Asus is kicking off IFA 2022 with an innovative product: a flexible OLED display laptop.
Adopting a nomenclature already widely spread on the side of folding smartphones, Asus is entering a promising new market: that of foldable screen laptops. A rather spectacular product, which takes a different view of the junction between digital tablets and laptops traditional.
A 12-inch laptop… with a 17-inch screen!
As on devices of the type Galaxy Z Fold4, the whole point of a folding laptop is to be able to take advantage of different screen formats. In this case, the Asus Zenbook 17 Fold OLED takes the form of a compact 12.5-inch laptop. At least when it is open in the usual way. Because all you have to do is swivel it to discover a large 17.3″ OLED screen with drastically reduced borders.
The Zenbook 17 Fold OLED has a 180° hinge designed to support around 30,000 openings, announces Asus. Necessarily tactile, the screen offers a 4:3 ratio and a 2.5K definition (60 Hz) whose colorimetry is certified by Pantone. A Dolby Vision badge is also affixed to the product, and confirms the support of HDR by the OLED panel. Folded at 90°, the Zenbook 17 Fold has two 12.5-inch screens (3:2 ratio) offering a definition of 1920 x 1280 pixels.
The screen is framed by four Dolby Atmos compatible Harman Kardon speakers. A 5 megapixel webcam with infrared module is also included for facial unlocking of the device.
And laptop All-purpose
The connectivity of the Zenbook 17 Fold OLED is inevitably a bit sparse. It only has two USB-C Thunderbolt 4 ports which can be used for transferring files, connecting a secondary display or charging. On this point, the computer relies on a 75 Wh battery.
On the performance side, the laptop is equipped with a 12th generation Intel Core i7-1250U processor. 16 GB of RAM and a tera of SSD storage complete the technical sheet.
The Zenbook 17 Fold OLED should particularly appeal to those looking for versatility above all. In addition to having a virtual keyboard like any touchscreen tablet, the laptop comes with an external keyboard, connected via Bluetooth, which can operate remotely or attach magnetically to the lower part of the screen. A trackpad is of course included for smoother movement in the Windows 11 interface.
Presented at the IFA in Berlin, the Zenbook 17 Fold OLED is not expected before the fourth quarter of 2022. It will be marketed from € 3,999, announces the manufacturer.