WEIRD Laptops are Coming...- CES 2023

Lenovo's CES 2023 showcase is packed with eccentric, boundary-pushing laptops that challenge conventional design. The video kicks off at the Lenovo booth, highlighting a normal looking OLED laptop that quickly reveals a twist: one side features a vivid OLED panel while the other host device explores an accompanying E Ink display. The presenter emphasizes both the beauty and the practical tradeoffs of OLED, especially regarding battery life, and then shifts to the E Ink option which refreshes at a surprisingly brisk 12 Hz and even supports color. He demonstrates how the E Ink display can be used as a secondary, low-eye-strain canvas for reading emails and documents, and notes that when not in use it resembles a traditional premium laptop, all while still highlighting the color E Ink capability and its potential for reduced eye strain. The segment underscores a dual-use philosophy for laptops, balancing high-end performance panels with energy-efficient secondary displays for everyday tasks and long-form reading. Moving deeper into the tour, the video covers the ThinkPad 16p Gen 4, which adds modularity with pogo-pin accessory options that enable a detachable 4K webcam. The software readiness and exposure quality are critiqued, but the modular webcam concept is presented as a clever way to augment video calls without sacrificing portability. Lenovo also experiments with connectivity add-ons, such as a 4G adapter, and demonstrates how two laptops can be used to provide simultaneous lighting and webcam setups, essentially enabling enhanced on-the-go productivity and content creation. The narrative confirms that these are not polished consumer products yet, but they illustrate a pattern of experimenting with camera, light, and sensor augmentation in laptop form factors. The tour concludes with a look at the X1 Fold 16, whose folding mechanism promises durability and compactness by addressing prior build concerns like fold protection and dirt intrusion. The presenter demonstrates multiple use modes, including landscape, portrait, and a table-mounted setup, and even shows how an attachable keyboard can convert the foldable into a compact 12-inch laptop. The Yoga Book 9i then captures attention with dual OLED displays and an origami-inspired keyboard folio that enables a “battle station” workflow, combining two screens into a large, cohesive workspace. Finally, the video highlights Lenovo's refined X1 Carbon line with improved IO options, robust chassis, and the Legion gaming laptops that push high-end specs with powerful GPUs and aggressive performance claims, rounded out with remarks about AI tuning. The overall takeaway is that Lenovo is pushing a spectrum of unconventional ideas alongside solid, traditional laptops, signaling a trend toward more versatile, modular, and power-dense machines, even if some concepts remain niche or imperfect in practice.

Topics · technology · consumer_electronics · laptops · events