Laptops

First transparent laptop shows Lenovo's clear vision for future working

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The Lenovo ThinkBook Transparent Display Laptop Concept was presented at MWC 2024 in Barcelona this week
Lenovo
The Lenovo ThinkBook Transparent Display Laptop Concept was presented at MWC 2024 in Barcelona this week
Lenovo
The concept features a transparent 17.3-inch Micro-LED display panel
Lenovo
The concept lacks a physical keyboard, with users inputting text via a touch keyboard or drawing using a stylus pen
Lenovo
At certain angles, glare from the main display may prove troublesome for typing or drawing on the touch-enabled lower surface
Lenovo
Users could share onscreen content without folks having to crowd around a relatively small display
Lenovo
The touch keyboard is reportedly projected on the underside of the lower panel, and automatically disappears when a stylus is detected
Lenovo
Is Lenovo onto a clear winner? The show device is a concept at present, with no word on production plans
Lenovo
Though it's not possible to adjust the transparency to offer a solid background at present, Lenovo is working on it
Lenovo
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Lenovo has unveiled a ThinkBook concept that boasts a futuristic transparent display and combined touch keyboard/drawing pad. The concept is part of the company's new tech offerings announced at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona this week.

From phones to televisions to store windows, see-through display technology is moving from sci-fi movies to the real world. Lenovo is aiming to offer mobile creators a new way to look at productivity with the ThinkBook Transparent Display Laptop Concept.

Up top on this impressive-looking mobile workstation is a 17.3-inch Micro-LED display panel that manages up to 55% transparency when the pixels are turned off. When the visuals are fired up, users can look forward to "high color saturation combined with exceptional contrast and 1,000-nit brightness [up to 3,000 nits peak]," according to Lenovo.

Though it's not possible to adjust the transparency to offer a solid background at present, Lenovo is working on it
Lenovo

Digital artists, for example, might benefit from being able to see through the 'canvas' to scenes and objects as they produce their creations, and the concept's designers suggest that others could be treated to overlays of AI-powered digital information as they work or play, without the need for augmented-reality wearables. Onscreen resolution appears to be on the low side for such applications though, at 720p, but such things will doubtless improve as the technology advances.

Of course, being able to see through a display you're looking at is not going to suit every task or application. There is talk of being able to adjust the transparency level of the upper panel, to essentially block out the world beyond and focus on what's displayed onscreen – similar to what LG does with its Signature OLED T television. This would allow flexibility for those, like me, who spend much of their working lives generating text, while also offering opportunities for sharing visuals without needing to crowd around the front of a screen.

Perhaps future iterations could even be touch-enabled on both sides of the screen for unique mobile collaborations. At the moment though, the concept is reportedly unable to make the whole background solid so that's something for future iterations to focus on.

Most laptops also enable videochats via some sort of webcam within the bezel. This concept doesn't have an upper bezel, and there's been no mention of this functionality – though the technology exists so it could happen.

The concept lacks a physical keyboard, with users inputting text via a touch keyboard or drawing using a stylus pen
Lenovo

The ThinkBook concept is actually a dual-screen laptop, an evolution of the company's Yoga Book idea, with the lower display able to switch between touch keyboard and stylus drawing pad. This does of course mean a lack of physical key feel to the typing experience, though practicality is often less important to consumers than desirability for what's new and shiny.

The typing experience could easily be improved with the use of haptics, though there's no mention of that sort of thing for the current concept. There's also the issue of glare from the main screen making anything on that shiny input surface difficult to make out, but adjusting the seated position may help mitigate that to some degree.

Given it's merely a proof of concept at the moment, specs like processor, graphics, memory, storage and connectivity have not been revealed. Nor has Lenovo hinted at any future production iteration, so it stands as a quirky, interesting look at a possible future in mobile productivity. The video below has more.

Source: Lenovo

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5 comments
skinnabub
Is this one of those technical solutions looking for a problem to answer?
Chase
As with most things, I am of two minds when it comes to forming an opinion about new technology like this. The first is that this is amazing, making the traces and LEDs so small you can see right through them. It opens up a lot of options that regular screens can't. The second is that this is mostly stupid, and in a laptop only serves as a monetary flex. Transparent displays are more difficult to focus on and more difficult to see since there are no solid backgrounds for the eyes to lock onto easily. Same goes with non-prismatic HUDs in cars. The only places I see this actually being useful is in digital signage for storefront windows or epic-flex digital whiteboards in conference rooms or home offices (which would definitely interest me, especially with touch inputs). Laptops, TV's, and phones though? If I wanted something more expensive, more difficult to use and more susceptible to damage I would've already bought a folding smartphone. But I haven't. Because they are dumb.
Daishi
Agreeing with @Chase here as this seems like more of a proof of concept than something I would actually consider as a laptop I intend to use.
MartyKinn
Fingerprint magnet
Amir
@Chase and @MartyKinn bring up good points. Another thing you're essentially opening yourself up to with this "flex" is lack of privacy.