Companies like Oppo and TCL have shown us prototypes for rollable gadgets, and LG was apparently working on a usable rollable smartphone until it stopped manufacturing mobile devices last year. Now, Lenovo is demonstrating a laptop with a rollout display, and its mobile unit Motorola has a roll-out smartphone. These innovations appear to be some of the most useful ones to date.
The OLED display on the phone can be extended to a normal-sized 6.5 inches with the push of a button from its initial, highly pocketable height of 4 inches. The phone may be retracted to its original shape with one more click. It can be used at both sizes, and the home screen, movies, and other material adjust to the size, as demonstrated below.
Lenovo also demonstrated a rollable laptop that unfolds into a square form from a standard landscape orientation, making it ideal for papers or vertical TikTok-style films. The ThinkPad 360P laptop/tablet served as the starting point for Lenovo’s study into innovative form factors, according to Brian Leonard, vice president of design at Lenovo. It offers individuals an unparalleled opportunity to multitask for work, browsing, and more, he said. “It can extend into a much bigger screen real estate as the information dynamically adjusts to the screen.”
Rollable gadgets are considerably more difficult to create than folding ones, but Motorola already produces one called the Razr that is regrettably only sold in China. However, people appear to adore them; at CES 2019, LG’s rollable OLED TV was a hit. Additionally, because there are no hinges or creases to worry about, a rolling screen might be considered more beautiful than a folding one. While it now just exists as a concept, we’d love to see Lenovo try to make it a reality.
