Asus punts monitor with built-in TV tuner

Or should that be 'TV that works like a monitor'?

By Tony Smith • Get more from this author

14th July 2009 10:23 GMT

Most if not all HD TVs now have computer VGA and/or DVI connections, but that hasn't stopped Asus coming at the problem from the other direction and introducing a boundary blurring monitor that has a built-in TV tuner.

TV Monitor T1 Series comes in 21.5in, 23.6in and 27in sizes but all of them deliver a 1920 x 1080 resolution. The brightness, panel buffs, is 300cd/m², while the contrast ratio is 20,000:1. They can show 16.6m colours.

Asus' T1: Is a monitor? Is it a telly? No, it's both

The screens have both digital - DVB-T, so handy for Freeview broadcasts should the T1s make it to the UK - and analogue tuners, along with a pair of HDMI 1.3 connectors plus VGA, component-video, composite-video, s-video and two Scarts (one is RGB and CVBS, the other s-video and component) for hooking up other picture sources.

Asus bundles a VGA cable, but you'll have to pony up yourself cords for the other ports.

On the audio side, the T1s have RCA, 3.5mm and optical SPDIF outputs, plus a pair of 7W RMS speakers.

Launched in Taiwan this week, there's no word yet when or if the T1s might arrive over here. ®