Toast, a cloud-based restaurant management company, had recently assembled an internal design team and needed help to become a more design-oriented organization.

That’s where we stepped in. Usually software and engineering-led, while outsourcing industrial design, the organization recognized the need to better fulfill customer needs. We’ve been continuously working with Toast to help build out their next generation of hardware.

Toast Go 3

—

Toast’s flagship device is a mobile point-of-sale system called the Go. Ready to enter its third generation, the Go 3 was our first project. The goal was to elevate a product that was beloved by customers for its portability, but bemoaned for looking like a black, plastic computer. To that end, we consistently worked under the mantra of “warm, approachable tech”, i.e. something that would fit into the hospitality environment of a restaurant while still instilling confidence in the consumer that the technology was cutting edge.

Toast wanted to upgrade their Go 2 device, which with black plastic, began to feel dated and cheap, like a 2000s PC. “It feels like a Dell computer” they said. Instead, they wanted to transition into “warm tech”, something which felt at home in a cozy environment like a restaurant, but still inspiring confidence that it was a next generation device. To do so, we worked on softening edges, adding gentle radii, using a grey color palette, and upgrading materials to make a more premium feeling device.

“The Toast Go 2 feels like a Dell computer.”

-Toast Project Manager

Toast Go 2

Toast Go 3

One key element is the “Toast Orange” color, which carries across all future Toast devices.

The overall profile of the Toast Go 3 was intended to look friendly and inviting.

The Case

—

In addition to the device, we worked on a silicone case, which offered three benefits: protect the device from drops (common in a restaurant environment), enhance grip, and provide color options other than grey.

Charging Dock

—

We also worked extensively on the devices charging dock, with the unique problem of having to accomodate the devices both with and without the protective case installed.

Early Concepts

—