Lenovo chases dream of making a PC Nintendo Switch with the LaVie Mini concept

Every year at CES we see devices meant to bridge the world of hand and computer games. This year, it’s Lenovo and NEC that’s still chasing the dream with the LaVie Mini. The device is a draft portable laptop hybrid with a laptop and includes a touch screen, controller and accessories for docks.

For those unfamiliar with the name, LaVie is a joint venture between Lenovo and NEC, and although most of its products are not released in the US, it has had a few hits at CES in the past on ultra-light laptops. directed.

In itself, the LaVie Mini looks like a fairly powerful and compact computer. If it were real, the device would have an 8-inch touchscreen with a resolution of 1920 x 1200 and an 11th generation Intel processor with Xe graphics. Of course, there is not really room for a trackpad, but the concept design does make room for an optical touch sensor a la Blackberry.

Image: Lenovo

But acting like a laptop is not really the reason why this concept exists. It exists to play the dream of a computer by hand, one that is more powerful than the devices that Nintendo has announced.

LaVie has also created a game controller accessory that connects to the laptop after you fold back the keyboard. The controller has the same buttons and layout as the Xbox gamepad, so it will know many players, although the weight probably will not be: the laptop weighs 1.28 pounds without the controller attached. By comparison, the Nintendo Switch is 0.88 pounds with the Joy-Con attached.

Do not start beating the gym to make your forearms even better. At the moment there is no announced price or release date for the Mini. We have seen many computer manufacturers at CES come up with similar concepts and ideas for handheld computers.

Most, like Alienware’s UFO concept from last year, never make it to market, because these prototypes are often less about making viable consumer products and more about experimenting with new ideas and form factors and getting the necessary press attention during CES to get. . Some do go on sale, but end up not getting enough players to really make an impact, like Razer’s Edge or the initial Nvidia Shield handheld.

Yet it’s easy to see why companies are still coming back to the idea of ​​a computer that allows you to play PC quality games anywhere. The Nintendo Switch has shown that, when done right, can offer a game of a lounge console that people can not get enough of. Who does not want to be able to play a game while they are around, then come home, put the same device in a dock connected to their TV, and go upright again where they left off?

By the way, this is an experience that will support the LaVie Mini with its optional docking accessories if it ever hits the market.

Image: Lenovo

For now, that experience (at least for people who want the device to be a computer) is likely to stay out of the realm of products they can actually buy. But the LaVie Mini shows that the dream is still alive and may sooner or later come true. We have to wait until next week’s CES to see if LaVie reveals more details about the Mini.