Good point about the differentiating factor in branding.
I think about design in same way, whether its web design, garden design or industrial design. For example, similar trends have picked up in Cars. RGB mood lighting - everyone is adding it now without fundamentally considering its utilitarian value. Or even if they realize it is "decoration", market forces and consumer choices are obliging car manufacturers to install RGB interior lighting. Same thing with brake light bars that span the entire width of the car. Even 2020 Porsche 911 had to add one!
Oh, to be sure, there are thoughtless design decisions that are made. Note that that kind of trend chasing to get to feature parity is often just bad product management rather than design per se.
I wish there was more information about design in regimented and disciplined fields such as Aviation where marketing is deprioritized and utilitarianism, pragmatism and functionalism takes precedence. Cockpit design, radar screen layout, nuclear power plant control panels, etc are fascinating areas of design where lives are at stake. All the fluff in consumer design takes a back seat.
I would certainly appreciate that kind of content too, maybe I'll do some research. But I can also see it both ways — applying functionalism to things like fashion is often a surprising source of insights and epiphanies.
I think about design in same way, whether its web design, garden design or industrial design. For example, similar trends have picked up in Cars. RGB mood lighting - everyone is adding it now without fundamentally considering its utilitarian value. Or even if they realize it is "decoration", market forces and consumer choices are obliging car manufacturers to install RGB interior lighting. Same thing with brake light bars that span the entire width of the car. Even 2020 Porsche 911 had to add one!