There have been rumors for a long time that Dell is developing a foldable laptop with a dual-screen. This is evident, among other things, from the number of patents that the American computer manufacturer has applied for in the past two years for mobile devices with a flexible display and/or a dual-screen. In May this year, this rumor was confirmed by Frank Azor who was working for Dell’s gaming and XPS department, now chief gaming officer at AMD.
In a candid interview with Alex Cranz, senior editor at Gizmodo, Frank Azor stated that Dell is “constantly experimenting with flexible displays.” However, it is still too early for Dell to release a folding screen laptop. ‘Why haven’t you seen a folding device from us yet? Because we do not yet know exactly how to do this, “said Mr. Azor.
“The display technology is now almost ready. The supporting technology, which is needed to make a super-thin and light laptop that uses a touchscreen keyboard and can be folded into a large tablet, is not yet ready. This is still a challenge,” continued the Dell spokesperson. It is also not that simple to make such a compact form factor really powerful, after all, you can only work with small parts.
This interview followed shortly after competitor Lenovo demonstrated the prototype of a dual-screen PC to the general public. The world’s first folding laptop (or the first laptop with a large flexible display and a touch keyboard) will be launched in 2020 under the brand name Lenovo ThinkPad X1.
Competing manufacturers, such as Dell and HP, will undoubtedly want to maintain their leading position by also showing innovation. Possibly this will result in the first folding Windows 10 laptop from Dell by the end of 2020. Finally, there are more manufacturers who would like to jump into this gap.
Dell foldable laptop with dual screen
What is the current status? In March 2018, Dell Products applied for a patent at the WIPO (World Intellectual Property Office) for a ‘system for color and brightness output management in a dual-display device’. This patent was published a week ago, on September 12, 2019.
There is the talk of a device with two displays, which are connected to each other via a narrow screen edge. However, Dell has patented another option, namely the use of a flexible screen. That means that the device no longer has two separate screens, but one large folding screen. Regardless of which option is chosen, the mode configurations will be adjusted automatically based on how the mobile device is used.
This patent is not about the hinge used or the design of the dual-screen laptop, Dell has already been awarded several patents for it. In this patent, Dell focuses on the colors, brightness, and contrast of the folding screen. Because with the use of two displays, the chance of color shifts is greater, according to the patent description. For example, the detailed description addresses the question; how to prevent a flexible OLED display from burning in.
The leading computer manufacturer clearly intends not to release a foldable laptop or foldable tablet just for marketing. Dell has to uphold its name and so it will want to develop a premium product. Which must also deliver a premium user experience, before moving on to mass production.
The time will tell when the time is there, but it is clear that we can also expect foldable screen mobile devices from Dell in the future.
