Dell Bets Splashy Design Will Sell Its New Laptops

Dell Design Chief Ed Boyd is transforming those once-stodgy PCs with art and color. Can made-to-order laptops revitalize the computer maker?

BusinessWeek, October 30, 2008 — Ed Boyd, one of Dell's most unusual hires in recent years, is an industrial designer who used to dream up new sunglasses and shoes for Nike (NKE). Now the 43-year-old is trying to make design an integral part of Dell, the personal computer maker long known for cranking out boring gray boxes. "