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At a glanceExpert`s Rating Pros Sharp image with reasonably accurate gamma and color temperature USB-C with 60 watts power delivery and power pass-through Good menu system with joystick control Cons Thicker and heavier than some alternatives Modest contrast and color performance Weak speakers Our Verdict The Viewsonic VA1655 has USB-C power with 60 watts of power delivery and supports power pass-through for charging a connected laptop, but it’s thicker than the alternatives, and its image quality doesn’t beat more affordable peers. Price When Reviewed This value will show the geolocated pricing text for product undefined Best Pricing Today Best Prices Today: Viewsonic VA1655 Retailer Price Check Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide Product Price Price comparison from Backmarket Best Prices Today: Check today’s prices Searching for a portable monitor on Amazon can overwhelm you with a torrent of choices from brands you’ve never heard of. That might lead you towards a brand that’s a bit more familiar—like Viewsonic, a brand that’s been in the business for decades. There are advantages to playing it safe with a better-known brand, like superior USB-C connectivity and an easy-to-use menu system, but the VA1655’s image quality doesn’t stand out from the crowd. Viewsonic VA1655 (15.6-inch) specs and features The Viewsonic VA1655’s specifications are identical to dozens of other inexpensive portable monitors. It has a 15.6-inch 1080p IPS-LCD display with a refresh rate of 60Hz. Display size: 15.6-inch 16:9 aspect ratio Native resolution: 1920×1080 Panel type: IPS LCD Refresh rate: 60Hz Adaptive Sync: None HDR: No Ports: 1x Mini-HDMI 1.4, 2x USB-C, 3.5mm audio-out Audio: 2x speakers Additional features: Carrying case, built-in stand Price: $109.99 MSRP The portable monitor’s connectivity is provided by one mini-HDMI port, as well as two USB-C ports. Notably, the USB-C ports both support 60 watts of power delivery, so they can charge and provide video input to the monitor. The monitor also ships with a carrying case. Read on to learn more, then see our roundup of the best portable monitors for comparison. Viewsonic VA1655 design The Viewsonic VA1655’s design is unusual for a budget portable monitor. It doesn’t use a detachable kickstand carrying case but instead integrates the kickstand into the monitor itself. On the plus side, this means the stand will always be with you. The stand also provides a good range of tilt adjustment with up to roughly 45 degrees of tilt; far better than competitors like the Innoview Portable Monitor, which relies on a kickstand case. On the downside, the built-in kickstand increases the monitor’s thickness to 0.7 inches and its weight to 1.5 pounds. It’s noticeably thicker and heavier than most competitors that use a kickstand case. Portability aside, the Viewsonic VA1655’s design reveals its budget price. The exterior is constructed from black plastics that look cheap and feel a bit hollow, and the monitor allows some flex when it’s handled. This is par for the course with budget portable monitors, though, and the VA1655’s thickness means it feels more durable than most. Because the portable monitor doesn’t have a carrying case with kickstand, it instead ships with a padded sleeve to provide some protection when the monitor is stored. The sleeve works well enough but, like the monitor itself, feels rather cheap. Matthew Smith / Foundry Viewsonic VA1655 connectivity The USB-C ports both support up to 60 watts of power delivery. That’s more than enough to power the monitor, so you don’t need any additional external power source for it. ViewSonic doesn’t ship the monitor with a USB power brick, though, so you’ll need to buy one separately or use one that you have on hand. The USB-C ports support power pass-through, which means you can connect a USB-C power brick to the portable monitor and then connect the portable monitor to a laptop via USB-C. This will charge the laptop. Power pass-through is a handy feature that budget portable monitors don’t often include. Unfortunately, the monitor has a mini-HDMI instead of full-sized HDMI. That’s a small disappointment because mini-HDMI is much less common, so adapters and cables that support it are more difficult to find. However, a suitable cable is included in the box. The USB-C ports support power pass-through — a handy feature that budget portable monitors don’t often include. Viewsonic VA1655 menus, features, and audio The VA1655’s menu system is much easier to navigate than most portable monitors thanks to a joystick control tucked around the right-hand side of the display. Most budget portable monitors bundle menu controls into the volume buttons, which is awkward. The monitor also provides a decent range of image quality settings, including precise gamma presets and custom color modes for RGB calibration. The monitor’s modest image quality sets a limit on how useful these features can be, but it’s another area where the VA1655 beats most competitors. Matthew Smith / Foundry Speakers are included, but they’re rated at less than a watt of power each. Their maximum volume is low and bass-heavy tracks will immediately cause distortion. They’re fine for listening to system notification sounds, but not much else. Viewsonic VA1655 SDR image quality Priced at roughly $110, the Viewsonic VA1655 is firmly in the budget portable monitor category. With that said, it’s also a long way from the least expensive portable monitor available, as 15.6-inch 1080p alternatives can be found for as little as $60. The VA1655’s higher price unfortunately doesn’t buy you a significant improvement in image quality. Matthew Smith / Foundry The Viewsonic VA1655 reached a maximum SDR brightness of 239 nits. That’s fine for most home use, but it’s a long way from the brightest in this category, and it won’t always be enough to keep the display usable while traveling. The VA1655 also has a semi-gloss display finish. While it partially dampens reflections, a bright light source opposite the display will easily overwhelm the panel. Matthew Smith / Foundry Contrast isn’t a perk of the VA1655, though it’s typical for a budget portable monitor. Its maximum contrast ratio of 1110:1 is mid-pack when the VA1655 is placed against similar rivals, like the Arzopa Z1FC and Innoview Portable Monitor. When compared to OLED alternatives, however, the VA1655 is in far worse shape. OLED portable monitors are more expensive, to be fair, with budget options starting around $200. Still, it’s worth knowing what an extra $100 will get you. Matthew Smith / Foundry The VA1655 struggles with color performance. It handles just 67 percent of the sRGB gamut, as well as 50 percent of DCI-P3 and 51 percent of AdobeRGB. That’s similar to other budget portable monitors, but it’s much less than more expensive monitors. The VA1655’s limited color gamut won’t be an issue for most web browsing or working in Microsoft Office, but it will prove a problem if you want to edit photos or videos. Matthew Smith / Foundry Viewsonic’s budget monitor is better in color accuracy, but still mid-pack. The monitor’s color accuracy is solid on average and better than the Innoview Portable Monitor. However, it still suffers significant variations in some hues, including cyan and red. These appear muted, with vibrant reds sliding to orange and blues looking faded or pastel. The VA1655 is better in color temperature and gamma tests. It has a default gamma curve that roughly tracks the target value of 2.2 and a default color temperature of 6700K, which is just a tad cooler than the target of 6500K. The color temperature variance will be noticeable to critical viewers, but it doesn’t immediately stand out. Sharpness is a perk for the VA1655. 1920×1080 resolution across a 15.6-inch panel works out to about 140 pixels per inch. That’s much sharper than a 27-inch 1440p monitor, though not quite as sharp as a 27-inch 4K display. In any case, the image is clear and crisp. Viewing angles are decent, too. The VA1655 is easy to view in both the horizontal and vertical planes, though brightness is reduced and color fades if, for example, you stand up and view the monitor from above. However, the VA1655 helps to address even that, as its wide range of adjustment makes it possible to view the display from many angles. The Viewsonic VA1655’s overall SDR image quality is passable for basic day-to-day productivity. It’s sharp and provides reasonable, though not precise, color accuracy. However, the VA1655’s brightness is towards the low end even for a budget monitor, which might be a problem if you plan to travel with the display. Viewsonic VA1655 HDR image quality and motion performance The Viewsonic VA1655 doesn’t support HDR. That might seem disappointing, but budget portable monitors that claim HDR support are, without exception, full of baloney. In this sense, the lack of HDR is a perk. Viewsonic isn’t trying to pull one over on customers. Motion performance is modest. The monitor has a 60Hz refresh rate, quotes a gray-to-gray pixel response time of 7 milliseconds, and doesn’t support Adaptive Sync. That means 3D games will look blurry in motion, at least when compared to a gaming monitor with a 144Hz refresh rate (or better). A 60Hz refresh rate is typical at this price, though. Gamers will need to stretch their budget for a portable monitor like the Arzopa Z1FC, which has a 144Hz refresh rate (though even it still lacks Adaptive Sync). Should you buy the Viewsonic VA1655? The Viewsonic VA1655 is a passable entry in the highly competitive portable monitor area. It has a few advantages over most budget alternatives like a built-in kickstand, USB-C charging with power pass-through, and a superior menu system. However, those advantages are countered by the VA1655’s bulky design. The monitor’s image quality is modest, too, and matched by less expensive peers. Read...

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First there was Clippy. Now Microsoft Copilot has a face, with reactions to what you tell it. Microsoft is showing off how Copilot could “look”: as an anthropomorphic teardrop of sorts, with expressions that react to your interactions in real time. The discovery was reported Friday by The Verge. Right now, the new look of Copilot is being presented to a limited number of users. Microsoft’s web page shows how to discover if you have it: by opening Copilot, clicking the “mic” icon to launch verbal interactions with Copilot, then clicking the “gear,” or settings, icon. That will open up the options to toggle the “appearance” off or on. “What if you could see Copilot react and speak as you chat?” Microsoft says. “With this experiment, we are bringing more non-verbal communication to Copilot, enhancing voice conversations with real-time visual expression. This early prototype allows you to chat, brainstorm, seek advice, or just mess around with Copilot, in a more engaging and expressive way.” Right now, the new Copilot appearance option is just being offered to consumers, and not people who subscribe to a Microsoft 365 business plan. Microsoft has tended to try and give its assistants a friendlier face, from the Office Assistant (which included Clippit/Clippy) as well as Microsoft Bob and its coterie of animated assistants. That didn’t go so well, however, when Microsoft launched and cancelled Microsoft Tay, its assistant who was quickly corrupted by internet trolls. Anthropomorphic mascots have also become a staple in some cultures, such as Japan. Copilot already leans pretty heavily on emojis to communicate how it “feels.” Ironically, when Bing Search / Copilot was launched, it was pretty personable — probably too much. Now, it’s much more bland. Here’s what you should see within the Microsoft Copilot Settings menu if you’re part of the appearance test.Microsoft Will users clamor for a Clippy option? Why not? If you have opinions, let us know on our Facebook page or on Bluesky. We can promise that our PCWorld logo will remain just the static image it is. Read...

At a glanceExpert`s Rating Pros Outstanding industrial design Lots of ingress options—provided you have an iPhone Seamless integration with Apple Home and Home Keys Comes with two NFC fobs Cons Initial setup required multiple re-installs to resolve Only supports 10 PIN codes No backup power feature iOS only Our Verdict A bold design gives this Apple Home-centric smart lock a sophisticated look, but there’s very limited support for non-iPhone users, and installation can be a one-time challenge. Price When Reviewed This value will show the geolocated pricing text for product undefined Best Pricing Today Best Prices Today: Avia Smart Deadbolt+ Retailer Price $299 View Deal Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide Product Price Price comparison from Backmarket Spend enough time in this business and you’ll begin to feel like you’ve seen everything. After reviewing more than 80 smart locks to date, I was sure that there were no more design or functionality stones left to overturn in this segment of the smart home market. And then along comes Avia. A European brand newly available in the U.S., Avia is an altogether different concept in smart locks no matter which way you look at it. So, let’s start with its design. While the Avia Smart Deadbolt+ is a standard smart lock that replaces both exterior and interior escutcheons, you won’t notice it from the outside, at least from a distance. Externally, the lock—which is available in black and satin nickel—looks a lot like a traditional, non-smart device (or for that matter, a Level Lock+ smart lock): Its circular escutcheon is just barely larger than the borehole it fits into, and there’s a keyhole in its center. Look closely, however, and you’ll find 10 physical number buttons arranged along the top of lock, arranged in two rows of five. You need to pay extra to get an exterior PIN pad for a Level Lock. The PIN pad on the Avia Smart Deadbolt+ makes it one of the most unique smart locks on the market. Christopher Null/Foundry A plastic-covered sensor hides beneath the lock, nearly invisible to the casual observer. Press one of the buttons on the keypad and the numerals light up in color (in the hue of your choice), along with the Avia logo, which appears on both sides of the device, providing a postmodern vibe to an otherwise classic-looking lock. The Avia Smart Deadbolt+ boasts outstanding design and smooth operation, provided you’re an iPhone user. While the exterior effect is striking, the interior escutcheon is far more traditional (and very much unlike a Level Lock). It’s a squat rectangle in two-tone silver and black with a simple thumb turn, powered by four AA batteries under a plastic panel. Note that there is no external port for emergency power. Avia says fresh cells will last for up to 18 months. The manufacturer also says its lock meets the highest level of ANSI and BHMA testing but that it is still awaiting formal certifications. Installation and setup The lock goes together somewhat unusually, thanks to the inclusion of a second mounting frame that fits on the inside of the door. This is an additional plastic frame upon which a smaller metal frame sits, both of which are sandwiched together with the exterior escutcheon via two small bolts. (The need for this second frame isn’t explained in the lock’s documentation.) The exterior escutcheon has two electrical connectors: One connects to the interior motor unit, as expected, but the other attaches to a port on one of the frames. This all might be more intuitive if Avia included a printed instruction manual; unfortunately, your only educational option is to follow one of Avia’s online videos or go step-by-step with the Avia app. I found getting everything seated properly to be a bit more complicated than the typical lock I’ve reviewed, thanks to the extra mounting frame and that second cable; but for the most part, it was a straightforward installation—or so I thought (more on that later). You’ll need an iPhone to set up the Avia Smart Deadbolt+, but non-iPhone users will be able to open the door if you give them one of the included NFC keyfobs.Christopher Null/Foundry The Avia Smart Deadbolt+ supports Matter over Thread, but it currently works with iOS exclusively, being designed entirely around Apple HomeKit and Apple’s Home Key technology. If you don’t already have an iOS home hub (e.g., an Apple TV, HomePod, HomePod mini), Avia says you can use the lock directly over Bluetooth. But there’s really no point in purchasing this lock if you don’t also have one of those three devices, as you’ll miss out on many of the lock’s features—along with any kind of remote accessibility. Setup is very much in line with standard HomeKit configurations, and while you can set the lock up directly in iOS Home, you’re well advised to use Avia’s app to get started, beginning with scanning the QR code printed on the inside of the battery cover. I had to run through the scan-and-wait process a couple of times before it completed successfully; otherwise, the process was straightforward. Using the Avia Smart Deadbolt+ Once configured, Avia’s lock offers a robust collection of access methods, including the previously mentioned numeric keypad and a bevy of “smart” ways to open the door. The lock is compatible with Apple Home Key, so once it’s installed and configured, you can just tap your iPhone or Apple Watch on the lock to open it—you don’t need to open the app on your phone. The PIN pad and the Avia logo both light up in your choice from millions of colors.Christopher Null/Foundry Users without an iPhone can use one of the two included NFC fobs to do the same trick; these are easily enrolled within the Avia app. You can even unlock the door with a Siri voice command—after you authenticate yourself on your iPhone. One restriction of note: While you can share Home Key access with as many users as you’d like, the Avia Smart Deadbolt+ supports only 10 PIN codes and six key fobs (two of these are included with the lock). PIN and fob access must be configured through the Avia app directly. PINs can be restricted based on a schedule (recurring or otherwise), but fobs have 24/7 access. Home Key access must be granted through the iOS Home app. There is no facility for one-time access codes. The lock has just a few other features, including auto-locking (delayed by up to 4 minutes) and the PIN pad lighting effects I mentioned earlier. These are configured via a color wheel in the app. You can also select a two-digit code to lock the door from the outside, a step made necessary by the absence of a “lock” button on the exterior escutcheon. A robust logging system (see the screenshot above) keeps track of every lock and unlock operation. The understated design of the Avia Smart Deadbolt+’s exterior escutcheon is surpassed only by that of the Level Lock+Avia Smart The Avia Smart Deadbolt+ is a nifty device, except for one rather big and bizarre anomaly I encountered right after I finished setting it up; namely, the lock wouldn’t open unless I had the physical key in its cylinder, and I could only remove the key from the lock when it was in the locked position. Any attempt to unlock the lock without the key resulted in a jam, no matter how I tried to open it, including physically turning the interior thumb turn. I asked Avia about this and the company suggested the lock had either been installed with the spindle the wrong way or with the deadbolt not retracted, but upon disassembly, everything looked as though it was installed correctly. Nevertheless, after several more reassemblies and resets of the lock, carefully following Avia’s emailed instructions, I did finally get it working properly. All told it was a frustrating situation, but perhaps just a fluke since it was eventually resolved. Should you buy the Avia Smart Deadbolt+? Apart from than that significant setup hiccup, the Avia Smart Deadbolt+ works well, and its design is outstanding. The lock operates smoothly and reasonably quietly, the keypad is responsive, and every one of its means of electronic access worked flawlessly and nearly instantly in my testing. The robust Home Key support is really a game-changer, since you don’t need to open an app or even have your phone with you—as long as you’re wearing your Apple Watch. Needing to open an app or tap in a code to get into the house becomes tedious over time. At $299, however, the lock is very high-priced, especially given its limitations. For that kind of outlay, I’d expect flawless operation right out of the box, more robust user support, and a USB-C port for emergency power. All that said, it’s still $30 cheaper than the Level Lock+ that is its closest competitor. This review is part of TechHive’s in-depth coverage of the best smart locks. Read...