Original URL: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2012/09/09/bill_moggridge_dies/
Laptop innovator Moggridge dies aged 69
Remember the Grid Compass?
Posted in Hardware, 9th September 2012 23:11 GMT
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The British designer of the world’s first clamshell-style laptop, Bill Moggridge, has died aged 69.
His creation, the GRiD Compass (below), was a 4.6-kg, $8,000-plus monster – but it was influential enough for Moggridge to be honoured in 2010 with the Prince Philip Designer Prize, and as noted [1] in this story from the time, his creation made it onto the Space Shuttle.
Grid Compass - the first laptop
His design was in response to a commission from GRiD’s boss.
The Smithsonian, where Moggridge was a director of the Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum, announced his passing after a battle with cancer, and has posted a tribute page here [2].
Moggridge is survived by his wife of 47 years, Karin, and two sons Alex and Erik. ®