14 DAY TRIAL // Business monitors usually aren't all that different from normal, consumer displays, but every once in a while a model will appear, possessesing more than the usual share of specifications.
One such monitor has been launched by HP. Called EliteDisplay E221c, it can act as a connectivity hub between other devices and people too.
First off, the newcomer boasts a 2-port USB hub, which allows for peripherals and even storage devices to be connected.
If there had been a LAN connection involved, the USB ports would have allowed the monitor to become a sort of all-in-one PC, only with the actual PC parts substituted for whatever server or data center the company happens to own.
Anyway, the USB ports are what allows the new HP display to behave like a connectivity hub.
The features that let people connect through it are the integrated camera (720p webcam) and the dual microphones.
Normally, in order to use videoconferencing, one would have to buy the camera separately, and maybe a microphone too, unless they use a headset instead. With this, however, those purchases are no longer necessary.
And since it would make no sense to include all those things and not have audio output as well (especially when monitors usually have it anyway), HP also tossed in built-in (rear firing) speakers.
Add to that a mobile stand (allows tilt, swivel, pivot and 150 mm height adjustment) and you have all bases covered.
For those who want to know the technical specifications of the screen itself, they aren't all that unusual. Sure, the dynamic contrast ratio of 5,000,000:1 is pretty good, but the rest is pretty much standard: 1920 x 1080 pixels resolution, 7 ms gray-to-gray response time (this is actually on the slow side, compared to the regular 5 ms), and three video ports (VGA, DVI and DisplayPort).
All in all, the HP EliteDisplay E221c 21.5-inch LCD IPS monitor has all bases covered. Its price is of $219 / €166 – €219.