BenQ today introduced two additions to its 19-inch LCD monitor lineup - the BenQ FP93GW/FP93GWa. Both monitors feature a 16:10 wide screen, a super slim 12mm side bezel design, an ultra-fast 5ms response time and BenQ's exclusive Senseye+photo technology. The Senseye+photo technology transmits colors through the sRGB color gamut, providing consistent and accurate color reproduction whether on camera, monitor, printer or other devices. The two monitors also feature a high contrast ratio of 700:1 and a brightness of 300 cd/m2. The BenQ FP93GW LCD monitor is equipped with both traditional D-Sub and next-generation DVI input support, while the FP93GWa comes equipped with analog input only. The BenQ FP93GW LCD monitor will be available in Asia in March and the FP93GWa will be available in Asia in early April.

Samsung Electronics, announced today that it has developed a 2.1" LCD panel for high-end mobile devices that will provide qVGA resolution and comes equipped with sensors designed to adjust brightness to optimize ambient lighting. Screen brightness is automatically adjusted to enhance readability under any lighting condition. Designed for use in high-end mobile phones, PDAs and portable media players, the new panel also has a temperature compensation sensor embedded in its LCD driver IC that maintains a steady operational mode regardless of any temperature change in the surrounding environment. The signal processing function within the display driver IC converts ambient light measurements from the sensors into pulse-width modulation signals. Those PWM signals then automatically signal the LED controller in the LCD backlight unit to adjust the screen brightness to provide optimal readability as outside lighting conditions change. Samsung's LCD Business is planning to produce the new 2.1" qVGA LCD with ABC capability in the second half of this year.

Toshiba Matsushita Display Technology (TMD) announced development of new 10.4-inch(1024x768/XGA) and 10.6-inch(1280x768/WXGA) thin-film transistor (TFT) LCD panels for notebooks. The displays incorporate a LED (light emitting diode) backlighting system to provide low-profile, lightweight, and low-power consumption features. Compared with a conventional cold cathode fluorescent lamp (CCFL) backlighting system, the LED backlighting has distinct advantages such as reduced thickness, reduced weight, increased brightness, and decreased power consumption. In addition, it is Mercury-Free and RoHS- Compatible. Moreover, an LED backlighting system contributes to increased durability against impacts and vibration. Including the two newly developed panels, TMD's lineup of LED-backlit TFT LCD panels now offers screen sizes from 8.9-inch to 13.3-inch and pixel resolutions of XGA, WXGA, and WXGA+. In these notebook PC panels, in addition to the adoption of an LED-backlight system, TMD has also adopted thinner glass substrates of 0.3 mm or less, reduced the number of component parts to the minimum requirement. TMD foresees strong growth in this area, and these types of LED-backlit panels will exceed 50 percent of TMD's production in late 2007.

Acer's LCD monitor family just got a new member: The xSeries. Covering nearly the full range, starting from a 17 inch model up to the 24 inch one, the xSeries is completely Vista certified (whatever that means).
Prices start at US$179.99 for the x171s (17") and go all the way up to US$599.99 for the x241Wsd (24").

During the ongoing CeBIT show in Hannover, Samsung Electronics is introducing a 30-inch LCD monitor that incorporates an LED as the backlight source. Featuring a 123% color production, 3000:1 dynamic contrast ratio, 2ms response time and viewing angle of 170 degrees, this monitor has the perfect specs. The SyncMaster XL30 will come equipped with "Eyeone Design & Eyeone Photo" and "Natural Color Expert" software. Various input terminals such as USB terminal, DVI-D are available and the 30-inch monitor also features HDCP for viewing high-definition (HD) contents via DVI ports. At the show, Samsung is also launching the 19-inch SyncMaster 940UX LCD monitor we told you about earlier this year, that can be connected using only an USB port.

As manufacturers get closer and closer to 3D screens, IO2 has launched its Heliodisplay which gives a pretty convincing 3D image. This holographic-style display works by projecting a 2D image onto a cloud of microscopic droplets (probably water, although this isn't confirmed), giving an image with fully rendered colors and legible text, at a resolution of 1024 x1024 pixels. One of the impressive features of the display is its mid-air touch sensitivity, allowing an interactive display for performing actions such as rotating objects - this makes it ideal for use in environments such as museums. It isn't cheap though - the touch sensitive model costs $19,400 - and image quality is still lacking behind CRT and LCD displays, but IO2 is likely to continue improving the Heliodisplay.

The current record holder for the world's thinnest LCD screen is Samsung Electronics, with its screen being just 0.82mm thick. However, that is soon about to change as subsidiary company Samsung SDI is planning to produce a new LCD which will be a mere 0.74mm, easily enough to push its parent company into the number two slot. Although the new screen hasn't got beyond the prototype design stage yet, once it is released it could help to make the next generation of mobiles that little bit thinner. The thinnest LCD screen in mass production will soon become Samsungs 1.9mm offering, which should be available in handsets during spring, so phones sporting these sub-1mm screens could take some time to appear on shelves.

Samsung will unveil a new LCD that can be connected to a PC via an integrated USB port, according to an article published at heise.de. When connected to a PC via USB 2.0, the 19" Syncmaster 940UX using PVA panel and 1280x1024 standard resolution, appears as a removable storage device in Windows, which contains a setup routine that installs a virtual graphics card as well as a USB display driver. While a USB-connected LCD cannot be used as primary monitor, the new approach allows users to connect up to six LCDs (and up to three virtual graphics cards) as extended monitors to their PC. Unfortunately connecting multiple displays to USB ports is highly CPU dependent, and Samsung recommends a dual-core processor with a clock speed of at least 2 GHz. The Samsung 940UX could become available during the first half of 2007 and should cost less than 430 Euros (about $560).

ASUS has introduced two new widecreen LCD monitors the MW221U and MW201U, sharing 1680 x 1050 resolution, 700:1 contrast ratio, support for HDCP (High-Bandwidth Digital Content Protection) and Microsoft Windows Vista Certification. The MW221U and MW201U both incorporate ASUS's exclusive Trace Free Technology, which accelerates response time to 2ms to enable smooth video quality without ghosting and video delays. Both monitors display 16.7 million colors and adopt ASUS Splendid Video Intelligence Technology for more spectacular Vista experiences making the MW221U and MW201U the best choices for visually upgrading the system.

Acer now offers a full range of LCD monitors, ready and tested by WHQL (Windows Hardware Quality Labs) for Windows Vista compliance. Acer's widescreen LCD monitor lines include 20", 22", 24" and 26" sizes with 16:10 display ratio to give plenty of onscreen space for applications, and extra room on the side for Vista's Sidebar, Office2007, Vista Media Center, Internet Explorer 7's Tab Browsing, Navigation, Preview pane or Reading Pane modes of Explorer. Acer LCD monitors will now carry a Vista-certified logo, indicating clearly to purchasers that the devices can enable additional or enhanced capabilities. The corresponding lines/models are: ALxx1x series for Value, Xxxx series for X, ALxx2x series for Office, and ALxx5x series for the Performance and Gamers line.

Generally speaking, Dell isn't well known for producing beautiful monitors which sit elegantly on your desk, but this new concept design could prompt a change in direction for Dell. The prototype, although this is unlikely to reach the production stage, features an ultra-flat LCD panel encased in a sheet of glass, with a resolution of 1920x1200 pixels. The monitor also features build in speakers and a microphone/webcam at the top. The power supply rests on the floor nearer the mains rather than being enclosed within the case, which allows a much thinner screen. Although this may not be to everyone's tastes, it's certainly a new image for Dell, but you'll probably never be given the chance to buy one.

NEC Display Solutions of America recently announced the extension of its MultiSync 90-series with a 24- (LCD2490WUXi) and 26-inch (LCD2690WUXi) widescreen LCD monitors. The new models are available from February 2007 with estimated street prices of US$1,499.99 for the 24-inch and US$1,699.99 for the 26-inch model. The new displays qualify as Windows Vista Premium monitors and comply with the EU's RoHS and WEEE (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment) directives. Based on in-plane switching (IPS) module technology, both models feature a native resolution 1920x1200, a brightness of 400cd/m2 and a contrast ratio of 800:1. The 26-inch model has a 92% color gamut. Both monitors have HDCP, which is supported through the DVI-D connector.

At CES, DELL introduced the XPS 710 H2C Edition high performance desktop PC. The new flagman is equipped with Intel Core 2 Quad QX6700 processor, NVIDIA Dual SLI graphics featuring dual GeForce 8800GTX 768MB video cards, DELL's exclusive H2C cooling, 4GB of 667MHz DDR2 memory and up to 2TB of storage capacity in RAID 0 configuration. You can also add optional components like the AGEIA PhysX accelerator and Creative X-Fi Xtreme Music sound card. DELL's exclusive H2C cooling system combines a liquid radiator, a thermoelectric cooling module and control circuitry to optimize CPU cooling with minimal power. DELL also introduced new 27" UltraSharp 12ms widescreen monitor. The Dell UltraSharp 2707WFP features TrueColor technology, resolution of 1920 x 1200 pixels, 6ms (Grey to Grey)/16ms (Black to White) response time, 400cd/m brightness, and 1000:1 contrast ratio. The XPS 710 H2C Edition is available now starting from $5499 with 20" widescreen UltraSharp panel, while the new 2707WFP can be owned separately for $1399.

BenQ added today the new FP241VW LCD monitor to its product line. The FP241VW features sleek exterior design, BenQ's exclusive Senseye+gaming technology, PerfectMotion dynamic video processing technology that effectively eliminates ghosting and motion blurs, HDMI interface and an ultra-fast 12ms MPRT (Motion Picture Response Time). Other specifications include 1920x1200 resolution, 0.270 pixel pitch, 1000:1 contrast ratio and 178/178(CR>=10) H/V viewing angles. The FP241VW fully supports video resolution of 1080p and features HDMI interface which allows easy connection to HD enabled equipment such as HD DVD players, and game consoles. The FP241VW also supports various inputs including DVI-D and D-sub for maximum compatibility. The FP241VW is currently available Taiwan, China, US and Japan markets.

Samsung has announced six brand new LCD displays. First up is the 24-inch SyncMaster 245T with 3000:1 contrast ratio, 1920 x 1200 resolution, and an 80mm stand with tilt and swivel. It will be available in March priced at $799.99. There's also new 27-inch 275T model with 1920 x 1200 resolution which will be available in February at a price point of $999.99. It uses the new 8 bit widescreen S-PVA Samsung LTM270M1 panel. Next up is the announcement of the US availability of the 19-inch SyncMaster 932B with 700:1 contrast ratio, 5ms response time, 1280 x 1024 resolution and Windows Vista certification. This model will be available in February for $249.99. Samsung has also revealed the existence of the 19-inch SyncMaster 906BW which will be launched at the same time as the 20- and 22-inch 206BW and 226BW become available in the US. These models will be put on sale in February priced at $279.99, $349.99, and $429.99, respectively. Similar to the 245 and 275T, this range also features the same 3000:1 contrast ratio, and 16:10 widescreen aspect ratio.

LG Electronics signed a contract with SEGA Enterprises Ltd. (SEGA) for game trailer movies during 2007 International CES. The companies will kick off the joint promotion at the 2007 International CES in Las Vegas, January 8-11. Visitors to LG's booth (Booth #8214, Central Hall, Las Vegas Convention Center) at 2007 International CES will be dazzled by HD and Full HD games developed by SEGA and shown on LG's Full HDTVs. Video games will include Virtua Fighter 5 and Sonic The Hedgehog, both compatible with the PlayStation 3 and XBOX 360, next generation game consoles. LG will use the occasion to demonstrate its broad line-up of Full HD LCD TVs including 37-, 42-, 47-, and 55-inch models.

LG Electronics plans to release five new "Certified for Windows Vista" widescreen LCDs, ranging from 19 to 24-inches and all designed under the governance of Microsoft's Industrial Design Toolkit. The 19-inch(L196WTQ-WF), 20-inch(L206WTQ-WF), 22-inch(L226WTQ-WF and L226WA-WF) are all considered top-end LG models featuring 2-ms response time, 3000:1 contrast, 170-degrees H/V viewing angles, and a DVI input with HDCP for HD video playback in Vista. They also feature LG's f-ENGINE image processing chip. The 24-inch FLATRON L246WP goes a step further by offering a 1920x1200 panel resolution, 1000:1 contrast, 8-ms response, HDMI and component inputs. There's no official information about the pricing or release date of the monitors.

Samsung Electronics announced today that it has created the first LCD panel that can produce independent images on each side of a mobile LCD display. Samsung's new double-sided LCD can show two entirely different pictures or sets of visual data simultaneously on the front and back of the same screen. Other conventional double-sided LCDs can only show a reverse image of the same video data. This new development will replace two display panels with one, thereby reducing overall thickness of mobile products by at least 1mm. The new double-sided LCD is 2.6mm thick and 2.22" wide, with QVGA (240 x 320 pixel) resolution. It has brightness values of 250 nits for the front and 100 nits for the rear display and needs only one backlight for proper operation. The new Samsung double-sided LCD will be exhibited at the Consumer Electronics Show, which opens in Las Vegas on January 8.

Earlier we reported that Dell plans to release brand new 27" display with Samsung widescreen panel. Late last week the product page for the Dell 2007WFP (20" widescreen model) was updated with a "new" image of the product. By mistake it was the image of the yet to be released 27" display. Dell representative explained that the image came from a training manual for the upcoming W2707C display. Dell is expected to announce its new display and roadmaps at the Consumer Electronics Show, scheduled to take place the second week of January.

ViewSonic said recently that its LCD monitors have won certification for the Windows Vista operating system (OS). New LCD monitors from ViewSonic shipped since December are compliant with Windows Vista, with the new models including the entry-level VA-series, graphics-use VG-series, professional-use VP-series and design-oriented VX-series, according to Alan Chang, vice president of ViewSonic for Asia-Pacific sales and marketing.

Dell is about to release a new 22-inch widescreen LCD monitor. Dubbed E228WFP, it has already shown up in Japan. The screen has a typical 1680x1050 resolution, 5ms grey-to-grey response time, 160-degrees viewing angles H/V, 300cd/m2 brightness and 800:1 contrast ratio. The new display also includes support for HDCP high definition content protection. The approximate price of the E228WFP is about $560 USD.

BenQ recently introduced two additions to its award-winning LCD monitor lineup, the 17-inch BenQ FP73G S and the 19-inch BenQ FP93G S LCD monitor, featuring a super slim bezel design, an ultra fast 5ms response time and Senseye+Photo technology. The BenQ FP73G S/FP93G S features the enhanced Senseye+Photo technology, which transmits consistent colors through the sRGB color gamut, providing consistent and accurate color reproduction. With Senseye+Photo, the photos on the screen and on print outs will always be consistent in colors. The BenQ FP73G S/FP93G S offer an ultra-fast 5ms response time, high contrast ratio of 700:1 and a brightness of 300 cd/m2. Both monitors are also equipped traditional D-Sub and DVI inputs.

BenQ today launched the world's fastest 19-inch LCD monitor, the BenQ FP93G X+, targeting PC and online gamers. The FP93G X+ features an ultra-fast 2ms gray-to-gray response time, a super-slim 13mm bezel and a high contrast ratio of 800:1. The monitor offers optimum viewing experience with its clean, refreshing super slim bezel design, making it a great décor for both home and office.

Executives at Samsung Electronics recently said the company has signed a long-term contract with Dell for 27-inch widescreen LCD monitor panels, according to DigiTimes. Samsung is the only panel supplier of 27-inch widescreen LCD monitor panels at present. The company currently only supplies one kind of 27-inch LCD monitor panels, LTM270M1. The panel features resolution of 1,920×1,200 (WUXGA), response time of 6ms, contrast ratio of 3,000:1 and brightness of 500 nits. Samsung and Dell both will launch new 27-inch LCD monitors in January 2007.