Lenovo reveals laptop and tablet PC in one

Lenovo has shown a preview of a laptop computer with a detachable screen that can be used as a fully independent tablet PC.

The Ideapad U1's screen can be removed from the main case by releasing a catch. The screen section has its own processor and operating system, along with a multitouch-sensitive interface.

The tablet, or slate as Lenovo is calling it, can be used to browse the internet and use online applications and services. The tablet uses an ARM processor and runs Lenovo's customised Skylight operating system. When reattached, the screen displays from Windows 7, which runs on the hard disk.

Users can move from the laptop mode to tablet mode without affecting performance, so a browsing session started with the screen attached can be continued once the tablet is released from the main chassis.

Both sections provide mobile broadband through integrated 3G networking, and Lenovo said the battery would provide more than five hours of broadband web surfing while disconnected from the mains - even in tablet form.

While connected the Ideapad weighs just over 1.7Kg, with the tablet section tipping the scales at 0.7Kg.

The Lenovo Ideapad U1 will be available from June 2010. The US cost will be $999 (about £620) although UK pricing has yet to be set.