Jonathon Lister Provides In-depth Analysis Of Glo Hyper Pro

Today we noticed an article from the internet. It is about the turning point of the new tobacco industry: a deep annotation from the former design director of BAT – Jonathon Lister, the designer of Glo Hyper Pro, re entered this industry turning point with design after BAT.

In last year’s BAT, a British American Tobacco 2024 financial report was published.
BAT’s withdrawal from a new product, Glo Hyper Pro, is not only a technological evolution for BAT, but also a strategic breakthrough after a long-term confrontation with Philip Morris International (PMI). It is a rare product event in recent years that occurs simultaneously at the intersection of technology, design, market, and regulation.
The emergence of this product coincides with a rare critical point: when electronic cigarettes and new tobacco products complete the transition from peripheral trends to mass consumption, when regulation and social expectations tighten synchronously, when users shift from “being attracted” to “being understood”, the meaning of design is also changing – from sensory pleasure to value expression, from differentiated innovation to the establishment of responsibility boundaries.

Jonathon Lister Provides In-depth Analysis Of Glo Hyper Pro (2)

Jonathon Lister provided a solution at this point. He has worked in product design for global consumer brands such as Nokia, HP, Bowers&Wilkins, and later served as the Director of Product and Experience Design at BAT, leading the development of the Glo series of devices. He introduced a systematic design philosophy into this product field, which has long been dominated by visual gimmicks and lacks ethical consistency. He emphasized that “functionality only exists when it is perceived,” and integrated digital and physical interactions to make the hidden Boost mode a user perceptible and selectable experience. He attempted to rebuild the trust path between people and products, brands and responsibilities through redesigning addictive products. This is not just an industrial design, but also a practice of configuring values.

His design not only shapes a device, but also depicts the responsible role that such devices can play in society.

Jonathon Lister:
1.The task is to enhance the attractiveness of the product through design. Many people mistakenly believe that design is just about “how it looks”, but in fact, it is much more than that. What really matters is the ‘usability’ of the product and how it is understood. Early Hyper devices had a feature called Boost mode, which required holding down a button for 5 seconds to activate (normal mode is 3 seconds). But most users are completely unaware of the existence of this feature. We continuously addressed this issue in the subsequent design and ultimately designed the knob structure of Hyper Pro. At the same time, we are also pushing the engineering team to rethink the internal structure and battery layout, shifting from the original bulky and square proportions to a more slender and natural appearance.

2.We have developed a customized AMOLED display specifically for Hyper Pro. We have tried many ready-made screen technologies on the market, but these solutions either make the device bigger or reduce the visual quality. We also excluded several technical options that perform poorly in sunlight.

3.The success of a design process depends first on whether you truly understand the needs of consumers, commercial feasibility, and which appropriate technologies should be used. We start from early user research to identify their real needs. But it is important not to simply interpret what users say literally. Many times, they don’t know what they really want, and what we need to do is to ‘understand the underlying message’ and respond in a completely new way. Over the years, my design approach has not changed much – the key is to strike a balance between ‘if we can…’ and ‘what should we do?’. Meanwhile, cross functional teams must always maintain a consistent understanding of product value, otherwise it is easy to waste a lot of time on unimportant issues.

4.The task at that time was to clearly design recognition for Glo and address some of the architectural limitations. In order to achieve ideal heating performance, the equipment must be equipped with large capacity batteries, which means they can only adopt an integrated structure, resulting in a larger and more robust overall appearance, lacking elegance – especially when compared to IQOS. One of our primary goals is to break free from this structural constraint and drive the development team towards a more slender, intuitive, and user intuitive form.

5.We have researched many ready-made display screen solutions. Many components, although technically mature, are either not suitable for controlling the overall volume, or display unclearly in outdoor environments, or reduce the perceived quality of the product. We ultimately excluded multiple options and chose custom AMOLED to find a balance between visibility, aspect ratio, and sophistication.

6.In early versions, Boost mode required holding down a button for five seconds to activate, which was not intuitive. Most users are not even aware of the existence of this feature – it is essentially a ‘design communication failure’. So in Hyper Pro, we introduced the TasteSelect knob and combined it with screen feedback to enhance this operation method. This makes this valuable feature “visible” and “useful” instead of being hidden in obscure gestures.

7.One of the key features recognized by Glo Hyper Pro is its user centered innovation, such as the AMOLED EasyView display and TasteSelect knob, which make the overall experience more intuitive and attractive. In terms of appearance, its design has also received high praise – the streamlined body, lightweight aluminum material, matte surface, and exquisite details all enhance the sense of quality and grip comfort. What makes me most gratified is that these small design decisions made by various teams and stages are ultimately combined into a product that can impress users and win the recognition of judges.

8.Personally, IQOS remains the benchmark in this category. It initially established the product architecture and user path for heated tobacco products, and its design has been evolving over the years – from ergonomic optimization, to charging system improvements, to simplified user experience, while maintaining a distinct brand identity. The integration between equipment and smoke bombs is very intentional, and industrial design has found a balance between precision and affinity. Although there are trade-offs in any design, IQOS continues to demonstrate the design value brought by long-term investment and continuous iteration – a trait that is still uncommon in this field.

9.In the field of NGP (New Tobacco Products), regulations have significant limitations on design freedom. Unlike most other consumer goods, almost every design decision for this type of product – from heating technology to physical interaction interfaces – must comply with strict regulations. We used a three bladed iris door structure in the Hyper X2 project, but later had to redesign and make engineering adjustments to meet compliance requirements.

10.Designing nicotine products is a highly ethical responsibility. The primary principle is that such products must only be aimed at adult smokers or users with nicotine use needs – never targeting teenagers or non-smokers. Therefore, we will deliberately avoid any design language, materials, or interactive experiences that may be interpreted as “interesting,” “trendy,” or “appealing to teenagers. At the same time, the design must be transparent and honest – ensuring that the device can clearly convey its status, usage, and potential risks, and cannot mislead users.

11.We not only work closely with our legal and compliance teams to ensure that our products comply with regulations in form, but also repeatedly ask ourselves: Does this design encourage responsible use? Does it help reduce risks? I have always believed that the true mission of design is to help adult users make clear and rational decisions – this means that devices should be intuitive, safe, and never overly complex or used to induce addictive use.

12.We emphasize the expression of “transparency” and “clarity” in our design. This includes clear visual or interactive signals for device status, battery feedback, usage, etc., to ensure that users are always aware of what the device is currently doing. At the same time, we will also avoid “behavioral manipulation” design, such as exaggerating usage effects, setting gamified interfaces with reward mechanisms, etc. – all of which may potentially promote compulsive use. We believe that every aspect of user experience should convey authentic and reliable information.

13.There was a goal about user experience that we really hoped to achieve, but due to the inability to implement relevant technical cooperation, we were ultimately unable to advance. Due to the involvement of undisclosed technical directions, I am currently unable to elaborate on this part in detail.

14.Although core design principles such as “user centricity,” “validating creativity through research,” and “pursuing the ultimate user experience” are consistent across industries, NGP (New Tobacco Products) presents unique challenges. The biggest difference is that it needs to face strict regulatory restrictions, limitations in material selection, and compliance with safety standards that must be achieved across multiple markets.

15.In addition, NGP also faces higher intensity of form control, emission review, and usability evaluation – intuitive solutions for designers may not be understood and accepted by users, so continuous user testing is necessary. Balancing innovation, compliance, and responsible design is a complex constraint that is not common in other product areas.

16.We have conducted user testing of our products in multiple regions under relaxed scenarios, and have gained many valuable insights, including user behavior patterns, interpretation of product forms, and prioritization of product requirements. These data may involve size acceptance, frequency of use, daily habits, etc. Through these tests, we can determine which designs are universal and which provide unique opportunities for specific regions.

17.I am very proud of our process of designing Glo at BAT, but when looking back at these projects, what I care more about is not the final product outcome, but the process we went through together with the team. We discussed and solved problems together, including intellectual property, cost control, mechanical structures, and more, truly enjoying the process of cooperation.

18.I hope the impact I bring is not limited to a specific device. Rather than a single achievement, what I hope to leave behind is a culture – a philosophy that regards design as a strategic asset, not just a packaging concept. We strive to create an atmosphere where the team has space to be curious, discuss, and repeatedly polish. If this culture can continue, then the designs we make will also continue to evolve in meaningful directions.

19.Shenzhen is an amazing innovation hub – with a fast pace and highly developed industrial network, it is almost unbeatable in terms of supply chain docking and manufacturing response speed. It is an efficient ‘product generation engine’, and I have witnessed many strong collaborations landing in Shenzhen, bringing substantial breakthroughs to NGP product development.

20.However, I do not believe that ‘excellent design’ should be tied to a specific geographic location. The key to truly outstanding design lies in “relevance” – whether you truly understand cultural differences, user needs, and brand values, which often require proximity to the brand headquarters or core market to achieve. To make a global product truly successful, design must be fluid and formed from a global perspective, rather than solely driven by manufacturing efficiency.

21.Shenzhen has the potential to become a core area for global NGP design, provided that it continues to invest in user insights, brand thinking, and long-term design culture construction – rather than just continuing its advantage of “execution speed”. The biggest challenge is whether design leadership can still be linked to brand strategy, rather than just serving supply chain operations. If there is an imbalance, it may ultimately only result in products that are functionally qualified but emotionally lacking.

Article from 新型烟草转折点：来自 BAT 前设计总监的深度注解 ——Jonathon Lister，glo Hyper Pro 设计者，在 BAT 之后用设计重新介入这场产业转折