ViewSonic to Introduce 5 Classes of Internet Appliances

ViewSonic Corp., the Walnut-based firm that made its name in the computer monitor business, will unveil its first crop of Internet appliances this week in New York.

The company, whose annual monitor sales are topped only by PC makers Dell Computer Corp., Compaq Computer Corp., Gateway Inc. and Hewlett-Packard Co., will introduce five classes of devices Tuesday in conjunction with a major Internet service provider.

With prices for computer components falling and consumer demand for Net access rising, industry experts expect Internet appliances to offer a low-cost alternative to PCs.

The first machine ViewSonic will bring to market is an i-box, which resembles a miniature PC but has no moving parts and will turn on instantly, like a television. The i-box plugs into a monitor and will cost less than $500 when it comes to market in the fourth quarter of the year. For roughly the same price, the company will also sell a smaller device that will serve as a base for a ViewSonic monitor, turning it into an Internet appliance, said Peter Weedfald, ViewSonic’s executive vice president for marketing and business strategies.

Early next year, ViewSonic will release five wireless Web pads that can surf the Internet as they are being carried throughout a house. Each pad, which will be smaller than a three-ring binder, will resemble an oversize personal digital assistant that users can control with a stylus instead of a keyboard. The wireless Web pads will be priced between $1,200 and $1,500, Weedfald said.

ViewSonic will also show off at least two kinds of Web phones with 7-inch color monitors and keyboards to facilitate Web surfing. Prices will range from $400 to $1,000, he said. Finally, ViewSonic will unveil a TV set-top box with built-in Web access that can also play DVD movies, MP3 music files and even karaoke tunes, Weedfald said.