Thin/No Bezel Design Rumours

[kc912]

I know it's only 4 days to launch but it's still fun to throw around rumours and try to answer questions before they've even been asked.

This rumour has 'surfaced':

Huge rumor claims Surface Pro 4 will have ultra-thin bezel like the XPS 13

I think it would be a great idea if they can get around the fact that you have to hold it in tablet mode. Honestly that could be a game changer in tablet design. The Surface would truly be a laptop killer. The screen size of an SP3 could be up to a maximum of just under 14 inches!

 

[kc912]

Apparently it isn't even that new an idea...

 

[GreyFox7]

I had some trouble with the link so here's a simpler look
Surface Pro 4 rumored to have extra thin bezels that change size

Tablets with keyboards – everybody's doing it. The best-known of them is the Microsoft Surface and we're due for a new one soon. The Microsoft Surface Pro 4 will reportedly feature a razor-thin bezel like the new Dell XPS 13 laptop.

The top and side bezels are said to be close to invisible, while the bottom one will be thicker. The hardware Windows key (which was on the right in the Surface Pro 3) may be moving back to the bottom or getting dropped altogether.

The bezels may not be fixed either. Take this with a grain of salt since it's pretty odd, but apparently the Surface Pro 4 display will switch between 13" (when docked) and 12" (when used as a tablet). This is dubbed Smart Frame.

 

[dajogejr]

If I was going to speculate on a Microsoft flagship device with a faked screen, I'd at least put Windows 10 on the faked screen shot... C'mon already.

 

[leeshor]

I have, and have had, issues with ultra thin bezels. It becomes difficult at some point to hold the device and still minimize stray screen touches.

 

[kc912]

Watch the video. Intel developed a smart bezel which gets bigger when you want. In tablet mode you have a bezel. In normal you have a near 14 inch screen. The technology already exists.

 

[quadtronix]

I hope they go with the one-side-big and the other three small approach... I have that kind of design on my Dell Venue 8 7000 series 8.4" tablet and love it! The ultra thin bezel combined with the 6.1mm thin profile make a great combination. But I could go for the changing size idea as well... I remember when that Intel prototype was shown off and I liked that idea alot back then. I wondered why no one ever used it in an actual tablet on the market. I hope they do one or the other though. Could be interesting....

 

[kc912]

I hope they go with the one-side-big and the other three small approach... I have that kind of design on my Dell Venue 8 7000 series 8.4" tablet and love it! The ultra thin bezel combined with the 6.1mm thin profile make a great combination. But I could go for the changing size idea as well... I remember when that Intel prototype was shown off and I liked that idea alot back then. I wondered why no one ever used it in an actual tablet on the market. I hope they do one or the other though. Could be interesting....

I would imagine the top and bottom cannot be ultra thin, the keyboard needs to magnetically attached at the bottom and there must be a webcam at the top.

 

[quadtronix]

I would imagine the top and bottom cannot be ultra thin, the keyboard needs to magnetically attached at the bottom and there must be a webcam at the top.

By that rationale they wouldn't be able to implement the changing screen size either... but I think they could make either design work with a little creativity. The Dell Venue 8 has its camera on the bottom bezel for instance.

 

[mtalinm]

oh yes this would be fabulous. my kid has an xps13 and worships it. so, it would be an xps 13 that, when you hold it in portrait mode, creates an on-screen bezel that responds to swipes and probably also sticks a soft windows button on the bottom where you hold it, instead of a capacitive permanent button.

only question is where you put the front-facing camera.

 

[hughlle]

Bezels exist for a reason (and I'm not talking hardware limitations). A phone or tablet without bezels just sounds flipping stupid. I don't care how pretty it is if it isn't functional. That is Apple's domain and they can keep it.

 

[Sher the Love]

Bezels exist for a reason (and I'm not talking hardware limitations). A phone or tablet without bezels just sounds flipping stupid. I don't care how pretty it is if it isn't functional. That is Apple's domain and they can keep it.

That's why it's supposed to have virtual bezels instead of hardware. Full screen in laptop mode and virtual bezels in tablet mode.