Intel still dreams of modular PCs. A portable tablet laptop game was introduced at CES.

At CES 2025, Intel invited reporters to a private “innovation showcase” to see prototypes of its next-generation laptops, a massive stereo 3D portable gaming PC, and more.

While I was there I also I found a piece of heavy metal in my hand on the table that didn’t seem to be fully attached to the screen. I lifted the screen and it came off easily.

It was suspiciously light to be considered a real tablet, so I turned it over and saw three connectors underneath.

There was a laptop sitting on the shelf above it, and there was a suspiciously sized chunk of plastic stuck to the bottom that seemed to fit perfectly. A minute later, Intel gaming evangelist Colin Helms confirmed: I was looking at modular PC concepts.

This module includes everything you need to create a complete Intel Lunar Lake computer, that is, with peripherals and everything you need to work away from the screen. This is basically a reboot of the Compute Card idea that Intel abandoned. However, this isn’t everything from Intel and you shouldn’t expect it to be released.

This is the concept behind Quanta, a company whose name usually doesn’t appear on the laptops and tablets it makes because it is an ODM that designs and manufactures hardware (such as Compal, Pegatron, Wistron, and Apple’s better-known iPhone supplier Foxconn). . On behalf of the brand name.

Quanta calls the entire module system “AI8A,” and the core of the aforementioned module is the “separate AI core.” Helms said it also connects to other concept computers, including an all-in-one desktop that Intel doesn’t have to show off. And perhaps, like the Compute Card idea, you could upgrade your computer just by putting new modules into it.

The modular laptop also includes a lot of bells and whistles for the concept, so much so that Intel’s CES staff hasn’t even addressed them all yet.

For starters, the laptop has an electric hinge that allows you to: say it Opens and closes its own lid. It also claims to offer eye-tracking functionality by simply looking where you want to be in your multitasking window. There appears to be a mouse integrated into the wearable ring.

The most mundane features: a Qi wireless charging pad built into the palm rest and an indicator light to show battery level.

Unfortunately I couldn’t try to get any of it to work, nor could I ask what “AI8A” meant. Because I mistakenly thought AI8A was Aiba until I checked the photo more closely. Additionally, since there is no battery inside the module, you cannot hot-swap the module between a handheld and a laptop.

Again, this is a cool computing concept car. It’s unlikely that this computer will ever be released in a more practical, less gadgety form. Thankfully, we’re starting to see real, practical modularity in the laptop space since the demise of Intel’s compute cards. The framework turns five years old this week, and Dell took one smaller step forward at CES with the first modular repairable USB-C port.

Photo: Sean Hollister / The Verge