Lenovo reportedly developing ThinkBook with horizontally expanding display

Windows Latest claims to have gotten its hands on exclusive first-look images of a supposedly new ThinkBook laptop in the works at Lenovo. Reportedly codenamed Project Swan, the images show a machine that, from the front, resembles a standard ThinkBook with a central webcam and two visible USB-C ports along one edge. The back, however, reveals the mechanism that allows the screen to expand outward from both sides. The "Thinkpad" branding on the palm rest indicates that it belongs to Lenovo's business-oriented lineup rather than its gaming or premium consumer lines, and the "Project Swan" name suggests that the device shown is still a pre-production concept.

The mechanism is reminiscent of the ThinkBook Plus Gen 6 Rollable, which expands vertically. Project Swan seemingly stores additional screen space inside housings along the lid’s left and right edges, with motorized rails pulling the screen outward. The hinge connecting the display to the keyboard deck also appears shorter and more centrally placed to make room for the extending rails.

Other specs such as display size, processor or memory remain unknown. In any case, the images come at a time where Samsung's newly launched foldable smartphones appear to be setting a new standard in the world of smartphones, offering additional screen space in compact form factors. But Lenovo's experimentation with flexible computing is nothing new either, with models such as the aforementioned ThinkBook Plus Gen 6 Rollable, Legion Pro Rollable and ThinkBook Flip already having been developed in the past. Project Swan may appear around IFA next month, although this remains unconfirmed.