This week on Dezeen: Apple's new iPhone came under fire this week, while MIT researchers proposed a system for driverless cars that could spell the end for traffic lights.
Apple was accused of running out of ideas by Dezeen readers after the tech giant unveiled its iPhone SE – a model that looks almost identical to the company's older 5s handset.
Design critic Alice Rawsthorn also joined the chorus of criticism aimed at Apple, describing the company's watch design as "a three-dimensional exercise in skeuomorphia".
In other tech news, the researchers at MIT showcased a conceptual traffic system that would allow autonomous vehicles to whizz through intersections without colliding – making the traffic light redundant.
Illustrators rushed to respond to the terrorist attacks in Brussels by posting their images to social media, sparking a debate about whether this type of reaction was appropriate.
Rob Alderson joined the discussion, explaining how illustrations have become part of our "post-terror grammar" in his Opinion column.
Office design expert Jeremy Myerson attacked the Google-inspired fad for slides and ping-pong tables in workspaces, while hotelier and real-estate developer Ian Schrager said micro apartments could help cities retain their diversity.
New Zealand residents rejected the crowd-sourced design proposed as an alternative to the nation's existing flag and British designer Sebastian Wrong launched a new lighting company.
French architect Jean Paul Viguier proposed a trio of timber-framed towers – among the tallest of their kind in the world – for Bordeaux and Amanda Levete was selected to remodel Paris' Galeries Lafayette department store.
The winning bridge design for a Cornish castle associated with legendary King Arthur was selected and Seattle firm Olson Kundig Architects won first place in a competition to create an architectural fairytale.
Popular stories this week on Dezeen included a micro studio built as a retreat in a bustling Brooklyn neighbourhood, Zaha Hadid's jewellery collection for Danish design house Georg Jensen and a wedge-shaped house in Belgium.
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