Publisher Summary This chapter highlights the information that is considered as a design material. Information processing no longer needs to be the purpose of an object, but one of many qualities that enables it to be useful and desirable in ways that are more directly related to people’s wants and needs. In other words, information processing no longer defines the identity of an object, but is one of many materials from which objects can be made. Much like a traditional design process can weigh the advantages of using an expensive and difficult material with one that is cheap and easy, looking at information processing this way may tell people when not to use it. Sometimes a smart component can perform better than a standard one, and vice versa. Treating information as a material requires approaching the user experience design of a device as a single thing, rather than one made of disjointed pieces.