What small items actually end up in your console? Looking for real-world examples.

[Niftly3d]

I’ve been getting a lot of feedback lately about the small stuff that gets lost in the console — things like sanitizer, lip balm, chapstick, makeup items, gum packs, cables, key cards, etc. It seems like everyone uses that space a little differently.

I’m trying to get a better sense of the real items people actually keep in there day-to-day so I can keep refining compartment sizing and layout in a useful direction.

If you’re willing, could you share:

1. The types of items you store in the console
2. And (optionally) a quick photo of your console “as-is”

Seeing real use cases helps a ton — much more than designing around theoretical dimensions.

Appreciate any examples or snapshots you’re open to sharing. It’ll really help me dial in some small improvements I’m working on.

– Matt (Niftly3D)

Sponsored

 

[beatle]

5 hour energy, microfiber towel, mini spray bottle of Windex, SSD for gear guard, registration, insurance card, manual. I will probably start keeping my shooting glasses in here as well since they double as prescription night driving glasses.

I printed one of these for keeping small items at the top, and one of these to divide the console at the bottom. I keep the SSD in the bottom most cavity and the microfiber on top. It's not ideal, but it's better than just having the giant cavity since I have no large items to store.

 

[SwampNut]

It's probably worse than a woman's purse. But with this configurable organizer and 30 minutes of OCD adjustment before installing it, I can find things without really looking. There's a lot; beard brush and comb, beard oil, keys, hand lotion, glasses cleaners, USB adapters, extra USB drive, and much much more. And more in the bottom area, organized with one of the cross style separators.

 

[Niftly3d]

This is really helpful - thanks for sharing.

It seems like the deep part of the console you both use to store things that are a little bigger or that they don’t use as often, and the upper part for the items you want to grab quickly—sunglasses, ChapStick, a work badge, makeup, etc.

Our current upper tray was designed to be a clean, general-purpose catch-all, we were thinking about making a few other versions for quick-access items that have intentionally shaped spaces.

The challenge is that everyone’s day-to-day items are so different. If you customize the tray for one person, it doesn’t fit the needs of the next. So we’ve been debating a few directions:

• Custom-built trays designed for specific item layouts
• Adjustable trays that offer flexibility, but don’t give anything a perfect “home”
• Or possibly moving some of this functionality out of the console entirely and down toward the floorboard area—but that starts feeling too far away, too open, and not as aesthetically pleasing.

One idea is to create 2–5 custom-built tray options that cover the most common item setups. The other approach is allowing people to fully customize their own tray, which would take longer to design and produce—but would fit their items perfectly. Obviously those could be a bit more expensive due to the extra work involved.

It seems like people might prefer purpose-built trays designed around their specific mix of items?

So the question is: should we consider building custom trays for people?

 

[beatle]

If you're handy, you don't need condoms!

 

[Mr. Ham]

This is the way! Best part about these trays is the 3 tiers of storage / access.

It's probably worse than a woman's purse. But with this configurable organizer and 30 minutes of OCD adjustment before installing it, I can find things without really looking. There's a lot; beard brush and comb, beard oil, keys, hand lotion, glasses cleaners, USB adapters, extra USB drive, and much much more. And more in the bottom area, organized with one of the cross style separators.

 

[SwampNut]

No insult to the originator of this design, but perhaps a pro printing company could build upon the modularity concept. It's quite good, but also I had challenges printing it and then assembling it without breaking things. And I'm quite used to making things, with a very full shop. I can imagine the average consumer would hate how that had to go together.

"Custom" and "not ridiculously expensive" are the constant battle of creating goods like this. There's a reason places like Sam's and Costco force vendors to have one single SKU for a thing, with all the options, instead of the layered ten SKU approach at many stores.

 

[Niftly3d]

I would be happy to give it a shot. The people I’ve spoken with seem to sit in one of two camps: they either don’t want to be bothered, pulling trays in and out, or they want to be able to access everything immediately and without playing tray, Tetris. Seems like people on this thread don’t mind multiple trays. Let me figure out how to solve that demand as well.

 

[SwampNut]

Yeah, it looks like a lot at first. But my most common items are up top or front of the middle layer. Then slide the top to access the back of the middle layer. No real Tetris, so that was a big motivator for the slider thing. Then remove the entire thing for the bottom layer, and that part locks into the front tray (where the useless charge mats are). This is all one handed, without looking or with maybe just a glance. I should do a video.

 

[ndmiller]

A microfiber or two for the screens, extra clips for my linerX mats and a handful of tire valve caps (the nice ones with o-rings).

Main storage in each door bag, charging cords, tissues, empty Publix bag for garbage, and a few other items. This way no-one in the vehicle has anything not at their fingertips during roadtrips.

 

[Jakelake]

Everything gets tossed in until it's full. Clean it out every 6 months and you will be amazed at what you find. It's like Christmas and a birthday twice a year. Now you know what the inside of my truck looks like everyday.

Sponsored