Capsule Review: GeChic's On-Lap 1301 Laptop Monitor
by Dustin Sklavos on January 19, 2012 2:16 AM EST- Posted in
- Laptops
- Peripherals
- LCD
- gechic
Conclusion
What we have with the GeChic On-Lap 1301 is a good idea unfortunately marred by some serious drawbacks. As a multi-monitor aficionado (my desktop sports three 24” 1920x1200 displays and I find them to be more practical than a single large display), I’ve frequently found myself wishing for a second screen when I’ve been on the go with my ThinkPad X100e. Be it screenwriting or article work, I always have at least a second document or window I want to have open and I like the order that comes with having Windows see two discrete displays. If you’re at all like me, the On-Lap is going to be a very compelling product.
Where GeChic fouls things up a bit actually isn’t with the mounting system, which is surprisingly firm (the suction cups are big and well-made, and I found even just two on the back of my ThinkPad was enough to support the On-Lap’s weight), but with how unprotected the screen itself is and the way cables are routed. The USB cable feels like it’s a bit too short, essentially forcing you to plug the screen in on the right side or rear of the notebook. That’s not a huge drawback but I can see it causing problems depending on what your laptop’s port placement is like. And while having that thin cable coming out of the side is helpful, running the monitor cables out of the bottom is not. The green rubber standing blocks are lousy, leaving the monitor tilted back at least 45 degrees no matter how you place them, and with the video cable coming out of the bottom it winds up not even mattering since the screen is going to be bumped up regardless. You can try to stand the screen vertically (resulting in a 768x1366 effective resolution), but even then it’s off-center due to the notch for the hinge being off-center. All this, and there isn’t included any kind of protective sleeve for the screen to travel in.
This is a potentially useful product that needs a revision. The screen needs to basically be facing the lid of the notebook and then slide out on a railed hinge similar to what Lenovo used on their dual-screen W-series notebooks. Display cables should also come out of the side instead of the bottom. I understand this design would prevent the On-Lap from being used as a display that faces outward for presentations, but the horrible viewing angles of the TN panel coupled with middling brightness honestly prevent that from being a realistic usage scenario anyhow. Finally, I’d like a built-in stand instead of the terrible green blocks so that users who don’t want to mount it can still use the display without too much hassle. The screen is so light even a basic swing hinge made of cheap plastic on the back should be more than adequate.
There are good ideas here. Honestly I don’t find fault with the mediocre display quality or low brightness simply because the On-Lap is portable and powered off of USB; you can forgive a lot when it’s this easy to add a second screen to your laptop. GeChic has a strong first try here, and there’s nothing else out there quite like it; the closest competitor is a 14” DisplayLink monitor from Toshiba, but that monitor can’t be mounted to your notebook, can’t use your notebook’s internal graphics (and thus doesn’t benefit from them), and will draw more power. At $199 MSRP the GeChic On-Lap 1301 is a reasonable investment if you have a need for a portable second screen, but I’d personally like to see a revision come down the pipe before going investing.
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PhoenixEnigma - Saturday, January 21, 2012 - link
Would be neat to stick to the side of a LAN party box, too. You could certainly do better for the price display-wise, but the convenience is second to none, and it would look neat on the side of a SFF PC.Nihility - Saturday, January 21, 2012 - link
I'm worried that adding 2 pounds of weight to the already flimsy hinges of a laptop would damage it over time.Especially because that weight is added at an angle creating a lot of torque.
Out of Box Experience - Sunday, January 22, 2012 - link
Normal USB monitors cannot output a display untill the USB drivers loadBut THIS could be used as a portable diagnostic monitor when you are unsure if you have a computer problem or a monitor problem
ANY 5 volt X 1 Amp USB power supply (Battery or AC) could power the monitor and the you would get instant display capeability for accessing BIOS screens before the USB drivers kick in
Portable, Extremely Low Power, Instant On.....
Whats not to like?
CZroe - Sunday, January 22, 2012 - link
Back when LCD desktop monitors were uncommon but larger LCD panels were common in notebooks, I was angry that no notebooks have VGA or DVI input, especially considering that they were the most expensive part in a notebook by far and they could help justify the cost. I remember it being a lot of trouble to troubleshoot someone's computer if I needed to try another monitor and I only brought my laptop and some tools (who's going to pack up a CRT unless they know it's needed ahead of time?).I still wonder why no one has yet done this.
eh_ch - Friday, February 3, 2012 - link
+1FXi - Sunday, January 22, 2012 - link
It would cost peanuts for any of the giants, Samsung or LG to offer screens of this nature. I won't be surprised if this market gets a bunch of additional competitors since laptops are more than 50% of the market and growing.Finraziel - Monday, January 23, 2012 - link
I was actually searching for something like this a while ago, though not for it being portable... What I was trying to find was a compact monitor for use at home in the living room, to use the HTPC when the TV was in use by someone else, that could easily be stowed away when not in use. Since I'd also want to play games on it from time to time, all of those USB monitors can't be used, but this would be quite interesting.7Enigma - Monday, January 23, 2012 - link
You could run off a single one if mobile (along with the negatives of brightness/etc.) but if connected by AC you could plug in the second for additional brightness.Honestly I would see this product used MORE when connected to the mains rather than on battery alone. Bump up the resolution, give the ability to run with more power, fix the hinge issues you've brought up and this could be a really great product for the mobile workstation crew that doesn't want to lug along a standalone monitor.
Out of Box Experience - Monday, January 23, 2012 - link
I respectfully disagree to a certain degree (HUH?)A 1080P monitor could be used when AC is connected, but when on battery, the monitor could limit the Display Area AND resolution to keep the power requirements down when you need a mobile monitor
A physical switch could also allow you to run at 1080P when you have enough battery power to use it for extended periods of time
Out of Box Experience - Monday, January 23, 2012 - link
Tablets "could" also be used for portable diagnostic screens by adding a micro HDMI or Displayport input but I doubt we will see them if we haven't yetA tablet would have its own power supply as well and you would only need a micro HDMI to VGA / DVI / HDMI or DISPLAYPORT cable
But then again, why couldn't we use a portable digital TV or a portable digital photo frame or digital media player to do the same thing
Probably so we need to buy 20 separate devices instead of 1 device that does it all
MONEY MONEY MONEY