Think about a Chromebook that appears like some other ChromeOS laptop computer. What if it had a detachable show that was a standalone Android pill? You’ll have to easily think about it for now as a result of this system doesn’t exist. Nonetheless, the Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen 5 Hybrid is a Home windows laptop computer model of this very idea.
Introduced at CES 2024 this week, the Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen 5 Hybrid is a standard Home windows 11 laptop computer. The chassis homes an Intel Core Extremely 7 processor, 32 GB of reminiscence, a 1 TB NVMe SSD and 75 WHr battery. A typical keyboard and trackpad are additionally current, as are a variety of I/O ports. It appears to be like like a laptop computer as a result of it’s. It’s only one with a removable show that has its personal inner {hardware}.
The 14-inch contact and pen succesful 2.8K OLED display screen is each your laptop computer show when connected and an Android 13 pill when indifferent. Inside is a first-generation Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ SOC, 12 GB of reminiscence, and 256 GB of UFS storage capability. Take away the display screen from the laptop computer then and you’ve got a really succesful Android pill.
Each the laptop computer base and the pill have their very own Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.3 radios. So both may be linked to a community or wi-fi peripherals.
Every half has audio system as properly. And the laptop computer cameras are literally a part of the pill. A pair of rear sensors (13 and 5 megapixel) can be found for pictures or movies, and the FHD entrance internet cam is for video calls. The pill additionally has its personal 38 WHr battery.
Once more, it is a Home windows laptop computer. And by providing two full units in a single, together with excessive finish internals, it is a expensive beast. Lenovo says the ThinkBook Plus Gen 5 Hybrid will debut at $1,999 within the second quarter of 2024.
What I’d like to see is a Chromebook model from Lenovo, capably configured with a worth within the $1,299 to $1,499 worth vary.
No I don’t assume there can be an enormous marketplace for this in Chromebook type at this worth. It may spur extra designs from different ChromeOS {hardware} companions although, giving some freshness to the Chromebook lineup.
At the moment, the Home windows a part of this Lenovo laptop computer doesn’t “communicate” to the Android half. That means that your information is separate between the 2.
I’d prefer to see these elements share information natively and it shouldn’t be a problem if this have been a ChromeOS and Android mixture. In a worst case scenario, you possibly can use the Close by Self Share function in ChromeOS 120 to maneuver information between the laptop computer and pill.
A Chromebook version of the Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen 5 Hybrid would provide Android apps in both mode. No you wouldn’t have a desktop-class browser on the pill half. However commonest use instances for tablets are centered round app utilization and content material consumption. Content material creation may nonetheless be dealt with in both ChromeOS or Android when utilizing this legendary laptop computer in a standard method.
Whereas I doubt Lenovo will go this route, I’d nonetheless prefer to see them attempt it. Or maybe there’s a refreshed HP Chromebook X2 that makes use of this idea. Once more, the fee must come down by not less than 25 to 30%, if no more.
Even then, the ChromeOS hybrid would solely discover a area of interest viewers. Admittedly, I’d most likely be in that viewers and use this dynamic product to interchange my present Chromebook and my iPad Professional.
