• Lenovo ThinkBook VertiFlex is a concept laptop with rotating 14 inch display
• It has a slim ultraportable design and offers Smart Connect smartphone tethering
• Who it will appeal to, and how durable the rotating hinge is, remain unknowns for now

Lenovo has confirmed that ThinkBook VertiFlex, previously known under the codename Project Pivo, is real.

First shown off at the end of August 2025 on X by renown serial leaker Evan Blass, the concept laptop was officially revealed at IFA 2025 in Berlin and it’s just as bonkers as we were expecting.

The ThinkBook VertiFlex features a 14-inch screen that rotates independently of the lid. This mechanism allows the device to switch between horizontal and vertical orientations.

Ultraportable

In vertical mode, Lenovo suggests the business laptop could be useful for displaying and writing code, reading documents and long webpages, or running multiple windows side by side.

The device is slim at just 17.9mm and weighs 1.39kg, making one of the lightest laptops around.

A vertical orientation is not new in the world of external monitors, but it is far less common in a laptop.

Lenovo sees it as a productivity enhancer for users who would benefit from a taller display.

The rotating hinge system is interesting, and while I can see how it would work, inevitable questions arise about its long-term durability.

Lenovo also announced Smart Connect, a feature that links a user’s smartphone to the VertiFlex.

When the screen is in vertical orientation, the tethered phone can share files or mirror its display directly on the laptop.

This suggests the company sees the device as more than a simple curiosity, although the actual audience for such a design is a little less clear.

Concept laptops have a mixed history, with many never making it to market, although some, like Lenovo’s rollable ThinkBook, eventually did.

The VertiFlex fits into that unusual and untried category, where it will definitely appeal to a narrow group of professionals but general buyers will struggle to grasp the point of it, especially if it comes with a high price tag.

I certainly applaud Lenovo’s willingness to experiment though, even if the practical benefits of the ThinkBook VertiFlex’s rotating screen remain open to debate.

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Wayne Williams is a freelancer writing news for TechRadar Pro. He has been writing about computers, technology, and the web for 30 years. In that time he wrote for most of the UK’s PC magazines, and launched, edited and published a number of them too.