Lenovo Spins Its Newest ThinkBook Proper Spherical (Like a File, Child)

We’ve seen laptops that fold and laptops that roll, however what a few laptop computer that spins? Lenovo’s newest weird notebook design that’s quickly to turn into an precise product you should buy is a brand new ThinkBook with a display screen on a pivot. In a model of a beleaguered coder’s worst nightmare, the laptop computer’s display screen can comply with you regardless of how far you attempt to scurry round your desk.

Previewed to Gizmodo for CES 2026, the $1,650 ThinkBook Plus Gen 7 Auto Twist makes use of a hinge that may rotate alongside a horizontal and vertical axis. Alongside face monitoring with its webcam, the laptop computer can comply with your actions while you’re pacing throughout a gathering or lounging again in your chair, watching Netflix and ignoring all of the pings you’re getting on Slack. The Auto Twist must be out there beginning in June this 12 months.

In particular person, the spinning mechanism is near-silent and considerably eerie for a way effectively it may possibly observe your physique as you attempt to maneuver out of body. The one challenge with my demo stemmed from positioning two individuals within the body directly. The Auto Twist grew confused and would comply with one particular person or one other regardless of how shut they had been to the laptop computer. It was the identical downside with Lenovo’s Smart Motion Concept laptop computer holder, although the ThinkBook is much extra cell than that large brick of a tool.

Regardless of the odd contraption that lets the show pivot, you’re not sacrificing a lot for the sake of a concept-made-reality. The brand new 14-inch ThinkBook comes with a 2.8K OLED show that sports activities as much as a 120Hz refresh charge. It options an Intel Core Ultra Series 3 processor inside with choices for a chip with 12 Xe3 GPU cores. The additional GPU headroom may very well be useful if you happen to intend to make this laptop computer a conveyable workstation for some light-weight graphics duties.

If that wasn’t sufficient, Lenovo can be contemplating a revised model of its ThinkBook Gen 6 Rollable laptop from 2025. The brand new ThinkPad Rollable XD is one other idea system constructed for Lenovo’s long-standing business-oriented laptops, although with a twist. It nonetheless incorporates a 14-inch versatile display screen that extends to only north of 16 inches vertically. Whereas the ThinkBook makes use of a mechanism to feed the display screen into the laptop computer physique, the ThinkPad makes use of a bunch of carbon fiber cables and pulleys to tug the show into the laptop computer lid. There’s a chunk of clear plastic on the highest to guard the folded show’s most delicate half.

Placing the versatile show within the lid has a number of advantages. One, it retains the chassis out there for the form of higher-end specs and cooling equipment you need for a pint-sized laptop computer. Two, the collapsing display screen then turns into a secondary half-display on the again. Lenovo confirmed how this may very well be used for alerts and updates when you have the lid closed or to indicate off a video to individuals trying on the other aspect of your laptop computer.

That idea isn’t fairly a real-life product but. The rolling and twisting ThinkBooks have proved that Lenovo is keen to make these oddball merchandise a actuality. Certain, chances are you’ll not have use for these laptops, however at the very least Lenovo’s staying on the entrance of maintaining the previous, staid laptop computer design recent.

Gizmodo is on the bottom in Las Vegas all week bringing you every little thing you want to know concerning the tech unveiled at CES 2026. You may comply with our CES live blog here and find all our coverage here.