Lenovo To Ditch the Keyboard?

It wasn't long ago that power users would scoff at the thought of banging out an email on an iPhone, preferring the tactile precision of physical keys.

Fast-forward to today, and touchscreen typing is the norm. A BlackBerry, or really any phone with a physical keyboard, is the gimmick now.

Could the same kind of evolution happen with laptops and larger devices? Like the BlackBerry user of yore, you may dismiss the idea that the physical keyboard could go extinct. After all, if you've got some heavy-duty writing to do, you're going to be on your computer.

But at least one company is trying to blaze a new trail. Lenovo on Wednesday introduced the Yoga Book, a unique tablet/hybrid PC with two touchscreen displays that fold in on each other. A normal display makes up the top half, while the bottom half is a touchscreen featuring a digital "smart keyboard."

Lenovo's investment in such a product underscores the shifting patterns in how consumers -- particularly younger people -- interact with devices. The company's research found that people under 30 took to the digital keyboard immediately, while those older than 30 approached it with skepticism. If the Yoga Book takes off, it could mark the starting point for when the physical keyboard loses its spot as the go-to tool for composing a note.