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from the what-goes-around...gets-smaller dept.
Laptop bezels are dead, and IFA killed them
In the past few years, IFA has become a laptop show. It may not be the place where companies like Apple or Microsoft show off their flashiest hardware, but when it comes to the midrange, workhorse laptops that dominate the shelves at Best Buy and desks at schools, IFA is where you'll find them. That's why it's so interesting that there's been what feels like an overnight revolution in laptop screens at this year's show: bezels are dead, and IFA killed them.
[...] These new laptops are pushing the screen-to-body ratio higher than ever: the Swift 5 is 87.6 percent screen, while the newly teased Swift 7 checks in at 92 percent. And Asus' ZenBooks feature a new ErgoLift hinge design, which is (in theory) to improve typing, but it also cleverly hides the lower bezel so that Asus can claim it's up to 95 percent screen.
Removing bezels isn't just about aesthetics. Yes, bezel-less screens look fantastic, but that's only a piece of the puzzle. The real advantages lie in the fact that, suddenly, companies can fit bigger screens into the existing form factors we have now. Take Acer's new Swift 5, which fits a 15.6-inch display into the old 14-inch form factor, resulting in what the company claims is the lightest 15-inch class laptop ever. On the flip side, we're also getting computers like Asus' 13-inch ZenBook. By killing the bezels, it's possible to shrink the entire laptop down, giving users a dramatically smaller 13-inch class laptop than ever before.
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(Score: 5, Insightful) by Dr Spin on Sunday September 02 2018, @11:56AM (6 children)
The real advantage of slimmer bezels is that the devices are flimsier and much easier to break, so there is a bigger market for replacements.
It is possible that some people (and a lot of robots) think they look sexy, but if you think laptops and phone look sexy, you need to look deeply into your soul and see if your diode based logic doesn't need to be upgraded to modern FPGAs.
Some people (which means human beings) actually USE computers and even phones, to do useful things. I seriously question whether selfie obsessed nutters are actually human, and
I am reasonably confident that the reviews which promote slim phones with glass backs and no bezel are written by shills (who, like trolls, live under bridges in remote and probably mythical parts of Scandinavia, and are known to be only partly human).
Warning: Opening your mouth may invalidate your brain!
(Score: 2) by suburbanitemediocrity on Sunday September 02 2018, @04:46PM
I use computers to get real work done, with the occasional goof off break. When I'm working, I don't notice anything about the computer. It's just a tool for getting something done.
It's like the people who think the fastest way to learn to play the guitar is by buying a bunch of effects pedals.
(Score: 4, Insightful) by takyon on Sunday September 02 2018, @05:05PM
If you need a Toughbook or other rugged laptop, you should get one. Otherwise you shouldn't be dropping or breaking your laptop, or you should have a $100 laptop that you can destroy without regretting it.
No/tiny bezel does not mean that it has to be weak. It can use toughened glass (e.g. Gorilla Glass) and aluminum for the frame instead of plastic.
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 3, Funny) by Bot on Sunday September 02 2018, @11:15PM (2 children)
> and a lot of robots) think they look sexy
No, they are indecent. What's next, the cpu in plain sight? COVER UP IF YOU DON'T WANT TO BE SHORTED.
Account abandoned.
(Score: 2) by archfeld on Monday September 03 2018, @04:15AM (1 child)
I may be strange but I think a lap made of clear acrylic would be cool. Not cool enough to sacrifice functionality but still. I'd also say the same thing about a car. It would be cool to see an IC engine running at speed, the pistons and crank shaft etc. but again not cool enough to sacrifice performance or safety.
For the NSA : Explosives, guns, assassination, conspiracy, primers, detonators, initiators, main charge, nuclear charge
(Score: 2) by Bot on Sunday September 09 2018, @09:30PM
Well for the IC engine, I guess it would not stay clear for long and very exotic materials would be needed.
Account abandoned.
(Score: 2) by toddestan on Tuesday September 04 2018, @02:35AM
It's actually kind of funny, since bezels actually got thicker after the 2000's. My Thinkpad R60 from about 2006 has a thinner bezel than most any laptop that came after it (not counting the ones in the article of course). Part of it is due to the 4:3 screen - people seem to say that widescreen is better for laptops. Perhaps 4:3 is a tad on a the tall side, but with widescreen you end up having to letterbox the screen into the lid because it's actually too short. This actually kind of works out because that means there is a place to stick the ubiquitous camera but the end result is a thicker bezel. The thicker bezels is also one reason why modern laptops seem a class size larger compared to the laptops of yesteryear - for example the current crop of 15" laptops really don't feel much smaller than the 17" laptops from a decade ago.