Foldable giant tablet plus keyboard
The laptop is reinvented at the IFA – it can now even be folded up
Two new laptops with foldable displays were shown at the IFA. Here the Asus Zenbook Fold 17
© Asus / PR
At the IFA, two manufacturers are showing a notebook that is actually a huge, foldable tablet. The devices show how desperately the manufacturers are trying to set themselves apart.
What is a laptop? A few years ago, this question would have been answered very differently than it is today. Once the name was clear for a computer whose screen and keyboard could be folded up, the manufacturers have long been offering countless variants, for example with detachable or completely foldable keyboards. The latest version was shown at the IFA: the new models from Asus and Lenovo consist entirely of a screen, with the keyboard becoming an accessory.
The Asus Zenbook 17 Fold and Lenovo Thinkpad X1 Fold that have just been presented are basically folding screens that can be used flexibly in various forms as a giant tablet, a notebook or an intermediate form. In notebook mode, both can hardly be distinguished from classic laptops. If you remove the keyboard, however, the lower half of the screen comes to light. Now you can operate the devices either as a half-folded L-shaped touchscreen. Or you can fold it out completely and get a huge tablet. If you want, you can place the unfolded screen on a stand and use it with the keyboard as a computer with a much larger screen.
A laptop alone is no longer enough
This makes the two new products the most flexible variant of a hybrid laptop to date. And also the largest: With a screen diagonal of 17.3 inches (Asus) or 16 inches (Lenovo), the screens are very large even by laptop standards, for tablets they are simply gigantic. Compared to classic notebooks of this size, they have the advantage that they are lighter and more compact when folded.
Lenovo had already presented the concept at the end of 2020 with the first model of the X1 Fold, but the new models are more suitable for everyday use. With the first X1 Fold, for example, the screen was only 13 inches – before it became even smaller when folded. In laptop mode, it was therefore hardly suitable for everyday use. With small details such as the magnetically fixed keyboard, the devices now appear more mature. The disadvantage compared to “normal” notebooks is primarily that they are a bit heavier and thicker due to the folding mechanism.
The new products – here the Lenovo Thinkpad X1 Fold – can be folded out and then used as a larger notebook
© Lenovo / PR
Technology in folds
It was probably only a matter of time before notebooks would also have folding screens. The technology has been used for a long time in smartphones such as the Galaxy Fold, and the Fold is now in its fourth generation. However, the folding devices have still not made it into the mainstream – despite significantly lower prices.
The price point should now ensure that laptops with folding screens do not quickly become mass products. The Lenovo model costs from 2999 euros, for the Asus device at least 3699 euros are due. This is steep even in view of the technically high-quality equipment.
Tough competition
The target group for the devices should probably not be too large. Above all, they are an indication of the enormously high pressure to innovate in the market. After notebooks changed only marginally for years, and the manufacturers also usually fall back on the same components, it was correspondingly difficult to present individual or even innovative devices.
The new designs such as models with detachable screens or now folding screens are changing that. They stand out from the crowd and are eye-catchers. The big disadvantage: They always address smaller niches. But that’s not a problem, it’s an opportunity, Acer’s European boss Emmanuel Fromont explained to the company last year star. “The one PC that fits all usage requirements – that no longer exists” For the customers this is ultimately good: They simply have more choice.
Whether they use it is another. While notebook and PC purchases shot up rapidly during the pandemic, they fell again significantly with the start of the Ukraine war and the resulting rise in prices. Second-quarter sales fell 15 percent year-on-year, IDC reported. The analysts suspect that the fear of a further deterioration in the economic situation is to blame. An expensive experiment like the folding laptops should not be on the priority list.