Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Computing

Laptops with foldable screens might finally become a reality in 2022

By

Intel has just announced that it’s working on a new foldable display spec that may open the door to a whole new level of computing.

The company believes that the first foldable laptops are not far off and may hit the market as soon as later this year.

Foldable laptop running Windows 10.
Image credit: Windows Central Image used with permission by copyright holder

Intel seems to have big plans for the new foldable display spec in the form of a large foldable screen laptop that can adapt to a variety of use cases. Built to meet all the Intel Evo requirements, the computers should be responsive and offer quick charging, satisfactory battery life, and instant wake. The latest Intel Evo also includes Intel’s latest 12th-gen Alder Lake chips.

Recommended Videos

Up until now, foldable screens have been more of a novelty than a functional piece of technology, but it’s impossible to deny the potential is definitely there. A foldable laptop or PC can offer flexibility that similar devices can’t achieve, displaying content in all kinds of different modes, including laptop, tabletop, tablet, and journal mode. Manufacturing a device that can support all these modes with equal success seems to be Intel’s current goal.

Please enable Javascript to view this content

While this type of flexibility is already being offered to some extent by some of the best 2-in-1 laptops, foldable displays could one day have the upper hand. When the entire screen can fold, the user is given access to new viewing angles and possibilities. Using one continuous screen as opposed to two separate screens can come in handy, especially when the device can later be folded to match current tasks.

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Foldable Laptop.
Julian Chokkattu/Digital Trends

Unfortunately, this technology has been far from polished thus far. Foldable PCs utilize Windows, and Windows 10 has not been optimized to make the most of the screen’s potential. So far, Microsoft hasn’t said anything about further optimization for foldable screens in Windows 11. However, it’s possible that with Intel’s plans for this year, we may be seeing support for foldable displays in the next huge Windows update.

Lenovo has already launched a device similar to what Intel may be aiming for, the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold. While undoubtedly a novelty, it didn’t achieve widespread success: The laptop lacked in performance and the absence of support from Windows certainly didn’t help.

As Intel has announced that the new and updated foldable laptops should begin shipping in 2022, we may soon hear from Intel’s partners as they begin releasing these PCs. So far, it seems that all foldable laptop models will rely on Intel chips, as AMD hasn’t revealed any similar plans.

Editors’ Recommendations

Topics
Monica J. White
Monica J. White
Computing Writer
Monica is a computing writer at Digital Trends, focusing on PC hardware. Since joining the team in 2021, Monica has written…
The death of Moore’s Law is finally starting to stink
The back of the Core Ultra 9 285K CPU.

For more than two decades we've heard about the death of Moore's Law. It was a principle of the late Intel co-founder Gordon Moore, positing that the number of transistors in a chip would double about every two years. In 2006, Moore himself said it would end in the 2020s. MIT Professor Charles Leiserson said it was over in 2016. Nvidia's CEO declared it dead in 2022. Intel's CEO claimed the opposite a few days later.

There's no doubt that the concept of Moore's Law -- or rather observation, lest we treat this like some law of physics -- has lead to incredible innovation among desktop processors. But the death of Moore's Law isn't a moment in time. It's a slow, ugly process, and we're finally seeing what that looks like in practice.
Creative solutions

Read more
Intel’s upcoming Arrow Lake CPUs might run into cooling trouble
The cold plate and heat pipes on the Noctua NH-D15 G2 CPU cooler.

By nearly all accounts, Intel is gearing up to release its 15th-gen Arrow Lake CPUs in a matter of weeks. The new generation, which will compete for a slot among the best processors, will use the new LGA 1851 socket, and the redesigned package might be problematic when it comes to keeping the CPU cool.

According to famed overclocker and YouTuber der8auer, the hot spot on Arrow Lake CPUs is "quite a bit further north," meaning that the hottest part of the CPU is situated at the top of the package. Different hot spot locations is nothing new -- for instance, AMD's Ryzen 9 9950X has a hot spot more toward the southern part of the package -- but it's something that cooling companies will need to account for in order to get the best performance.

Read more
Qualcomm might be Intel’s savior after all
The Qualcomm Snapdragon X Plus

Qualcomm is reportedly considering a strategic acquisition of Intel's PC client business, marking a significant shift for the ARM chipset maker. If this move materializes, it could reshape the competitive landscape of the PC industry, giving Qualcomm a foothold in the x86-dominated market while allowing Intel to refocus on its broader growth initiatives.

According to an exclusive report from Reuters, two anonymous sources hinted at these discussions. However, no formal communication has occurred between Intel and Qualcomm so far. An Intel spokesperson emphasized the company’s “deep commitment” to its PC business, echoing statements made at the recent Core Ultra Series 2 launch in Berlin.

Read more