Love or scoff at the idea, Windows 7’s touchscreen features need to be experienced first-hand, and jabbing away at a demo machine at PC World doesn’t really count. The problem is that buying in to touchscreen technology for the home is an expensive experiment: you would normally need to invest in a brand new touchscreen notebook or all-in-one touchscreen Desktop computer to really get to grips with it.
PC touch up job: Medion’s Akoya E54009
German manufacturer Medion’s answer is to upgrade just the display, not the computer. The voluminously named Medion Akoya Multi-Touch Monitor E54009 is quite simply an LCD display that you can plug into whatever PC you already own; add Windows 7 Home Premium and you have full touchscreen functionality straight away. Beyond this, no additional drivers or special hardware setup are required.
Despite its size – this is a 21.5in diagonal monitor approximately 7cm thick – the E54009 is surprisingly lightweight, making installation less troublesome than expected. The display leans backwards on a prop stand arrangement with rubber feet to keep the unit gripped to your Desktop. Don’t bemoan the lack of tilt and swivel: an immobile display is what you need for touchscreen use.
The sleek black lines of the bezel are unfortunately disrupted by a cheap-looking stand raiser underneath. Despite appearances in the photo shown here, there is no gap inside the raiser frame: it is filled with a pane of transparent plastic, presumably to ensure rigidity. If you have keyboard, mouse and other USB cables running across your desk, you must route these around either side of the monitor. Read the rest of this entry »
Review Apple fans have been enjoying the advantages of multi-touch computing for some time, but Windows users are little late to arrive at the party. However, with Windows 7 billed as the first version of the operating system to “fully embrace multi-touch technology”, we’re starting to see notebook PCs and add-on tablets supporting the functionality.
Making a gesture: Acer’s T230H
For those of you wondering what the fuss is all about, the T230H will allow you to do away with your mouse and keyboard, if you wish, and operate your PC entirely by touching the screen. You’ll also be able to use a pair of fingers to rotate and pinch to zoom just as you can on an iPhone.
Now with the Acer T230H monitor you can make use of these functions simply by plugging it into your Windows 7 PC. The display hooks up using VGA, DVI or HDMI, with the touchscreen capabilities handled by the USB port. Windows 7 will then recognise the display as an input device and allow you to use Pen and Touch input controls automatically. Read the rest of this entry »
Review Combo TV-monitors are not a new idea, but all too often what you get is a standard PC monitor with a TV tuner bolted on. Yet with the P2370HD, Samsung has created a fully functional 23in widescreen TV, that’s designed to work just as well as a PC monitor.
Dual purpose: Samsung’s P2370HD
The monitor is comprised of a standard 16:9 display with a native resolution of 1,920 by 1,080 pixels, making it capable of full-HD playback of Blu-ray discs and games from your PC or directly using HDMI. Being a TV, it also comes with built-in Stereospeakers. Indeed, the P2370HD offers the best of both worlds, bringing the design and usability of a great TV to the Desktop. Moreover, it highlights just what we’ve been missing in the PC world.
Convergence of HD TV and PC peripherals has brought some really good design to Desktop monitors, many of which have already started to look like TVs. Glossy, piano black bezels and gentle curves all help your monitor to look just as good in your living room or bedroom as they do in your office.
The P2370HD is no exception. Not only does it have the aforementioned TV-like looks, it also adds touch sensitive, backlit controls and an angled transparent acrylic stand which makes the display seem to almost float in mid air. The stand is also removable, allowing wall mounting with a standard VESA 75 bracket. Read the rest of this entry »
