Lenovo Rabbi Mini is a Wild Laptop/Switch Hybrid

Lenovo Rabbi Mini is a Wild Laptop/Switch Hybrid

Need a PowerPoint machine and a gaming machine in one? Lenovo's Lavie Mini (co-developed with NEC Corporation) looks like just the device you've been looking for.

The Lavie Mini is the latest in a series of unique products shown off at CES 2021. It is a netbook prototype with a small 8" touch display (1900x1200) while powered by an 11th generation Core i7 processor and Intel's latest Iris Xe graphics. The device is so small that it does not even have a trackpad.

The cool thing about the Lavie Mini, however, is that it can be turned into a Nintendo Switch-like gaming device by attaching a Joy Con-style controller to the side. Since this laptop is a 2-in-1, the keyboard can be flipped over to play PC games with the gaming controller attached.

Unfortunately, since this is just a prototype at this point, Lenovo has not yet set a price or release date. We can only hope that it will come to fruition.

If it does come to fruition, Lenovo has stated that the 11th generation processor will be accompanied by a 256GB SSD and 16GB of LPDDR4 RAM.

Now, cool design alone won't make up for Intel's Iris Xe graphics, which, while a significant performance improvement over Intel's previous integrated graphics line, are still far behind dedicated graphics cards. In benchmark tests by our sister site Tom's Hardware, Intel's Iris Xe plays games such as "Shadow of the Tomb Raider" and "Borderlands 3" at 1080p at about 30 fps, but at low settings. [However, older games like "Grand Theft Auto V" were able to achieve 60 fps frame rates at normal settings. So while newer AAA titles will struggle on this device, older games and esports titles should run well enough.

What about the actual feel and operation? Lenovo managed to make the Lavie Mini just 1.3 pounds. And if you want to make it more Switch-like, you can dock it and output to a larger display via HDMI. The dock also adds USB type A and C ports.

Since it is a prototype, we do not know when it will actually hit Best Buy store shelves. However, we expect it to appear sooner rather than later. Lenovo has not revealed a release date or price at this time.

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