Many people use the words gadget and tool interchangeably.  And this pisses me off, as a big tool nerd. This has a lot to do with design, as tool design and gadget design is different and should be pretty easy to grasp.  Remember, every time you use either words incorrectly, god makes a tool that cooks kittens for the nazis…

The importance here is the difference, not how they are defined.  How to define the two is up to you, but here is how I define the difference.

Tools: Something Serious

Tools are optimized for some specific operation.  The tool is designed without any frivolous design or use of materials.

My favorite design in tools is the pry bar. This has been shaped by function to the very last millimeter.  Pulling out a nail or prying open a wood joint- sounds so simple, but there are a lot of different situations-When the nail is nailed too deep into the wood, when the nail is crooked, when the nail has been cut off, etc.  This single tool used with a hammer is a can be used to handle all these different situations- and doing so is like a mini puzzle. Which end to use, and how hard to hit, etc.  You really cant understand this without having actually done it.

Gadgets: Something Fun

These are something that CAN be used as a certain tool, but is integrated into something else. Gadgets usually have functions added as bells and whistles or bells and whistles added to function.  As a easy general rule if it “can be used” for something else that the entire object isn’t, its an added gimmick to something else.

This is pretty much crap.  Sure, you would need a phone and a mouse on your work desk probably, but its useless for everyone.  For example, I can’t look at porn while calling someone really boring.  There’s no relationship between the two functions so this “mouse that can also turn into a phone” is as useful as shit on a stick.

What about Multi-Tools and Swiss Army Knives?

So, here things start going up for debate. They are both contraptions that can be used for many things, but is not optimally designed for one operation.  I personally think multiplier tools such as Gerbers and Leathermans as tool while Swiss Army Knives are a gadget.

Gerbers and Leathermans are designed for heavy use and has no frivolous or symbolic parts.  They are simply “bunch of tools bunched up into one without compromising too much usability”. I feel the Gerbers are better designed as a tool, but more on that next time.

Swiss Army Knives, on the other hand, started out as a utilitarian tool.  I define it as a gadget because today it is perceived more as a accessory or a gift than something that is truly useful in accomplishing a task.  There is no tactical advantage to the polished red handle-although that butts into the criticism of a tool (see, this is why it’s a little complicated).  I see it as a “key chain that also has a bunch of tools nested inside.”

So the Tool is Better, right? Because it’s all function and no extras?

Sometimes, its just kickass to have something that does something else.  Gadget and Gimmick gets a bad connotation, but the trivial and the extraenous are essential to connecting with human happiness. You might not need a hammer.  But you may find enjoyment in a robot that is designed to hit itself.