14 DAY TRIAL // A new patent suggests Samsung might be working to put on the market a device that draws design cues from Lenovo Yoga or ASUS Transformer models.
Samsung has lots of smartphones and tablets available on the market, but when it comes to 2-in-1 hybrids, its portfolio isn't that rich. Back in June 2013, Sammy introduced the Ativ Book Q, one of the first devices to be capable of running both Android and Windows.
The machine apparently met a similar fate to that of ASUS Transformer Book Duet, which was reportedly sabotaged by Google and hence has been postponed by the manufacturing company.
Anyway, it appears Samsung is not looking to abandon the 2-in-1 form factor. A new patent filled by the Korean tech giant and uncovered by PatentBolt details a hybrid between a notebook and tablet.
Curiously enough, there’s no mention of what OS will come pre-loaded on the device, but the sketches in the filing shed some light on some basic design cues.
The attention is drawn by the hinge system, which looks a little bit reminiscent of Lenovo. Additionally, there are apparently two different ways in which users will be able to separate the display from the keyboard.
The 2-in-1 will also comes with an atypical housing that allows Samsung’s digital pens to be stored in the hinge.
As mentioned above, the filing gives no indication which OS we’re going to see running on the device. Judging by previous rumors, Samsung was expected to renounce the production of Windows-based notebooks and concentrate on Chromebook offerings instead.
This is not in accord with recent events, as this week Samsung launched the Windows 8.1 based ATIV Book 9 Style Ultrabook in Germany.
Also bear in mind, Sammy has started pushing its Tizen more aggressively and a Tizen-based tablet hybrid might be just around the corner.
We haven’t seen any Chromebooks with detachable screens before, so maybe Samsung is looking to further innovate in this department. Currently Chrome-enhanced laptops hold as much as 9.6% of the market in the US, while Windows-based ones have dominion over 34.1%.
We can hypothesize Samsung is waiting to see how the wind is blowing in the Chromebook market, before making a final decision OS-wise. However, it’s highly unlikely the tech giant will opt for a dual-OS system, having been through a cancellation with the Ativ Book Q.