Laptop concept would roll up like a yoga mat

Although tablets and notebooks currently provide rather practical mobile computing options, Germany’s Orkin Design suggests combining the two into a single, incredibly compact gadget. Utilizing developments in flexible OLED and touchscreen technology, the Rolltop idea aims to develop a laptop computer in the shape of a cylinder that can be unfolded to function as a notebook, tablet, or display monitor. Although the idea has been around for a long, the design has lately undergone some changes. While details are scarce, continue reading to find out what we do know.

Instead of carrying about a notebook crammed with all kinds of connections in a laptop bag, the Rolltop concept suggests gathering everything into a flat panel display that is encircled by a central cylinder. The carry strap functions as a power cable and the top of the column detaches to use as a power connector (but no information has been provided regarding battery technology). Speakers, a camera, USB ports, and a LAN port are also located in the middle column.

Once the catch was unlocked, the user could unfold the Rolltop display like a mat and use it as a 17-inch tablet computer by leaving it flat or by raising one end to resemble a notebook. Next, the top portion of the screen transforms into a 13-inch display for content viewing, while the bottom portion is utilized for typing on a virtual onscreen keyboard. A stylus pen is integrated into the panel’s body, and the flattened device may also be utilized as a monitor-like display thanks to a pull-out support at the rear.

All we can say is that Rolltop when rolled up, will measure 11 inches (28 cm) in length and 3.26 inches (8.3 cm) in diameter. Some of the technological issues are still being worked out because this is a concept meant to be implemented in the future, but Orkin has declared that it intends to see this idea through to an actual, real-world product. Naturally, there are a lot of technological challenges to be solved before that can occur, and sadly, the designers don’t provide much information on how these challenges will be resolved, leaving us to make assumptions.

It is not difficult to see the many technologies that are now present in all-in-one PCs, dual-screen laptops, and state-of-the-art tablets being integrated into the Rolltop. This gadget could perhaps be possible now because of recent advancements in bendy screen technology. We’ll just have to wait till this project has more substance as information regarding how internal components like CPUs, memory, storage, and graphics cards will be handled has not yet been released.