more
Even if your city is not available yet, please back the project.
If 25% of the viewers of this project donated $10, the project would be fully funded. Today!
Buzz
WIRED - "Ingenious Zoomable Paper Map"
CORE77 - "Fantastic design for a low-tech, zoomable paper map - Map², "The zoomable map on paper", uses nothing but folding and carefully-considered printing to achieve its killer app."
FASTCOMPANY - "Who needs smartphone apps when you've got a lot of ingenuity and some paper? ... Amazing interaction design needn't be complex. It doesn't even need to be high-tech. And in retrospect, it's probably stunningly obvious - Which is the mark of any great design."
BOINGBOING - "Map² is a clever London streetmap: each of its quadrants unfolds to show a zoomed-in view of that region, then refolds again quickly and easily."
COOLTHINGS - "Map² Makes The Paper Map Zoomable - Map² is looking to cut into our over-reliance on electronic maps a little by adding at least one level of zoom to the classic paper map. ...With its zoomable mechanism, it's quite possibly the coolest map I've ever seen."
GIZMODO - "This Map Zooms In As You Unfold It - The Map², a "zoomable map on paper", is a clever invention that packs more detailed maps underneath its folds."
UBERGIZMO - "Zoom Into Paper Maps The Old Fashioned Way - We're all so used to multi-touch zooming nowadays, it really does make you feel intrigued when you can get hold of a traditional paper map that you can zoom in."
NERDAPPROVED - "Map²: The World's Most High Tech Paper Map - I think my days of paper maps are gone forever, but if I had to use one, the Map² would be my first choice..."
GRINDIST - "Unfold to zoom: This small, paper map of London is a design marvel, with a zoom-in capability that feels decidedly new school."
map²
map² is a simple and beautiful paper map with a twist - you can zoom in and out. With its patented folding technique, map² allows you to unfold sections of the map to reveal an enlarged view of that same area with more detail.
- map² allows you to quickly find what you need without wrestling with a king-size map.
- map² removes the need to unfold unnecessary parts or the entire map.
- map² lets you zoom into greater detail.
- map² provides you with an enormous amount of detail - indeed four maps in one - while still being pocket-sized.
map² is the map that combines interactivity with the beautiful and tactile experience of paper. It pairs functionality with design. It is the map about more than just finding your way from A to B. It is about exploring and browsing a city. It doesn't pinpoint your location but instead allows you to get a mental picture of the place you are in and the place you are going. All in a surprisingly simple way.
About the project
I originally released map² as a zoomable map of the city of London. It caused a lot of interest and enthusiastic responses and many people have asked for additional cities.
Reacting to the requests, I decided to adopt the concept for a map² city series. I designed a new version of the zoomable map of London as well as a zoomable map of Berlin to start off the new city series. New York is in preparation and of course other cities are to follow quickly.
A great amount of love, energy and attention to detail went into the maps as well as hundreds of hours of design work. Various tests with several printing companies were required to establish and then further improve the production process. Although one might think it is just a folded sheet of paper, the required printing and finishing process is very complex and everything needs to be extremely accurate.
I am now at a stage where I am ready to release a series of maps and to get them into the shops, but I need your help to make it all happen and to speed up the process to get new cool cities out quickly.
Funding
Your support will help me finish the design of the zoomable map of New York (the next city in line), manufacture New York as well as London and Berlin in large volume, and optimize and speed up the design process for new cities. Manufacturing the maps in high quality requires a complex printing and finishing process. Also, all the maps get hand-folded.
As I can't produce all of the cities that have been requested at the same time, I would like you to tell me which city should be next.
Other requested cities:
- Paris
- San Francisco
- Barcelona
- Tokyo
- Los Angeles
- Milan
- Sydney
- Amsterdam
- Stockholm
- Venice
- Tel Aviv
- Sao Paulo
- Shanghai
- Copenhagen
- Bangkok
- Rome
- Moscow
- Seoul
Is there another city you would like to get added to the list? Let me know!
Gallery
Product Specs
- Dimensions - 4" x 4" | 10 x 10 cm (folded)
- Material - matt paper
- Zoomable city map
- 4 Maps in 1
- 2 Street maps
- 1 Overview map of the city
- 1 Public transport map
- Hand folded
- PVC sleeve
- Patented folding
Thank you!
For more information please send an e-mail to info@thezoomablemap.com.
Risks and challenges
The biggest challenge will be to reach the funds needed. The printing and production process has been successfully tried and tested and I am confident that the maps will be produced and finished to the highest of standards.
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Funding period
- (30 days)