Despite being a standard feature on laptops for the better part of a decade now, it’s still hard to find monitors with USB-C video support. That’s doubly true if you’re looking for a good deal.
But today, Amazon’s closeout deal site Woot is offering a 24-inch Viewsonic monitor with USB-C for just $70. That’s the cheapest I’ve ever seen for the feature.
There are a couple of provisos here. First, it’s a refurbished sale and this particular model is labeled “scratch and dent.” That means it’s not going to be pristine and it’s not coming in its original box. But it is tested to be fully functional and without any major issues.
If you do run into issues with it, Woot includes a 90-day warranty with this monitor and a 30-day return policy. I’ve used the latter before and been pretty satisfied — I didn’t even have to pay for shipping.
The second potential pitfall is that while this monitor supports USB-C video, it only sends 15 watts of charging power back down the cable. So, it can charge your phone or tablet while showing video, but it likely doesn’t have enough juice to charge up a laptop unless you’re using a Chromebook with a low-power Arm-based processor. (Anything bigger is still going to need a separate charger… and at that point you might as well just use HDMI instead.)
Otherwise, the monitor is pretty standard for a budget model, with a 1080p resolution and a standard VA panel (not as good as IPS, but fine for most browsing and games). It’s compatible with a standard VESA mount if you use an adjustable monitor arm, and its thin bezels make it pretty good in a multi-monitor setup. Oddly, it also has a VGA port, in case you’re connecting to a computer that’s old enough to vote.
Unlike most of Woot’s deals, this one is valid for a full ten days, ending on August 24th (or until the limited stock runs out).
Get a refurbished Viewsonic USB-C monitor for just $70Author: Michael Crider, Staff Writer, PCWorld
Michael is a 10-year veteran of technology journalism, covering everything from Apple to ZTE. On PCWorld he's the resident keyboard nut, always using a new one for a review and building a new mechanical board or expanding his desktop "battlestation" in his off hours. Michael's previous bylines include Android Police, Digital Trends, Wired, Lifehacker, and How-To Geek, and he's covered events like CES and Mobile World Congress live. Michael lives in Pennsylvania where he's always looking forward to his next kayaking trip.