Dell Announces New Concepts for Dual-screen and Oricon laptops

Dell Announces New Concepts for Dual-screen and Oricon laptops

This year is shaping up to be a very interesting testing ground for dual-screen and foldable PCs, and Dell is showing off two concept devices at CES 2020 that hint at its future vision: the Concept Duet and the Concept Ori.

The Ori is similar to Lenovo's ThinkPad X1 Fold, with a 13-inch OLED display that can be folded in half and used as a mini laptop. However, the Duet is even more intriguing because of what it can do with software gestures and a Bluetooth keyboard.

The Dell Concept Ori has a 13.4" flexible, plastic OLED display. The device is designed for portability and should be considered a supercharged tablet rather than a complete laptop replacement.

Its versatility allows for one app to occupy one side of the display while another app is used on the other side. One app can also be used in full-screen mode, which is especially useful for watching videos.

Concept Ori can be folded in half, allowing the lower part to be used as a touchscreen keyboard.

We like that the Concept Ori is surprisingly compact when folded. It is small enough to easily fit in a notebook or small bag.

What we don't like about this concept is the relatively thick bezels around the screen. Also, the crease in the center of the screen was easier to see than on the ThinkPad X1 Fold.

Whether Dell will bring the Ori to market remains to be seen, but I wouldn't be surprised if the company waits at least until Windows X debuts in late 2020. Its software should be optimized for such a design.

The Dell Concept Duet does not feature a foldable display like the Ori. Instead, it takes advantage of dual 13.4" LCDs to replace a laptop, allowing it to do things that traditional notebooks cannot.

For example, let's say you are planning a trip. While scrolling up and down through brochures on the left display, you can take notes with a pen on the right side of the screen.

You can also capture details from the brochure, paste them on the right side, and annotate them. The idea behind Duet is to provide the multi-functionality of multiple monitors in a single device.

If you want to multitask with two screens stacked on top of each other, you can use Duet's top display to make a Skype call with a colleague while taking notes or reviewing a presentation on the bottom screen.

For a truly immersive experience, Duet allows you to utilize both displays simultaneously to view content, whether you are web browsing or designing. Simply press three fingers on the top of the display to easily switch between these modes.

But the real fun begins here. The Duet comes with a physical keyboard that can be placed on the bottom screen, so you essentially have 1.5 screens in this mode. Even better, when the keyboard is slid over the lower screen, a virtual touchpad appears below it.

When you are done using the keyboard, it attaches magnetically to the bottom of the Duet for easy storage.

While both the Ori and Duet are innovative in their own right, I believe the dual-screen Duet is what shoppers will be immediately drawn to. You don't have to give up a physical keyboard, and it looks more like a traditional laptop.

However, I see this as a secondary device and would like to learn more about what it can do in software and potential use cases before it goes from concept to actual product.

For the latest news and hands-on impressions from Las Vegas, be sure to check out our CES 2020 hub.

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