Convertible / 2-in-1

With the Hi10 XR, Chuwi offers a convertible that supports pen input and a detachable keyboard. Its Celeron N4120 processor should keep things ticking over too, as should its 6 GB of RAM.

With the W12, Pipo combines a Qualcomm Snapdragon 850 chipset, up to 8 GB of RAM and a 37 Wh battery in a 2-in-1 form factor. The device has a high-resolution 3:2 display and up to 8 GB of RAM.

The versatile 2-in-1 laptop strikes a great balance between performance and price when compared to other models in its category. Students and home users with tight budgets may want to consider this Lenovo Flex.

The Asus ROG Flow X13 GV301 laptop in combination with an AMD Ryzen 9 5980HS APU has been spotted in a couple of test runs on Geekbench. The Ryzen 9 5980HS produced strong single-core and multi-core results that hold up well against the Ryzen 9 4900H and Intel Core i7-1165G7. At one point, the Zen 3 chip was measured reaching 4.789 GHz.

Samsung has certified a new line of products with the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG). They are called the Galaxy Book Pro and Galaxy Book Pro 360. By the sound of it, they are new PCs of the laptop or convertible form-factor.

The latest product images reveal that the One Mix 4 will feature a digital pen, backlit keyboard with touchpad, 3x USB-C ports and a microSD reader. Apparently, there are no Thunderbolt 4 ports, and One-Netbook is dropping the SIM slot, as well.

Samsung Display has commenced the mass production of the first 90 Hz OLED displays for laptops. According to Samsung, the high-speed driving performance of its OLED displays is comparable to that of an LCD display with a 120 Hz refresh rate.

Users who don't plan on exploiting the Thunderbolt 4 port of the Win 3 will be missing out on the single most important feature of the handheld as it is the secret to turning the system into a full-fledged docked Core i7 laptop PC.

The new Microsoft Surface Pro 7+ has made a couple of appearances on Geekbench that point to the convertible laptop being ideal for some light gaming sessions. The Iris Xe iGPU in the Surface Pro 7+ device’s Intel Core i7-1165G7 managed to outscore both the Nvidia GeForce MX350 dGPU and AMD’s Radeon RX Vega 8 (Ryzen 4000 class).

With up to 12 hours of battery life and a MIL-STD 810H-certified rugged design, the Acer TravelMate Spin B3 convertible promises to deliver all that classroom use requires. This Windows 10-powered portable will hit China in February, EMEA in Q2, and North America in April, with prices starting at US$329.99.

Acer has used the BETT education show to debut four new Chromebooks. Headlining the new models is the Chromebook 511 which includes LTE support and is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 7c, compute optimized chipset.

According to Roland Quandt, the next Snapdragon chipset for Windows 10 on ARM machines has been spotted. Apparently, the Snapdragon SC8280 has a larger die size than the Snapdragon 8cx Gen 2 and support for up to 32 GB of RAM. The Snapdragon SC8280 has been tested with Qualcomm's Snapdragon X55 modem too, meaning that it should support 5G connectivity.

A recent video from WindowsCentral's YouTube channel purports to demo the Windows 10X interface. The latest word on this version of the OS is that it will first arrive on devices that are single-screen, touchscreen-oriented or both. Its new leak seems to bear that impression out in detail.

Ice Lake laptops had a lot of flak for launching at high prices, but these newer deals can be hard to pass for those who don't want to spend hundreds more for the latest 11th gen Intel processors.

The ThinkBook 14s Yoga doesn't attract attention by setting performance records but rather with its good ergonomics. The Lenovo engineers have focused on low emissions, good stamina and a decent keyboard. The touchscreen display can be used both with your fingers and with the included Smart Pen.

The Asus BR1100 is a new ruggedized convertible designed for the education market. In addition to features typical of a ruggedized school notebook (e.g., a rubberized bumper), the BR1100 includes an active stylus that can detect up to 4096 levels of pressure. The laptop can charge the stylus for up to 45 minutes of use in just 15 seconds.

Nex Computer has returned with its latest laptop shell, the NexDock 360. The machine features a 13.3-inch touchscreen in a 2-in-1 convertible form factor, along with a 44 Wh battery, a large trackpad and inputs to connect a smartphone or a Raspberry Pi.

Update | Lenovo does not just updates their high-end ThinkPads of the X1 series: The new ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 9 is the biggest redesigns of the series since 2017. Together with the convertible sister ThinkPad X1 Yoga Gen 6, the new X1 Carbon uses screens in the 16:10 aspect-ratio for the first time. And that is not the only change.

The successor to the Surface Pro 7 is here, but it is not the Surface Pro 8. Instead, Microsoft has called its latest convertible the Surface Pro 7 Plus, and has only made it available to business customers and educational institutions. The Surface Pro 7 Plus contains plenty of upgrades over the Surface Pro 7 too, albeit in the same ageing chassis.

It is no secret that the Surface Pro 8 will be another minor revision on the Surface Pro series' dated design. Microsoft will update its famous 2-in-1s to Intel's Tiger Lake platform, while retaining the chassis from previous Surface Pro generations. The Surface Pro 8 will start at US$899.99 for the Core i3 model too, but that price does not include a keyboard. Microsoft will charge nearly US$3,000 for the privilege of 32 GB of RAM, too.

HP asserts that its new Elite-series earbuds are an enterprise-grade way of introducing wireless audio into your professional online conferencing set-up. They are rated for both passive and active noise cancellation (PNC and ANC), streamlined device-switching and fast case charging via USB type C.

HP has announced two new Intel Tiger Lake-powered convertibles; the HP EliteBook x360 1030 G8 and HP EliteBook x360 1040 G8. Both notebooks can be configured with up to 32GB of RAM, 2TB of solid-state storage, 4K screens, and a 78Wh battery. HP will tell us more about their prices as its January 2021 approaches.

HP has launched a new 2-in-1 notebook called the HP Elite Folio. Some of its key specifications include a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8cx chipset, 13.5-inch WUXGA (1920 x 1280) IPS LCD panel, up to 16GB of RAM, 512GB of storage and 5G. It will be up for sale starting February 2021.

Dell is running a slew of winter discounts on its official deals page. One of the more enticing deals in the list currently is that of the XPS 13 7390 2-in-1, which is now available at a neat US$559 discount. This gets you a machine powered by the Core i7-1065G7, UHD+ display, 16 GB RAM, and a 512 GB SSD.

Lenovo and NEC have teamed up to introduce new Tiger Lake devices in the Lavie range. The Lavie Mini is an 8-inch handheld gaming PC that comes with optional gaming controller and gaming dock accessories. The Lavie Pro Mobile is a 13.3-inch ultrabook that combines form and functionality without much compromise on the connectivity front.

Acer has introduced the Chromebook Spin 514 — the first Chromebook to be powered by AMD Ryzen 3000C series of Chromebook APUs. The Chromebook Spin 14 is offered in both consumer and Enterprise variants and sports a durable chassis, adequate port selection, and support for Android apps from the Play Store. The Enterprise version can also be availed as part of Acer's Device-as-a-Service program.

The Blackview Tab 8E is a new and inexpensive Android tablet that could also be used as a laptop replacement. The machine has a 1200p display, runs Android 10 and has a massive 6,580 mAh battery. The Tab 8E retails for under US$200 with a removable keyboard.

Just beneath the flagship segment, Dell places the Latitude 7000 series. This high-end lineup gains a new member this year: The Dell Latitude 7520 is the first 15.6 inch version of this class. Also, the pre-existing models are updated. The new Dell Latitude 7420 and Latitude 7320 are available as both laptop and convertible versions.

Dell has spruced-up its premium Latitude 9000 series lineup with a design refresh and internal upgrades. The Latitude 9420 comes in both 2-in-1 and traditional laptop form factors. Both variants sport 16:10 displays and are powered by Intel 11th gen Tiger Lake processors with vPro configurations. The new Latitude 9420 also offers an automatic SafeShutter for the webcam and AI-powered Dell Optimizer software.

With a release date that still has to be disclosed, the Dell Optimizer software solution promises to deliver a wide range of improvements and optimizations. Dell describes this piece of code as a built-in AI solution that "learns and adapts to the way you work" and is the first of its kind.

Tipster @LeaksApplePro recently claimed that Apple is set to release a new 12-core Apple Silicon Mac lineup this year, with an announcement as early as this March. While unconfirmed, this part could potentially propel Apple Silicon to multithreaded dominance over mobile Ryzen.

Microsoft equips the second generation of its compact convertible with a slightly bigger screen and an optional LTE modem. The performance of the passively cooled device is sufficient for everyday tasks, but modern ARM tablets are more powerful and offer longer battery runtimes.

Tipster @LeaksApplePro hinted that Cupertino’s working on a massive 64-core ARM-based chip, possibly for future iterations of the Mac Pro. Details are thin on the ground, but the silicon could pose a threat to both Intel and AMD if it materialises.

Microsoft could be planning on offering a much-needed minor but vital spec bump with the base variant of the upcoming Surface Pro 8. The entry level device in the Microsoft Surface Pro 7 series comes with i3 processor and 4 GB RAM. However, it’s believed the Microsoft Surface Pro 8 will come with an 8 GB RAM option for the basic model.

The smart-looking Samsung Galaxy Book Flex2 5G has appeared in a couple of official videos from the South Korean OEM, including an unboxing video. The Galaxy Book Flex2 5G is the new name for the Galaxy Book Flex 5G, which was actually launched in September. The convertible features an Intel Core i5-1130G7, i5-1135G7, or i7-1165G7 chip.

The Spectre x360 14 can be considered an early look at what's to come for future Spectre and EliteBook models should HP decide to continue investing in 3:2 laptops.

The 14-inch Lenovo IdeaPad 5 with AMD Ryzen 7 4700U is currently available at a price of US$599 at Walmart. Not only does the Lenovo IdeaPad 15 thin and light laptop sport a terrific 8-core Renoir Ryzen 4000 chip, but it also comes with a 256 GB SSD. Lenovo is offering the IdeaPad Flex 14 AMD 2-in-1 variant at a similar price.

The low RAM capacity will instantly turn away most buyers. If that doesn't bother you, however, then the sale isn't so bad considering the display and support that come with the Surface family.

A Twitter-based leaker claims to have found new Geekbench listings that show Mac devices based on the new M1 silicon running Windows on ARM (WoA) via the Parallels desktop. Not only that, but this new combination apparently results in scores about double those achieved by the SQ2-powered Surface Pro X, which runs this kind of OS by default.

The GS76 Stealth could be one of the first gaming laptops to feature the Tiger Lake-H processors coupled with the mobile RTX 3000 GPUs. Apart from the redesigned chassis, the GS76 could also get a 360 Hz screen (still in validation process) and Thunderbolt 4 connectivity. MSI is also introducing a new E16 Flip convertible to the Summit lineup. This one comes with carbon fiber chassis and integrates Tiger Lake-U plus Nvidia GTX GPUs.