Lenovo “rolls out” the next generation of laptop computers

The team of developers at Lenovo are no strangers when it comes to innovation. One of their latest iterations involves a laptop equipped with a roll-out screen; a feature that would have been all but impossible to imagine a handful of years ago. The Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen 6 has been making waves throughout the digital community, and we are wondering if additional screen real estate is worth the price tag. Let’s have a look at some basic features of the ThinkBook Plus to appreciate the big picture.

All about innovation

To be clear, the initial appearance of the ThinkBook Plus Gen 6 is slightly underwhelming. Indeed, consumers would not be blamed for mistaking this for a traditional Lenovo laptop. The main difference occurs when a button is activated that causes the existing 14-inch screen to vertically extend to a total of 16.7 inches; providing a uniquely vertical viewing experience.

While the addition of a mere two inches might not appear to be revolutionary at first glance, we need to remember that this could be a great option when watching movies, reading long blocks of text, playing online bingo, or streaming media files. The gaming community should likewise appreciate the possibilities.

What about functionality?

Lenovo was not trying to reinvent the wheel with this latest iteration (hence the “Gen 6” in the title of the product). In other words, users shouldn’t walk into this expecting a night-and-day leap in raw processing power or a radical design that rewrites the ultrabook rulebook. The appeal here is much more about refinement than revolution: taking an already distinctive concept, smoothing out the rough edges, and packaging it into something that feels coherent as a daily driver rather than a flashy tech demo. 

That approach will make sense to plenty of people. Not everyone wants a laptop that looks like a prototype, many buyers at this end of the market are looking for a premium machine that feels dependable, polished, and familiar the moment you start using it. In that regard, ThinkBook Plus still comes across as a solid overall device, in line with what we’ve come to expect from the brand. It’s the kind of product that aims to impress through consistency: a feature that’s unusual enough to stand out, but not so experimental that it becomes a headache to live with.

Having said this, the laptop still boasts a high-resolution 120 Hz OLED screen; resulting in impressive colour saturation, and plenty of contrast when viewing HD media. A larger screen size could also be useful for those who are required to multitask, as numerous windows can simultaneously remain open.

Possible downsides

One concern that many have stated involves a price tag of just over €3,000. This is rather steep when we consider that users are essentially paying for an additional 2.7 inches of screen real estate. At this price point, expectations shift: buyers start looking for the kind of no-compromise package where everything feels undeniably complete.

That leads to the second worry: the delicate nature of the roll-out screen itself. Moving parts always raise eyebrows, even when the engineering is impressive. It’s not difficult to imagine potential durability concerns, whether that’s wear over time or vulnerability in a bag. 

Finally, the ThinkBook is only equipped with two USB-C ports. That’s a minimal setup, and while some users live happily in a dongle-based world, others see it as an unnecessary limitation.

The Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen 6 is nonetheless an extremely innovative device that should appeal to the high-end ultrabook marketplace. The main question is if the average consumer will feel the same.