Transparency is en vogue – not only at ISE but also to the consumer market: Lenovo is currently showing the first notebook with a transparent MicroLED display at MWC in Barcelona. The technology, although alluring, still needs maturing.
After LG’s transparent OLED TV, Lenovo is now also introducing a transparent consumer product: the “Thinkbook Transparent Laptop Proof of Concept”. The notebook is currently receiving a lot of attention at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona. It features a transparent MicroLED display, similar to the technology that Samsung recently introduced for the Wall in large format.
MicroLED technology enables the display to be significantly brighter than LG’s transparent OLED television, boasting 1,000 nits, making it potentially usable outdoors. However, according to German IT-news site Heise Online, who conducted an in-person test of the proof-of-concept, the resolution falls short of expectations. Currently, the 17.3-inch display is limited to 720p. Additionally, the light transmission cannot be adjusted, causing the contents of the display to be mirrored for anyone viewing it from the other side.
According to Lenovo, the Transparent Thinkbook aims to merge the physical environment with the digital world – allowing physical objects to be overlaid with digital information. For instance, a rear camera can scan objects for processing into videos using an AI app.
The transparent display is designed to blend better with surroundings, although Heise correctly questions its relevance for a notebook compared to a large format display. Unlike a stationary display, a notebook can be conveniently stored in a bag after use. While the immediate use case may not be evident, Lenovo intends to launch the transparent notebook as a consumer product sometime in the future.Let’s see how the final product will look like.