Industry waves farewell to laptop pioneer

UK designer Bill Moggridge, creator of the first portable computer, dies at 69

UK industrial designer Bill Moggridge, who came up with the original flip-open portable computer, has died at the age of 69 after a battle with cancer.

An article on the Guardian website explained how Moggridge was credited with the design of the Grid Compass – a "computer in a briefcase" which comprised a keyboard and a yellow-on-black display set built into its lid.

Moggridge's was the first to use the clamshell design after discovering the flat-panel screen, keyboard and circuitry could fit together.

His designs have been adopted by pretty much every laptop manufacturer in the modern era.

Luckily for the average pocket, prices have come down since then as the early computer sold for a whopping £5,000-plus when it was released in 1982.

Encased in magnesium, the device was used by the US military and found its way into space aboard the shuttle Discovery in 1985.