this is a very old feature carried over from IBM-era thinkpads. the main benefit for me was always accident resilience. something could thwack a bezel and it w

this is a very old feature carried over from IBM-era thinkpads. the main benefit for me was always accident resilience. something could thwack a bezel and it would just lay flat rather than stressing the hinges. it's also very handy in at-desk and road-warrior scenarios. since it can basically stand on its thin edge, you can position an adjustable laptop stand to hold the laptop nearly vertical. puts the screen in a much more neck friendly position and frees up more of the desk/table for a full-size keyboard and mouse.