I just tried Lenovo’s first rollable ThinkPad — and it’s wonderfully weird
From 13 to 16 inches with a swipe
The ThinkPad Rollable XD Concept seems like a laptop that is designed to merely turn heads at CES 2026 and then disappear into the ether.
But Lenovo’s vision with this laptop is to pave a path to a future where you can decide when ordering a ThinkPad if you want a rollable display or not.
We saw a similar concept in the ThinkBook Plus Gen 6 Rollable last year, but the ThinkPad Rollable XD is different in a few key ways.
Key changes to the formula
For starters, the display doesn’t roll into the base. When the screen grows from 13.3 inches to 16 inches vertically, It rolls up and over the top of the display.
There’s also an external touchscreen (world-facing display) that covers the top third of the lid, complete with interactive widgets for your AI assistant, sticky notes, weather and more.
When fully extended you can actually see the internals of the laptop, including the cables that make this magic all happen. This panel is tough, too, as it’s made of Gorilla Glass Victus 2. I also like that you can activate the rolling just by pressing your finger on the top edge of the display and then gliding it across.
Outlook
So what’s the point of the ThinkPad Rollable XD Concept? You can see a lot more of everything from documents to webpages with the screen fully unfurled, or you can run one app on top and another on the bottom. So you get 50% more real estate without carrying around a huge laptop.
ThinkPad Rollable XD Concept is impressive, but its is considerably heavier than a typical 13-inch laptop. And I don’t know how much I’d be willing to pay for the ability to grow my screen on demand. But overall I like the direction Lenovo is heading.
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Mark Spoonauer is the global editor in chief of Tom's Guide and has covered technology for over 20 years. In addition to overseeing the direction of Tom's Guide, Mark specializes in covering all things mobile, having reviewed dozens of smartphones and other gadgets. He has spoken at key industry events and appears regularly on TV to discuss the latest trends, including Cheddar, Fox Business and other outlets. Mark was previously editor in chief of Laptop Mag, and his work has appeared in Wired, Popular Science and Inc. Follow him on Twitter at @mspoonauer.
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