14 DAY TRIAL // For most people, “smart display” is a term synonymous with “Smart TV,” but ViewSonic has released a product that challenges that view quite nicely: the VSD241, a 24-inch LCD that is more than a monitor.
Normally, monitors can't do anything other than look pretty and inert without a PC nearby to supply a steady video feed.
The ViewSonic VSD241 bypasses that limitation by borrowing a bunch of capabilities from smart television sets.
It would be called a large form factor tablet really, if it had some storage space inside. It doesn't, though.
It can still do plenty of things, however, whether via cloud computing or by connecting it to a phone, tablet, laptop or whatever else.
ViewSonic expects most customers to come from the fields of point-of-sale (POS), hospitality, enterprise, SMB, education, etc. The VESA mount capabilities and DC power support are bound to help there.
For anyone interested in the specifications, the list of details about the 24-inch (23.8 inches, more precisely) ViewSonic VSD241 is quite extensive.
It starts with the NVIDIA Tegra 3 quad-core ARM-based SoC (runs the Android 4.2 Jelly Bean OS), a 2-megapixel camera, built-in speakers, an integrated microphone, HDMI input, two full-sized USB ports, a micro USB and a mini USB.
An SD card reader is available as well, plus integrated networking (RJ-45 Ethernet), 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.
ViewSonic should already be shipping the VSD241 at a price of $499 / €499. A 22-inch version (VSD221) at $399 / €399 will be released in December.
"Recognizing the changing way people compute, ViewSonic was first to introduce Android based smart display technology in 2012," said Erik Willey, desktop solutions product marketing director, ViewSonic.
"Now we're taking this innovation to the next level, giving our customers even better performance and larger screen options, along with the latest Android operating system. The result is the best possible desktop experience for Android stand-alone usage, cloud connectivity, and remote desktop capabilities."
