Dual-screen laptops make more sense with this notebook-like spiral hinge

As I write this article about the AceMagic X1, two things stand out the most. First, it’s its convenience: you can write on one screen, and view specs and information about the laptop and a chat window on a second integrated screen. Second, that handy second screen wobbles with every aggressive keystroke just enough to distract me and make my nerves jitter.

I often use slim, small, ultralight laptops, so I find dual-screen laptops intriguing. However, the dual-screen laptops I’ve used thus far have had one major caveat: no integrated keyboard. That’s what sets AceMagic’s X1 apart for me. Not only does the secondary display swing out horizontally from the system (instead of vertically), but the laptop also manages to pack in two 13-inch displays And a traditional keyboard and touchpad.

But the slightly wobbly way that display B hangs to the left of display A, floating above my tabletop, proves that even an integrated keyboard can't solve all the limitations of dual-screen laptops.

Some background information

Specs at a glance: AceMagic X1 (as reviewed)
Screen	2x 14-inch 1920×1080 IPS
operating system	Windows 11 Home Page
CPU	Intel Core i7-1255U (13th Gen SKU coming soon, an AceMagic rep told me)
RAM	16GB DDR4-3200
Storage	1TB M.2 NVMe 2280 PCIe 3.0 SSD
Networks	Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.2
Ports	2x USB-C, 1x USB-A, 1x HDMI 2.0
Dimensions	13.3×8.7×1 inch
Dimensions	13.3×8.7×1 inch
Weight	4.27 pounds
Warranty	3 years
Price (recommended retail price)	$900 at the time of writing

For those unfamiliar, AceMagic is a PC brand from the Chinese company Shenzhen Shanminheng Technology Co., Ltd. AceMagic also sells other laptops besides the X1. But if you're familiar with AceMagic, it's probably because of their mini PCs, or because of malware that has been discovered in some of their mini PCs (AceMagic has responded to this).

Keeping this recent history in mind, it’s not the specs or benchmark results that make the X1 so interesting, but rather one of the most distinctive and clever approaches to giving laptop users extra screen space.

How the screens work

The X1 has two separate 14-inch IPS non-touch displays, each with a resolution of 1920×1080. This differs from other dual-screen laptops on the market. Lenovo’s Yoga Book 9i, for example, has two 13.3-inch OLED touchscreens with a resolution of 2880×1800 on each screen.

The Yoga 9i—and pretty much every other dual-screen laptop—uses a clamshell laptop form factor, but with the keyboard/touchpad replaced by a screen. They come with detachable Bluetooth keyboards, which inevitably have shallow keys. But using the X1 feels more like using a regular clamshell, right down to the tactile keyboard. AceMagic (along with Windows 11’s Snap layouts) makes using the dual screens easy and makes good use of the X1’s deck, with features that let you determine which of your two displays is active.

To get to either display, however, you first have to open the lid and then open Screen B, which is folded over Screen A like a book cover. Once you fold out the second screen to the left, you can use one screen or both screens, separated by a striking hinge system.

The hinge supports up to 360 degrees of movement. This means that the second screen can be folded all the way back, like the cover of a spiral notebook, and snapped onto the back of the lid. This allows someone standing behind the laptop to view the screen.