Dell: We're Working on Dual-Screen PCs (by Killing the Keyboard)

Dell today confirmed that it's prepping new dual-screen hardware.

Dell has been exploring multi-screen devices for years, as evidenced by its patent filings. But the PC maker is publicly talking more about the effort as Microsoft unveiled its own dual screen Surface device.

On Wednesday, Dell's chief technology officer for client solutions, Glen Robson, published a blog post talking up the benefits of the additional screen space when it comes to multi-tasking.

"We are designing dual-screen PCs to be productivity enabling experiences," Robson said. "Users will be able to complete multiple tasks more efficiently and seamlessly.

"For example, artists and architects will be able to create on one screen, while referencing photographs on another," he added. "You'll be able to take notes on one screen, while the other shows the slides on a video call; or use one for composing an email, while another shows the spreadsheets you're pulling data from. Imagine that in one light, mobile device."

(A patent Dell filed in 2017 for a dual-screen laptop design.)

According to Robson, Dell has been working with its partners in the last few years to better explore dual-screen devices. It's even hired behavioral psychology experts to help Dell iron out potential designs, some of which reached the "prototyping stage" in 2017.

"Thanks to books, dual-screen and foldable formats are familiar to us, and we see dual screens as a natural evolution of the PC," Robson said. However, his blog post indicates the company may introduce the second screen by getting rid of the traditional laptop keyboard.

"We also know that users today have a strong emotional attachment to physical keyboards. Users will eventually shift to on-screen keyboards in the future or rely on voice-activation or pens, so we are exploring ways to bridge these experiences and embrace the new rules of device interaction," he said.

Although Dell teased no images of its dual-screen products, the vendor has been considering a range of different usage scenarios and input methods when designing the experimental PCs. "We have spent a lot of time exploring the balance between performance, power, and overall aesthetics," he added.

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Dell won't be alone in developing dual-screen laptops. In addition to Microsoft, HP, Asus and Lenovo have recently brought their own models to market. But for now, they remain niche products. We found the Asus ZenBook Pro Duo, for example, to be a thoughtful, albeit pricey, reinvention of the laptop that should appeal to creative professionals with resource-intensive workflows.

We'll have to wait and see what other models PC makers cook up over time and whether they can take the dual-screen PC mainstream.

Editor's Note: This story has been updated with information about Microsoft's dual screen Surface product, which was also unveiled today.

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