New AOC Monitor 'Does not Require a PC'

[btarunr]

That's right, a new 22" widescreen monitor by AOC, the 2230Fm is a PC monitor. It supports DVI-D and D-Sub VGA and HDMI inputs and sports a native resolution of 1680 x 1050 px. Stylish looks aside it adds a nifty feature that makes it a media-center in itself, the feature is called HD3.

Says AOC: "HD3 defines a new category in high definition displays with its built-in media player, allowing consumers, for the first time, to view movies without the use of an external DVD player or PC. With the 2230Fm, simply load a film onto a memory device, plug it into the display and use AOC's proprietary, user-friendly menu and remote control to enjoy a movie PC-free. AOC's first HD3 Display is the 2230Fm, a combination of multi-functional high-definition video capabilities and stylish, 360° design that provides a stunning array of features all developed to cater to the digital needs of today’s consumers."

Simply put, the monitor has a 4-in-1 digital media reader and has three USB 2.0 ports. You can connect a USB flash-drive. You do have flash-drives with really high capacities these days capable of carrying Hi-resolution videos, also that in some European countries a new video-download facility has come up where you download movies onto a flash drive in public shacks a-la ATMs. Apart from videos, this device can view images up to 8000 x 8000 px, and play audio files from its integrated stereo speakers. It remains to be seen if the USB 2.0 hub could connect to external hard drives or external optical drives. That would make it a full-on media center. It lacks a TV-tuner though. The embedded media software looks pretty intutive, The 2230Fm supports MPEG-1, 2, and 4 video formats. the supported audio format are too numerous to list, but they include MP3, WMA, WAVE, OGG-Vorbis, FLAC, and M4A. Supported photo formats include JPG, TIFF, PNG, BMP, and GIF images with resolutions up to 8000x8000 pixels.

The monitor has a 2ms response time making it ideal for gaming consoles and gaming PCs, it has a respectable 20,000:1 contrast ratio. It is priced at a US $399 and will be available next month onwards. Talk about convenience.



Source: HotHardware

[Selene]

very nice.

[robodude666]

Looks interesting, great idea but I doubt it would be used much. I suppose its neat if you travel a lot and don't want to bother with slideshows for the family. The price isn't too bad either, especially for having HDMI. But what type of a panel is it? I'd assume cheap TN?

[btarunr]

2 ms and 20000:1 makes it look a reasonably good one.

[timta2]

That is really sweet, but I wonder how much quality there is in AOC products these days?, my old AOC CRT was a piece of crap. With a price tag and features like that I might just have to find out.

[Conti027]

looks nice

[technicks]

I have been waiting for this.

[warhammer]

Bring back the CRT screens..

[Wile E]

Originally Posted by btarunr

2 ms and 20000:1 makes it look a reasonably good one.

No, that, along with it's price, makes it look like a massively overdriven craptastic Tn-film panel.

No thanks, I think I'll pass.

[a111087]

i say, its very good idea. many people turn on a whole PC just to watch a movie. not anymore

[Basard]

so this is just like when you bought a TV with a VCR built in, or a DVD player built in? but now that everything is "HD" its cool? i used to hate those TVs.

[WarEagleAU]

I think its a pretty awesome thing with a fantastic price. Wile E, why is 2ms and 20000:1 CTR a bad thing?

[Wile E]

Originally Posted by WarEagleAU

I think its a pretty awesome thing with a fantastic price. Wile E, why is 2ms and 20000:1 CTR a bad thing?

Because they use overdrive/ dithering and other tricks to achieve that. Those sacrifice image quality when used too heavily. I'm also willing to bet it's a Tn-Film panel, which is the lowest grade panel type out there, but also the cheapest. Companies won't risk using heavy processing on the more expensive panel types.