CeBIT 2012: ASUS PA248Q Monitor with 4-Port USB 3.0 Hub

CeBIT is still underway in Hannover, Germany, and ASUS has various things to show there, such as the unusual PA248Q monitor. 

It isn't some special resolution, brightness or other display parameter that makes this thing stand apart from all of the others of its type. 

Granted, the IPS panel does give it better viewing angles than most, but we will get to that in due time. 

What really makes the ASUS PA248Q unique is its integration of a 4-port USB 3.0 hub. 

The universal serial bus is probably there so that media can be played directly off flash drives or external HDDs/SSDs. 

That said, the 24-inch IPS panel that we mentioned above enables viewing angles of 1,920 x 1,200 pixels. 

Also, the contrast ratio of the screen is a nice 5,000:1, which is more than what most monitors can brag about. 

The one area where the ASUS display doesn't excel is responsiveness: the response time is 6 ms instead of 5 or less, which means that gamers may or may not look for alternatives, depending on how much of a difference they perceive. 

The brightness, on the other hand, is better than some may expect: 400 cd/m2. 

For the sake of comparison, high-end panels often settle for 350 cd/m2 or 300, while others consider 250 cd/m2 a standard of sorts. 

Moving on, ASUS chose LED backlighting, hence the above parameters, but this is no longer surprising, knowing that CCFL have all but faded away (though some may disagree). 

Finally, the stand allows for swivel, tilt, pivot and height adjustments and, for connections to a PC, buyers will get to choose between D-Sub, DVI, HDMI and DisplayPort inputs. Pre-orders should already be possible, though it depends on retailers and region. The price is $594, which translates into 449.38 Euro, if current exchange rates are anything to go by.

Posted in: Hardware, Preview