CES 2009

You know there's trouble when you combine birds, spheres, and targeting computers.

(Credit: Viewsonic)

I'm starting to notice a trend among monitor vendors. Simply selling monitors just isn't enough anymore. We already covered BenQ's foray into the all-in-one PC market and now Viewsonic is following suit.

During CES, Viewsonic announced the VPC100 all-in-one PC. The VPC100 is 35mm thin, and following the monitor trend of CES 2009, has a 18.5-inch 16:9 LCD screen.

Powered by an Intel Atom 1.6GHz CPU and 1GB RAM, the system also has a 160GB hard drive, Gigabit Ethernet, 802.11b/g Wi-Fi, a 1.3-megapixel Webcam, DVD +/- RW drive, integrated stereo speakers, 3-in-1 card reader, and comes with Windows XP Home installed.

Viewsonic says that thanks to its slim size, the VPC100 is ideal for office workers, call centers, libraries, emergency operations centers, interactive kiosks, and information terminals. Not that you can't buy it for your home, but don't expect to be doing much gaming on this thing. Unless you like watching low-res slide shows of your favorite games.

The VPC100 will debut next month for $549.

(Credit: Viewsonic)

Seems like you can't swing a dead thumb drive on a string around at CES without it hitting some vendor's new Netbook. Many are stepping into the Netbook ring--even vendors that have never tried anything like one before; Viewsonic is an example.

During CES, the company announced its first ever Netbook, called the Viebook. The Viebook weighs 2.6 pounds, has a 10.2-inch screen and is powered by a Intel Atom 1.6GHz CPU and 1GB of RAM.

The Netbook also features a 160GB hard drive, 10/100 Ethernet, 802.11b/g Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, 1.3 megapixel Webcam, and a 4-in-1 card reader. In addition, the system comes with Windows XP Home installed, and Viewsonic claims a 3-hour battery life.

The system will debut in February 2009 for $429.

Hmmm, just what movie is this anyway?

(Credit: ViewSonic)

It wasn't all stereoscopic screens and crazy 3D glasses at ViewSonic's showing at CES. The company also introduced a new 24-inch monitor, the VX2433.

In keeping with what seems to be a trend with monitors at this year's CES, the new 24-inch display has a 16:9 aspect ratio and includes a "Full HD" 1,920x1,080-pixel resolution. However, connection options are limited to HDMI, so I hope that ViewSonic includes at least a DVI-to-HDMI cable.

The display has a 2ms pixel response time and an aspect ratio adjustment that, according to the company, ensures your images are never distorted regardless of signal source. The display also includes integrated SRS WOW HD speakers and an Ecomode that automatically reduces power consumption and can extend backlight life.

The ViewSonic VX2433 will be available soon for $279, according to the company.

Duck!!

(Credit: Viewsonic)

In a room much too dark to use my iPhone camera to take decent pictures (my main camera's battery died and I could not find a charger) Viewsonic showed off its answer (or perhaps question depending on which began conception first) to Samsung's 22-inch SyncMaster 2233RZ, the 22-inch Viewsonic FuHzion VX2265wm.

Like the Samsung, the FuHzion has a 120Hz refresh rate. This is double what a typical monitor has. The 120Hz refresh rate allows the monitor to display a stereoscopic image. Once you put the "3D" glasses on, games on the screen will appear to have a deeper perceivable depth.

To get it to work, you'll need a Nvidia GeForce 8, 9 or 10 series card, the glasses--$199 separate or bundled with the display in a package deal (no price available yet). Other features of the monitor include a 1,680x1,050 resolution and built-in speakers.

I've now had the opportunity to test out both the Samsung and the Viewsonic and from what I could tell (I was not able to do a side by side comparison with the same game yet) they performed identically.

So we'll have to wait a few months before I can get both of these suckers in the lab and put them through the ringer. The FuHzion will have a MSRP of $349.