By Star Chang, posted Jan 7, 2013 at 5:43 AM, 799 views,

CES 2013: Lenovo Introduces Coffee Table Computing at Affordable Price (Video)

Chinese PC maker Lenovo has just unveiled a 27-inch all-in-one desktop at CES called the IdeaCentre Horizon Table PC. Yes, it is a “Table” PC, not tablet PC. Horizon Table PC can lie flat on any surface, lets two or more people use the screen at the same time, supports interactive physical gaming accessories and is designed for touchscreen gameplay among several players. The Horizon is a Windows 8-based PC and it is running on a third-generation Core i7 processor with Nvidia GeForce graphics. It has a full HD, multi-touch touchscreen display with a 16 by 9 aspect ratio. There’s a 720p front-facing camera for Web video chats and built-in battery. It’s also adjustable, so it can be propped up and viewed in different modes …

Building up what Lenovo did with the IdeaCentre A720, unveiled at CES last year, the company has dreamed up some pretty interesting apps and user interface enhancements. Although Lenovo has added a new multiuser interfaced called Aura, Windows 8 also appears to enhance the experience a fair bit. The Horizon supports multiplayer games with its gigantic screen, dynamic graphics and 10-finger touch. It comes with a special set of accessories including an e-dice and four joysticks and strikers to offer a new digital gaming experience that combines the physical gaming accessory with the on-screen action. For the player, the action is part physical, part digital–an activity that Lenovo refers to as “phygital”.

The Horizon is expected to ship this summer, the price will start at $1,700 ( yuan). This big touchscreen device is aimed at family time around the coffee table. At a price point a fraction of the Microsoft Surface (not the latest Windows RT tablet) and with a smaller footprint, this machine may start to become the centrepiece of homes and businesses who found the Microsoft Surface interesting but too prohibitive in terms of cost. We will see if the Horizon will eventually define as the PC Plus era.

See what else happened this year at CES 2013.

SOURCE: Cnet Asia, All Things D
MORE Coverage: Hands-on Lenovo’s Horizon 27