Future Apple MacBook laptops could arrive with a ‘living hinge’ akin to the Microsoft Surface Book, according to a recently surfaced patent.
In the latest filing, it appears as if Apple is working on its answer to the “dynamic fulcrum hinge”, which enables Surface Book users to remove the display and turn it around for use as a tablet.
While we don’t expect Apple to launch a touchscreen MacBook any time soon, this may be a way for Apple to craft the MacBook’s body from a single piece of metal.
Related: Surface Book 2 review
The latest filing (via 9to5 Mac) from the European Patent Office reads:
“An enclosure for a laptop may be created from a rigid material having a flexible portion defined around approximately a midpoint of the material. The flexible portion may allow the rigid material to be folded in half and thus acts as a laptop clamshell.
“A top portion may support a display screen and a bottom portion may support a keyboard, track pad, and the like, while an interior defined by sidewalls of the rigid material may house a variety of electronic components in accordance with conventional laptop computing devices.
In this manner, the enclosure (or a portion thereof) may be created from a single rigid material, while still providing flexibility and bending for the enclosure.”
Patently Apple points out Apple has been working on this concept in one way or another since at least 2013, so this looks like the latest iteration.
Would you like to see Apple freshen up the design of the MacBook’s hinge? Drop us a line @TrustedReviews on Twitter.
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Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
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We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
