It's been almost a year since Alienware's Project UFO announcement at CES 2020, but the promise of a Nintendo Switch-style mini-PC has yet to arrive. Which is cool. That's because NEC Personal Computer (a joint venture between Lenovo and NEC) has announced a prototype of a product called the Lavie Mini.

At least it looks the part. The tried-and-true Lavie Mini features twin controllers on either side of an 8-inch touchscreen. It's a size larger than the Nintendo Switch's 6.2-inch touchscreen and has a higher resolution of 1920 x 1200. to achieve Switch-like controls, an optional dock attachment is available for 4K60 TV output, and USB Type-C and Type-A ports are Additional.

The Lavie Mini differs in several ways that are crucial for PC gaming: for one, the Lavie Mini is a small 2-in-1 with a tiny keyboard. It also has a Tiger Lake CPU with Intel Xe graphics and an Intel Core i7 1180G7 chip. This chip is not currently listed in Intel's ARK database, but it appears in several benchmarks, touting a 96EU and 15W TDP. This would place it below the current flagship, the 25W Core i7 1185G7.

The chip also supports Wi-Fi 6, and for connectivity, the unit has two USB Type-C ports, a headphone and microphone combo jack, and Bluetooth 5.1 support.

Inside, there is also a 256GB NVMe SSD and 16GB of LPDDR4X RAM running at an effective 4,266MHz. These dual-channel sticks are soldered together, as you can imagine at this size.

However, one need not worry about this issue now, as the Lavie Mini will remain in prototype form during the 2021 CES. Thus, there is no price or availability; CES is a popular venue for prototype launches, and last year Alienware Project UFO surprised us with a similar product. However, there is a glimmer of hope for mini-PC fans.

That is the GPD Win 3, a product that will soon be available on Indiegogo and, judging by the company's track record with such projects, is likely to be followed by an actual release.

So we may or may not see a follow-up to the Lenovo x NEC Lavie Mini soon. At the very least, interest in the concept is growing, and it should be available at least in 2021. Expectations.