A new class of laptop is claiming precious real estate inside your big ticket electronics store. Convertible models look just like any other laptop, except for a clever hinge design, but there's more to these supple mechanical forms than an aptitude for 360° twist-ability. Advanced sensors, ones commonly found in mobile devices, populate the computer housing. When they work, the screen rotates automatically, thus instantly transforming the laptop into a fully-equipped tablet. Of course, when this clever device does go wrong, you're then the proud owner of a pseudo-tablet, a novelty device that can't fulfill its purpose.
