Curved Desktop Displays: Ergonomic or Cosmetic?
At last week's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, there were robots, smartwatches, driverless cars, ultra-high-definition TVs and home automation systems. Even the traditional PC desktop display got a facelift.
Hewlett Packard was among a number of suppliers showcasing new curved desktop displays, designed to provide a more "immersive" experience, as Ann Lai, director of commercial displays at HP, put it in a briefing prior to the show.
"With a curve desktop display, you're really sitting right in front of it, so the curve is wrapping around you and providing you a very immersive experience that also makes it easier to read and more comfortable to use for longer periods of time," Lai said . "As displays have gotten larger, we've noticed the edges can be harder to read, especially when you're sitting close to it. With a curved display, you're going to have much more comfortable peripheral viewing as well as a much more immersive experience as you're using your display."
I'm reserving judgment as I've never tried one, though my first reaction was these would have more cosmetic appeal for an executive's office than helping make workers more productive. HP's new Pavilion 27 CM Elite display and Elite display S273 are both 27-inch curve displays that are priced at $399. The price is a slight premium over displays without a curve.
If you were looking for a new desktop display, would one with a curve be on your checklist?
Posted by Jeffrey Schwartz on 01/12/2015 at 3:32 PM