The tech-consuming public has never shown much interest in using smartphones to power their laptops, but that's not stopping Acer.
The company is showing off a prototype laptop shell, called Acer Extend, that's powered entirely by a connected smartphone. According to Engadget, the laptop contains hardly any internal components except for a 6000 mAh battery. All the processing power and Android software comes from Acer's Liquid E2 smartphone, which connects to the dock via an MHL cable.
The concept is reminiscent of Motorola's Webtop from 2011. Early versions of Motorola's laptop dock included a cradle for the phone, though Motorola later introduced a version with a cable connection. Motorola's docks didn't just run Android apps; they could also launch the desktop version of Mozilla's Firefox browser.
As exciting as the concept seemed, it wasn't a big hit with consumers. The first edition was more expensive than many laptops. Also—even after prices came down—the performance wasn't up to par with dedicated PCs, and the software was too limited. Motorola abandoned the idea in 2012.
To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
ConversionConversion EmoticonEmoticon