Cell Phone Meets Laptop

Sometimes, great designs spring from humble beginnings. Digital Equipment Corp.'s Mobile Computing & Communication Appliance (MoCCA), for instance, started out as a tool for computer-repair workers, who needed a hands-free way to accept wiring diagrams and pointers from colleagues while up to their elbows in a computer cabinet.

It developed into a concept that is voice-based, wearable, and ultimately "producible" three to five years from now. DEC and its design partner, Fitch Inc., came up with a sleek concept that heralds the future fusion of the laptop computer, cellular phone, and handheld personal organizer. Says juror Peter Trussler, director of the corporate design group at Northern Telecom Ltd.: "It reflected where we think telecommunications and information is going."