Best Foldable Laptops – From Dell Lenovo & Microsoft

Laptops have been going through a new evolution. The post-pandemic era perhaps belongs to foldable laptops. Of course, there are not many options currently available among the foldable laptops, but several manufacturers have announced their plans to launch new products in the days to come.

The CES 2020 witnessed a slew of announcements and options for the best in terms of foldable laptops. We thought we would have a glance at the likely launches in the days come.

Foldable Laptops – What are they?

Well, foldable laptops are what would have a foldable, bendable screen, at least by definition. Of course, the laptops come with a hinge already fold, and there is nothing new we would find in it – as some of you may wonder. The term foldable laptops refer to the laptops that have bending screens and have dual screen options.

With proper software support, these devices are expected to offer more productivity options by taking advantage of the split screens. I, for one, use multiple monitors at work. So, the idea of having a split-screen option on a mobile device is a good extension to work while I am on the move.

With foldable phones already making waves – though few products launched – it was quite expected to find the foldable laptops being advertised. Just as the year 2019 was dedicated to foldable phones, we assume 2021 belongs to foldable laptops.

Best Foldable Laptops you may witness soon.

There are no foldable laptops launched. Lenovo has been teasing a foldable option for quite along. Dell is yet another manufacturer that has planned a few products. Microsoft has also been checking out the possibilities.

We will check out a few upcoming options among the foldable laptops. However, do note that these laptops have not yet been launched. They have only been announced and planned. It may take a while to find the new products being launched.

Lenovo

<Update 2021>

Lenovo X1 Fold

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The X1 fold comes with a foldable OLED panel that predictably folds in half. It’s the world’s first foldable Windows PC and is something that you buy right now. Here are the specifications of the X1 Fold:

• 13.3-inch OLED with 2048 x 1536 resolution with 4:3 aspect ration
• 100% sRGB color gamut coverage
• Resolution at 2048×1536 pixels
• 8 GB DDR RAM
• 5 Megapixel integrated Web camera
• 2 UDB Ports: 1 x USB 3.1 Gen 1 (Type-C)

Lenovo has been talking about foldable laptops for quite along. They announced a foldable ThinkPad laptop in 2019. They unveiled the prototype in May 2019 and announced that the product would be made available in 2020.

Specially designed for highly mobile professionals, the laptop is the world’s first when it comes to foldable design. It can indeed be an excellent option to go with if you are looking for a compact-sized with a powerhouse performance so that you can work with it on the move.

The new foldable Lenovo laptop will be part of the premium Thinkpad X1 range of devices from the brand. Lenovo claims that the device will be compact, but there will be no compromises on reliability and performance standards.

As for the spec sheet, there is not much info available as of now. The display is expected to be a 13.3 inch 2K OLED display. The screen has been sourced from LG. The screen can fold in half and thus will offer you a width reduction of 50 percent. It will pack in the latest Intel processors and Windows 10 operating system.

The prototype launched in 2019 did impress with the software and other elements, but the folding mechanism was not worthy of writing home. However, we would expect Lenovo to come with an improved design on the production model. The built-in kickstand is yet another advantage.

Dell

*Dell Ori Concept

Dell is one of the manufacturers that has been considering launching its range of foldable laptops. They are the latest entrants in the league of manufacturers who have announced the foldable laptop options. They have come up with two experimental concepts. Both ideas were showcased at CES 2020.

The Ori is a concept that focuses on a foldable tablet, and Duet is a dual-screen laptop prototype. The manufacturer claimed that the idea is ideally in the early stages of development, and it may take a while before the actual launch can occur. They claimed that they were attempting to understand the form factor and take a call in due time.

Ori, a take on Origami, is a larger foldable tablet that almost looks like a notebook. The prototype showcased at the CES had it running two instances of Windows, or two separate apps, or even other multitasking capabilities.

The experts who witnessed the CES opine device that the hinge’s construction quality and display are quite impressive. Dell’s Preeth Srinivasan, who handles the group’s innovation section, claimed that the Ori prototype was tested for 15000 folds but aimed for a higher number.

The Duet, on the other hand, looks more like a laptop. It has a more robust hinge and dual touchscreens. You can even add an optional keyboard accessory as well. You can run the applications across the entire screen or run separate applications on the individual screens.

You would find that the Duet looks like a finished product. While we may not claim the same about Ori, the concept behind Duet seems to be reliable enough, and we may expect a device quite soon, though it may not be likely to happen in 2020.

Intel Horseshoe Bend

With Dell and Lenovo’s likes joining the fray for the foldable laptops, how can we expect Intel to fall behind? The tech giant has announced a foldable notebook in the form of Horseshoe bend. The computer appears more like a full-sized laptop and offers excellent functionality.

However, the manufacturers state that the technology is not yet ripe for the consumer launch. It assumes that foldable laptops will be a thing in reality in two more years. However, that should not mean the brand is not experimenting with the concept. They have already been in talks with the display manufacturers for the flexible displays. The display manufacturers that the brand has been in negotiations with include LG, Samsung, and Sharp.

The Horseshoe Bend can alternate between a 12-inch laptop and a 17.3-inch tablet. The device has thinner bezels than Lenovo’s ThinkPad X1 and Ori from Dell. There is a separate keyboard that can slip in when you are folding it up.

As of now, it is just a prototype. Whether it will see the day of the light is subject to how the technology would develop. For now, it would be a wait and watch the game.

Microsoft

*Surface Neo

Well, Microsoft is not launching any foldable laptops per se but has been developing an operating system specifically designed for foldable notebooks and tablets. Somewhat closer to the functionality of a foldable laptop, it already has launched dual-screen laptop options.

Surface Neo is one of the popular foldable screen devices from the brand. The software giant’s new software is best suited to work with the tools that morph in shape and size. A few good examples can be Neo and X1. However, the new Windows 10X is currently still under development and has not been made available to the manufacturers.

The Surface Neo comes with two 9 inch screens and a revolutionary 360-degree hinge. A few other features include touch, pen, keyboard, and incredible new Windows experiences. The laptop will be launched during the holiday season of 2020.

Given that foldable technology in a laptop has been developed with two variants, Surface Neo belongs to the second category, where a hinge connects two screens. When you compare it to the single display that folds, this would be a more comfortable option to achieve from a technological perspective.

What are the advantages of a Foldable laptop?

There are several advantages associated with foldable laptops. That would be something quite handy enough for the presenters. It can prove to be quite useful and efficient.

Let us check out a few advantages of foldable laptops –

Switch between modes

It is too chunky to carry a laptop for your presentations. A foldable notebook makes it easy enough for such situations. The dual-screen laptops and foldable laptops can be excellent options to interact with your audience. It can even offer you an ergonomic alternative for handling your device.

The dual-screen and foldable laptops can be a great tool that ensures a natural reading process.

A Dynamic mousepad

A dynamic mousepad offered by the foldable laptops would enhance the level of your productivity. That would also mean that you gain more access to a better screen real estate. You would have access to a host of customization options.

A great example from that perspective would be what Dell Duet showed off at the CES. You can opt for a keyboard attachment placed on the second screen, which gives your laptop a traditional laptop kind of laptop.

Better multitasking

Foldable laptops and dual-screen laptops offer you more screen real estate. That would translate into two clear halves to work with. You can work on one thing on one of the screens and do something else on the other.

For instance, you can play videos on one of the screens while working on the other one. Entertainment apart, it can also be an excellent option to check out your references while working on something. You can reference the PDFs and other reports while you are analyzing them.

So, when can w witness the new range of foldable laptops?

Well, for now – foldable laptops remain just a concept. No manufacturer has so far shared any details about the actual devices. A host of manufacturers have showcased the prototypes for the foldable laptops planning to bring ahead.

However, the reality may not be too far. Microsoft has been working on new software – Windows 10X – specifically designed to work with a foldable screen. The updated Windows software will bring up new interfaces and apps specifically designed to work with the new platform. That should act as an incentive for the manufacturers to launch new foldable devices.

We would expect a good deal of foldable laptops to be launched in the days to come. Until that happens, we will need to wait. In any case, we would expect a few foldable laptops to be made available by the end of 2020.

The Closing Thoughts

The future belongs to foldable laptops. Of course, as Intel made it clear, it may take a while for the technology to take a shape that will have universal acceptance. Intel has claimed that it will take around two years for foldable laptops to be available in the consumer market.

The display manufacturers will need to develop a technology that will ensure that they do not break when folded over a more extended period. In any case, the demos presented so far showcase a promising future concerning foldable laptops. The day is not now when the devices will adapt to us than the other way round.