Lenovo’s new ThinkBook is half Windows laptop, half Android tablet [Gallery]

Ben Schoon | Jan 8 2024 - 3:00 pm PT

Laptops and tablets can do a lot of the same things, but ultimately they each have their own strengths. With its new ThinkBook Plus Gen 5 Hybrid, though, Lenovo is putting together the best of both worlds by creating a machine that’s half Windows laptop and half an Android tablet.

The Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen 5 Hybrid is genuinely two devices in one, with a powerful Windows laptop base connecting to a detachable display which, on its own, can function as an Android tablet.

The “Hybrid Station” base has all of the inner workings of a traditional laptop – a powerful one at that. It has Windows 11 with an Intel Core Ultra 7 processor, Intel Arc GPU, and up to 32GB of RAM and a 1TB SSD. It further has two USB-C ports, a fingerprint reader, and a 75WHr battery with 100W charging. And then, of course, it has a keyboard and trackpad.

The “Station” technically has no display, though. Instead, the detachable “Hybrid Tab” can dock onto the Station and provide its 14-inch, 2.8K OLED display for use in Windows 11.

Under that display, though, there’s a full tablet, but it doesn’t run Windows. Rather, it’s an Android tablet, offering up Android 13 with a Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1, 12GB of RAM, 256GB of storage, and its own battery, speakers, and USB-C port. The tablet can function completely on its own, but the two operating systems seemingly won’t share each other’s files or any of that. The Station, on its own, can still power a desktop experience with an external monitor.

The concept is somewhat similar to Microsoft’s Surface Book, which lets the display act as a Windows tablet that gets a power boost when docked to the keyboard. But Lenovo’s concept benefits from a lighter, more power-efficient tablet half by switching it over to Android.

And this is no concept!

Lenovo is launching this new ThinkBook Plus in Q2 2024 for $1,999.

Alongside this, Lenovo is also launching several more Windows-powered machines at CES 2024. New ThinkBook releases coming in 2024 include:

ThinkBook 13x Gen 4: 13.5-inch 3:2 ultra-narrow bezels – Q1 2024 starting at $1,399
ThinkBook 14i Gen 6: 14.5-inch up to 90Hz OLED – Q2 2024 starting at $2,199 with Graphics Extension bundle
ThinkBook 16p Gen 5: Ultra-powerful with Intel Core i9, RTX 4060, 165Hz 16-inch display – Q1 2024 starting at $1,599

There’s also the ThinkBook 13x Gen 4 SPE, a concept machine with a customizable color e-ink display on the outside.

ThinkBook 13x Gen 4 SPE
ThinkBook 13x Gen 4
ThinkBook 14i Gen 6
ThinkBook 16p Gen 5

Beyond that, there are also several consumer releases being announced at CES 2024. This includes the second-generation Lenovo Yoga Book 9i, the 2-in-1 dual-screen laptop which now has Intel Core Ultra chips and better sound.

There’s also:

Lenovo Yoga 9i and Yoga Pro 9i: AI-focused premium laptops
Lenovo Yoga Pro 7i Gen 9: 14-inch laptop with Intel Core Ultra for creators
Lenovo Yoga Pro 7 Gen 9: 14-inch laptop with AMD Ryzen 7 8845HS for creators
Lenovo Yoga 7i 2-in-1 Gen 9: 14-inch and 16-inch sizes for convertible laptop tablet
Lenovo Slim 7i Gen 9: 14-inch super-thin Intel Core Ultra Evo with OLED display