Triple display, solar and flexible screen: Lenovo concepts at the MWC 2025

Trade fairs such as the MWC in Barcelona are always the stage for interesting concepts and prototypes. Lenovo is showing three of them, all of which have to do with notebooks and are intended to expand their possibilities.

The clear eye-catcher among the prototypes is the Thinkbook Flip. Lenovo has gone wild with the display here and installed a foldable monitor that has a diagonal of 18.2 inches when unfolded. The touchscreen folds outwards so that the Flip can be used almost like a tablet when closed. The Flip's touchpad also has a lot to offer, as it is multifunctional and fulfills three additional tasks in addition to the normal mouse replacement. A numeric keypad including a calculator, multimedia control or shortcuts for system functions can be displayed and controlled via touch. Lenovo sees the Flip as a further concept to the notebook with scroll display that the company showed some time ago. The Thinkbook Flip will not be launched on the market in its current form.

This also applies to Lenovo's solar notebook. This is a normal notebook with a solar cell in the lid to help generate electricity. Lenovo promises an efficiency of 24 percent, 20 minutes in the sun should give the device another hour of local video playback. When it comes to energy consumption, the solar notebook always prioritizes the solar cell, meaning that the power generated there is used first, bypassing the battery and power supply unit, and is supplemented by the other energy sources. However, it is doubtful whether the small surface area could provide any relevant power in practice. In Barcelona, the notebook only generated around 1 watt when it was barely cloudy, and only when it was held upside down in the sky. In normal use, the solar cell also points downwards rather than upwards. Nevertheless, the integration of solar into the notebook remains an interesting idea.

Two extra displays for docking

Lenovo already introduced the Magic Bay, a magnetic interface for docking accessories, some time ago. Now, with the Dual Display Concept, there is another (theoretical) way to use the connector. Two swiveling 13.3-inch monitors dock onto the Magic Bay and give the notebook much more display space and possibilities. Lenovo also showed a module with a single 8-inch display at MWC 2025. While such additional screens would have a significant impact on battery life, they would be very useful for mobile working.

With the two projects "Tiko" and "Tiko Pro", Lenovo has developed two more gadgets for the Magic Bay. Tiko Pro is an elongated display with AI support that automatically displays real-time widgets and makes Lenovo AI Now accessible. Tiko is the smaller, cuddlier version of this, which is designed to be an AI companion for emotional interaction in the form of a small cat, among other things. The two Tikos are also unlikely to come onto the market in this form, at least for now.

(sht)