Asus shows off dual-screen laptop

According to IT PRO,

Asus has unveiled a new dual-screen computer prototype, which can be used as a laptop, multimedia machine or an e-book reader.

Similar in design to OLPC’s second generation XO, the concept design dispenses with a hardware keyboard to offer two touchscreens, either of which can be used to display a software keyboard, or even trackpad for those who prefer using the mouse icon over a touch interface.

Both of these would be adjustable, with the keyboard capable of being stretched across both screens should you need extra space. Obviously, users would also be able to manipulate the device through hand gestures, handwriting recognition and multi-touch…

No hint of when this might come to market. Funny how the commercial manufacturers continually copy the XO designers…

More interesting is a new device called The Touch Book, which has the features of a netbook: 10 to 15 hour battery life, low cost and small size, but the interface of a slate computer with a completely detachable keyboard. The Touch Book starts at $299 for slate only configurations or $399 for slate plus keyboard and is poised to dramatically change our view of netbooks. More info here.

Thanks to Jack Schofield for the links.