Lenovo Debuts First Foldable PC Set to Launch in Mid-2020

[Tozovac]

We don't know where folding tech will be in five years, but Apple needs to jump on the bandwagon

Apple is the king of minimalists, they’ve already minimalized a foldable laptop screen into a one screen laptop, charging folding-screen prices of course, come on now.
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I really don't see the value in folding displays at this point. Too many compromises, unpolished software, not better in any way from what we already have. Companies are just grasping at anything right now to try and differentiate themselves.

Agree, including companies often making way too frequently-unnecessary UI changes just to differentiate from others, or worse, from themselves the prior year (I.e., change for the sake of change)

 

[MacBH928]

I have a feeling people in 2035 will be looking back at this and not believing how primitive we were, like how we look back on the original gameboy.

 

[mmomega]

I'm not on the folding anything bandwagon until it falls in to it's niche market.
3D TV's fell in to this for me.
Curved TV's as well.
VR, AR.
Goat Yoga.

I'm not one to blindly purchase a fad. It has to have a purpose.

 

[alphaswift]

I’m really tired of this folding mania... Stop it. It’s ridiculous!

No, it's not. In fact, it the opposite of ridiculous. It's innovation like this that moves everyone forward. It doesn't always work, but there are lessons learned. I wish Apple had the balls to do this more often.

 

[bobob]

We’re also a bit looser on our coverage during CES. And folding tech is novel at this point.

Available soon at your local Novelty Shop!

 

[arvinsim]

Glad that some companies are trying out new things.

Other companies with trillions worth of assets should do so too...

 

[Analog Kid]

No, it's not. In fact, it the opposite of ridiculous. It's innovation like this that moves everyone forward. It doesn't always work, but there are lessons learned. I wish Apple had the balls to do this more often.

To ship a product before it's ready so they can tarnish the technology? If Apple gets is wrong, people won't trust the idea again for years.

The fact Apple isn't shipping it doesn't mean they aren't investigating it. Apple doesn't try to get ahead of the curve, they wait until they think its mature. They're rarely first at shipping any new tech, but tend to put existing technologies together into great designs that feel like they're all new tech.

That's the difference between the true Jobs quote (which he attributed to Picasso) and the ironic paraphrase that @Vjosullivan gave-- to steal a great idea is to own it and make it yours, not just copy it and throw it into the world because everyone else is.

 

[junkw]

it not because you can do a folding computer that you should do it

 

[dazzer21-2]

So if I get this right, it's a 13" tablet that folds into a 'laptop form factor' presenting two 6.5" sized screens and requires an external physical laptop keyboard for the full experience (as opposed to a flat on-screen keyboard)? That makes 'Donglegate' on a MacBook Pro pretty acceptable in comparison, in my view. If it were a larger tablet that folded into a proper-sized 13" laptop, that would be stepping closer to what this thing actually wants to be, I think.

 

[BvizioN]

I’m really tired of this folding mania... Stop it. It’s ridiculous!

It's a fad. Like 3D TV displays, 360-degree cameras, etc. Short-lived.
Don't get me wrong, foldable displays do have potential, just not for what they are being used right now.

 

[Digital Skunk]

Exciting, but my only question is why? By the time you get into the large phone space the idea of a folding phone is a bit meh since you already have a large device with a large screen that'll unfold into a large tablet.

Smaller phones ... sure. You have a small phone that unfolds into a moderate sized tablet. or something like the new Razr which unfolds into your average sized big phone.

But .... a laptop? What? Where? Why? Who?

What's the advantage?
Where is the benefit?
Why would anyone want it?
Who asked for this?

Most other innovations, even ones that are wildly expensive, can answer at least some of those questions convincingly.

 

[robbietop]

My laptop from 2003 is a PC and it folds as well.

 

[FairlyKors]

I really don't see the value in folding displays at this point. Too many compromises, unpolished software, not better in any way from what we already have. Companies are just grasping at anything right now to try and differentiate themselves.

Companies are *always* grasping (desperately) at anything to differentiate themselves. Apple does this better than most, usually, and makes tons of money doing it. If/when foldable designs become truly useful, which I can see happening at some point, Apple will already be ready to release their version. They aren’t ignoring foldable tech.

Creating a much larger screen (~2X to ~4X) while on the go seems like a significant innovation for those that need a desktop sized monitor outside the office. 🤷‍♂️

 

[Virinprew]

Why is it so hard to understand? We use paper and we fold it to make it easier to carry. Why can't we be doing the same with a tablet? Fold open to have a full paper-like experience for writing and reading. Then fold shut to carry around the workplace like a pocket book. It will be expensive at first and it will be affordable 3-4 gen down the line. Then your precious Apple will make its own version and you will all hail "What a great idea".

 

[smaffei]

Remember when the super thin (for that time) MacBook Air came out? Wasn't the starting price somewhere between 4000 and 5000?

God, people in this forum exaggerate so much in an attempt to prove their point. The starting price for the original MacBook Air was $1799. Even if you added an SSD drive (which was novel in 2008), it cost $2799.

Read our 10-year-old review of the first-ever Apple MacBook Air

When the Apple MacBook Air was introduced ten years ago, it was different than anything we'd seen before.

www.cnet.com

 

[alexandr]

I didn’t say there was any benefit nor did I say this innovation was worth it. Just that new innovated tech products are usually much more expensive then its traditional counterpart products. I wouldn’t buy it either but I respect the attempt of being innovative.

Folding screen tech could eventually be amazing one day or a fad that dies, either way I like people thinking outside the box.

hm, well if we're talking about innovation for the sake of innovation... sure, i like people thinking outside of the box too, but these people are putting extremely high price tags on very raw technology that seems nothing beyond gimmicky. to me, to me - i'm speaking my opinion, not trying to make a factual statement.
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That is the very definition of innovation; not waiting until everyone else's vision has caught up.

yes, that and modern art.

 

[DNichter]

Companies are *always* grasping (desperately) at anything to differentiate themselves. Apple does this better than most, usually, and makes tons of money doing it. If/when foldable designs become truly useful, which I can see happening at some point, Apple will already be ready to release their version. They aren’t ignoring foldable tech.

Creating a much larger screen (~2X to ~4X) while on the go seems like a significant innovation for those that need a desktop sized monitor outside the office. 🤷‍♂️

It feels more frequently today, especially with folding screens. None of the products really seem to fix any problem or make anything better than what we have today. I can see the potential down the line, but we aren't there yet, and I feel that companies should wait until they can create something meaningful instead of throwing prototypes at the market.

 

[chipb]

Lenove obviously doesn't know when to fold em and when to hold em...this will be DOA!!

 

[Just sayin...]

Interesting. I’ll look forward to reading reviews from particularly destructive reviewers (I’m looking at you Dieter Bohn @ Verge) before I take any concrete steps, but for me, smaller fits in my daypack easier, is more transportable on motorcycle trips, and fills a void that I’m currently trying to fill with my iPad+Splashtop Desktop (connected to remote NUC). I think that innovation such as this pushes others to continue to progress.

 

[JBGoode]

I’m really tired of this folding mania... Stop it. It’s ridiculous!

If you're 'tired' over things you have the option to completely ignore, I would say the problem is with you and not the existence of the tech.

Helpful hint: next time you see an article/post about a folding phone or laptop. Skip it.

 

[Johns12]

Man, what has this TECH sight turned into. You can dislike this, but to trash the entire tech seems very short sighted to me. There are many things that are expensive that I see no need for. I just don't buy them. I don't complain about the companies that are making them. If it fails it fails. If it doesn't, you'll probably be using something based on this in the future.

 

[macduke]

I think this causes more problems than it solves. It's for people to show off in public and for a small percentage of people to geek out over.

 

[SarcasticJoe]

ok thats cool.. other than it can fold, what does this solve?

What has anything Apple has released for at least the last 20 years actually solved?

The simple answer is nothing. Apple's just prided itself on creating sleeker implementations of what has been done before, not items that solve previously unsolved issues or fill novel use cases.

As for this device, it falls into the Apple-esque category of "Neat, but just that" as it's party trick is to double the screen space available for a particular size laptop whenever keyboard input isn't needed (like when watching/presenting something or just tablet-like use cases).

 

[jdiamond]

You can make a dual screen system with a mechanical hinge - put the hinge in the right place, and it's seamless to the screen - no modern tech needed. But an "innovation" isn't just different - it should be useful. Making an iPad more compact is nice if it can actually then fit in your pocket - but typing on glass is not a plus.

 

[Tozovac]

Why is it so hard to understand? We use paper and we fold it to make it easier to carry. Why can't we be doing the same with a tablet? Fold open to have a full paper-like experience for writing and reading. Then fold shut to carry around the workplace like a pocket book. It will be expensive at first and it will be affordable 3-4 gen down the line. Then your precious Apple will make its own version and you will all hail "What a great idea".

Because we don’t expect to get several years use out of that folded/re-folded/re-folded piece of paper.