Toshiba 21:9 phone and tablet prototypes hands-on

Toshiba’s prototypes this year include a 5.1-inch phone with an elongated 21:9 aspect ratio, plus a 7.7-inch and 13.3-inch tablet. They may not see production, but Toshiba expressed interest in using the form factors for future devices.

by Adi Robertson

Jan 11, 2012, 7:04 PM UTC

via cdn3.sbnation.com

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Adi Robertson is a senior tech and policy editor focused on online platforms and free expression. Adi has covered virtual and augmented reality, the history of computing, and more for The Verge since 2011.

We were just able to take a close-up look at three Toshiba prototypes — two tablets and a 5.1-inch phone with a 21:9 aspect ratio. The two tablets, one 7.7-inch and the other 13.3, don’t present any big surprises, but they’re light and thin, with rounded corners and a textured back. More exciting is the phone, which demonstrates an elongated aspect ratio that allows the large-screened device to still fit in a pocket. Unlike the tablets, the phone has a brushed-aluminum back and sharper corners.

Although we weren’t able to see much of the devices in action, we successfully (in fact, accidentally) powered on the larger tablet, and were assured that the other prototypes were functional as well. Despite that, Toshiba isn’t sure these will ever hit market, but said it’s interested in using the form factors for future devices.