5 ms·

Vizio reboots the PC: a quiet American success story

96 points by ditados 14y ago

joshbaptiste 14y ago
The non-mobile link: http://www.theverge.com/2012/6/15/3076519/vizio-reboot-pc-american-hdtv-success-do-it-again http://www.theverge.com/2012/6/15/3076519/vizio-reboot-pc-am...
x1 14y ago
More pictures & Info: http://www.chipchick.com/2012/06/vizio-dives-laptop-all-in-one.html http://www.chipchick.com/2012/06/vizio-dives-laptop-all-in-o...
seltzered_ 14y ago
I was excited to read this, just hope their next iteration of the 14-inch model has a more powerful cpu.
Spittie 14y ago
Those look really nice. Seems that they understand what the mainstream market want: something that look nice, work nice, are durable and don't cost too much. Too bad that they are using a mobile gpu for their desktop computer, and that it "just" have a 1080p resolution instead of something bigger (1440p or 1600p would be perfect for me).
- deleted 14y ago
  [deleted]
jpxxx 14y ago
Let's wait until their PC products are on the market before calling this a success story.
- nostromo 14y ago
  The full title is more accurate: "Vizio reboots the PC: a quiet American success story takes on sleeping giants" It looks like the character count was reduced to fit HN's title limitations.
- astrodust 14y ago
  They have more design going on in that one room than the industry has in entire continents.
emperorcezar 14y ago
All this hardware is strikingly similar to Apple's.
- deleted 14y ago
  [deleted]
- thought_alarm 14y ago
  Similar in that their hardware tries to follow a thoughtful and unique design language. Good on them. I'd say they're the only PC manufacturer that isn't directly ripping off an existing Apple design.
- prezjordan 14y ago
  Just because it's clean and rounded courners. I think they've got the same mindset (keep it simple, no blinking lights, etc) and I appreciate that. But no, they're not blatantly ripping off an apple keyboard (cough HP Envy cough) and tricking people into thinking it's a mac from far away.
  - Apocryphon 14y ago
    I don't think Vizio is trying to copy Apple, but it's a bit disappointing that their machines also have a similar aluminum unibody style. There's no other way to express "striking but not cluttered"?
hristov 14y ago
I am going to sound like a broken record, but they should have a linux version.
- simonh 14y ago
  Because you genuinely believe it would be a good business decision, or because it would be cool? Also which build, of which distro, with which desktop? The problem is there aren't really Linux fans, there are Ubuntu fans and Redhat fans and Mint fans and, etc. If Mint is your thing, with Ubuntu as acceptable, a Redhat desktop probably isn't going to be interesting to you, and so on. Linux being a kernel, not an operating system, is a very real issue for a company like this. Each is a tiny little fragment of the Desktop Linux market, which is a tiny little fragment of the overall desktop market. Fragmentation of fragmentation.
  - hristov 14y ago
    It would probably be a good business decision. Their costs for offering a Linux version would be very low if they choose their hardware well. The cost would be just testing and sending an additional image to a manufacturer. They would get instant recognition and instant free press. Marketing is one of the highest costs for companies like these. For example, I am willing to bet that the article we are discussing now cost Vizio good money (probably paid through a PR firm). But if they offer the only premium laptop with Linux on it, they would get free coverage in all Linux media and most tech media. So yes, there is a good business case for it. The big wild card about the business case is Microsoft. Microsoft, will probably make their lives really hard if they do offer Linux. This would probably be anti-competitive behavior with doubtful legality but would likely happen nevertheless. But other than potential Microsoft meddling, I think there is a good business case for it.
    - rosstafarian 14y ago
      Did you even read the article? "Vizio is one of the best-kept secrets in consumer technology. The tiny Southern California company consistently sells the most HDTVs in America, but it's a sure bet that you know virtually nothing about it. Hell, most people don't even know Vizio is an American company, even though all but three of its 417 employees work in the US. That's sort of what happens when you run virtually no advertising outside of sponsoring a few major events like the Rose Bowl, hold no press conferences outside of CES, and build the foundation of your empire by selling low-cost TVs at Walmart. Yet Vizio's customers keep coming back, and bringing others: a combination of low prices, increasing quality, and solid customer support is pretty hard to resist." Vizio sells their products in walmart for good prices and relies on word of mouth. How many average walmart shoppers even know what linux is? It might get them some free press but it's probably not the press they need. Personally I'd love to be able to get the thing $100 cheaper without the windows license, but what about the time they have to spend testing and developing drivers/etc will that even out the cost? What about the extra support they'll have to provide for Joe Walmartshopper trying to install word on his brand new machine he just dropped $800 on? What kind of press will it generate when they tell him, that no he can't use outlook? As much as I'd love to see linux on these things it's not a good business decision. Company's like dell massive resources with a huge product like so they can have a linux offering, but for a company like this it just doesn't make sense.
leonlee 14y ago
I had heard of Vizio before but never held them in the same league as the Samsungs or LGs of the TV industry. I appreciate how they seem to be fighting against the flow to do things differently. Instead of cramming extra software and stickers onto their product Vizio chose to sterilize, and instead of supporting legacy connectors and optical disk drives Vizio chose to modernize.
- Apocryphon 14y ago
  It's almost as if they're adapting Apple minimalist aesthetics for Windows machines. Which is mind-boggling that no other PC manufacturer has tried the same in the last few years.
  - btown 14y ago
    Their quasi-mantra of "focus" is also very reminiscent of Apple's way of thinking. I have 100% more respect for them than I did this morning, that's for sure.
- ktsmith 14y ago
  I own a couple of Samsung products and a couple of Vizio products. Vizio isn't in the same league as Samsung. They are typically bringing year old tech to consumers that are more budget constrained. If you know what you are getting they are certainly not bad though. I don't care for their choice of software (yahoo tv widgets) on the smart tvs as it's clunky and crashes. I also think they need to rethink their remote controls. The buttons require a lot of force and make an annoying clicking sound when pressed. I'm skeptical they will get the keyboard and trackpad on their laptops right given their software and remote issues on the tvs.
hollerith 14y ago
Here is my comment on their desktop computer: it has two pieces, one with most of the electronics plus a monitor, the other with an AC-to-DC converter plus a sub-woofer. I much prefer the more conventional division of duties in which one piece is a monitor, the other piece has a power supply and most of the electronics and the interface between the 2 pieces is some standard protocol like DVI-D, HDMI or DisplayPort. I notice that their desktop computer uses a mobile CPU, which has advantages and disadvantages. One of the biggest advantages is portability, which is useful even in a "desktop" computer like the Mac mini. Specifically, the reduction in the demands on the cooling system allows the electronics and the case containing the electronics to be small and light. (A 2011 Mac mini or the recently-announced Chromebox for example weighs only 2.7 pounds including the AC adapter which in both cases is built-in.) But if you integrate the mobile CPU with a monitor, you lose the ability to unplug the box with the CPU from your monitor, carry it around and plug it into some other monitor or TV (which is something I do a lot with my Mac mini).
- spartango 14y ago
  Worthy of note is the fact that the original Intel iMacs and Mac Minis shipped with Mobile processors (Intel Core/Core 2 TXXX rather than EXXX), for the reasons you mention.
  - hollerith 14y ago
    Although some iMacs and maybe all iMacs now use desktop-class processors, all Mac minis still have mobile processors. (35 W TDP for the processors in the $599 and the $799 2011 models; 45 W TDP for the CPU in the 2011 Mac mini server.) Otherwise they couldn't be so small and light without overheating!
    - deleted 14y ago
      [deleted]
- teyc 14y ago
  There are tradeoffs when you create abstraction layers. For instance, Apple's new ad talked about larger batteries they fitted by not making batteries easily replaceable - there were additional housing and adapters - which all took up room. This has been a general trend over many years.
krakensden 14y ago
Well sign me up- that laptop sounds like a fantastic idea.
patrickgzill 14y ago
"I hate opening a PC and seeing stickers and flashing LEDs all over the place." === A-MEN!!!!
- Stratoscope 14y ago
  For anyone else who hates stickers as much as you and I do, I found the perfect tool for removing them: the plastic toothpick from a Swiss Army knife. The toothpick has a very flat tip that will go right under the corner of a sticker and let you lift the corner - and then the rest of the sticker will pull away easily. At the same time, the toothpick is soft enough that it won't scratch whatever surface the sticker is on.
aurynn 14y ago
Wow, first PC laptop I'd actually buy.

96 points by ditados 14y ago

The non-mobile link: http://www.theverge.com/2012/6/15/3076519/vizio-reboot-pc-american-hdtv-success-do-it-again http://www.theverge.com/2012/6/15/3076519/vizio-reboot-pc-am...

x1 14y ago

More pictures & Info: http://www.chipchick.com/2012/06/vizio-dives-laptop-all-in-one.html http://www.chipchick.com/2012/06/vizio-dives-laptop-all-in-o...

seltzered_ 14y ago

I was excited to read this, just hope their next iteration of the 14-inch model has a more powerful cpu.

Spittie 14y ago

Those look really nice. Seems that they understand what the mainstream market want: something that look nice, work nice, are durable and don't cost too much. Too bad that they are using a mobile gpu for their desktop computer, and that it "just" have a 1080p resolution instead of something bigger (1440p or 1600p would be perfect for me).

deleted 14y ago
[deleted]

jpxxx 14y ago

Let's wait until their PC products are on the market before calling this a success story.

nostromo 14y ago
The full title is more accurate: "Vizio reboots the PC: a quiet American success story takes on sleeping giants" It looks like the character count was reduced to fit HN's title limitations.
astrodust 14y ago
They have more design going on in that one room than the industry has in entire continents.

emperorcezar 14y ago

All this hardware is strikingly similar to Apple's.

deleted 14y ago
[deleted]
thought_alarm 14y ago
Similar in that their hardware tries to follow a thoughtful and unique design language. Good on them. I'd say they're the only PC manufacturer that isn't directly ripping off an existing Apple design.
prezjordan 14y ago
Just because it's clean and rounded courners. I think they've got the same mindset (keep it simple, no blinking lights, etc) and I appreciate that. But no, they're not blatantly ripping off an apple keyboard (cough HP Envy cough) and tricking people into thinking it's a mac from far away.
- Apocryphon 14y ago
  I don't think Vizio is trying to copy Apple, but it's a bit disappointing that their machines also have a similar aluminum unibody style. There's no other way to express "striking but not cluttered"?

hristov 14y ago

I am going to sound like a broken record, but they should have a linux version.

simonh 14y ago
Because you genuinely believe it would be a good business decision, or because it would be cool? Also which build, of which distro, with which desktop? The problem is there aren't really Linux fans, there are Ubuntu fans and Redhat fans and Mint fans and, etc. If Mint is your thing, with Ubuntu as acceptable, a Redhat desktop probably isn't going to be interesting to you, and so on. Linux being a kernel, not an operating system, is a very real issue for a company like this. Each is a tiny little fragment of the Desktop Linux market, which is a tiny little fragment of the overall desktop market. Fragmentation of fragmentation.
- hristov 14y ago
  It would probably be a good business decision. Their costs for offering a Linux version would be very low if they choose their hardware well. The cost would be just testing and sending an additional image to a manufacturer. They would get instant recognition and instant free press. Marketing is one of the highest costs for companies like these. For example, I am willing to bet that the article we are discussing now cost Vizio good money (probably paid through a PR firm). But if they offer the only premium laptop with Linux on it, they would get free coverage in all Linux media and most tech media. So yes, there is a good business case for it. The big wild card about the business case is Microsoft. Microsoft, will probably make their lives really hard if they do offer Linux. This would probably be anti-competitive behavior with doubtful legality but would likely happen nevertheless. But other than potential Microsoft meddling, I think there is a good business case for it.
  - rosstafarian 14y ago
    Did you even read the article? "Vizio is one of the best-kept secrets in consumer technology. The tiny Southern California company consistently sells the most HDTVs in America, but it's a sure bet that you know virtually nothing about it. Hell, most people don't even know Vizio is an American company, even though all but three of its 417 employees work in the US. That's sort of what happens when you run virtually no advertising outside of sponsoring a few major events like the Rose Bowl, hold no press conferences outside of CES, and build the foundation of your empire by selling low-cost TVs at Walmart. Yet Vizio's customers keep coming back, and bringing others: a combination of low prices, increasing quality, and solid customer support is pretty hard to resist." Vizio sells their products in walmart for good prices and relies on word of mouth. How many average walmart shoppers even know what linux is? It might get them some free press but it's probably not the press they need. Personally I'd love to be able to get the thing $100 cheaper without the windows license, but what about the time they have to spend testing and developing drivers/etc will that even out the cost? What about the extra support they'll have to provide for Joe Walmartshopper trying to install word on his brand new machine he just dropped $800 on? What kind of press will it generate when they tell him, that no he can't use outlook? As much as I'd love to see linux on these things it's not a good business decision. Company's like dell massive resources with a huge product like so they can have a linux offering, but for a company like this it just doesn't make sense.

leonlee 14y ago

I had heard of Vizio before but never held them in the same league as the Samsungs or LGs of the TV industry. I appreciate how they seem to be fighting against the flow to do things differently. Instead of cramming extra software and stickers onto their product Vizio chose to sterilize, and instead of supporting legacy connectors and optical disk drives Vizio chose to modernize.

Apocryphon 14y ago
It's almost as if they're adapting Apple minimalist aesthetics for Windows machines. Which is mind-boggling that no other PC manufacturer has tried the same in the last few years.
- btown 14y ago
  Their quasi-mantra of "focus" is also very reminiscent of Apple's way of thinking. I have 100% more respect for them than I did this morning, that's for sure.
ktsmith 14y ago
I own a couple of Samsung products and a couple of Vizio products. Vizio isn't in the same league as Samsung. They are typically bringing year old tech to consumers that are more budget constrained. If you know what you are getting they are certainly not bad though. I don't care for their choice of software (yahoo tv widgets) on the smart tvs as it's clunky and crashes. I also think they need to rethink their remote controls. The buttons require a lot of force and make an annoying clicking sound when pressed. I'm skeptical they will get the keyboard and trackpad on their laptops right given their software and remote issues on the tvs.

hollerith 14y ago

Here is my comment on their desktop computer: it has two pieces, one with most of the electronics plus a monitor, the other with an AC-to-DC converter plus a sub-woofer. I much prefer the more conventional division of duties in which one piece is a monitor, the other piece has a power supply and most of the electronics and the interface between the 2 pieces is some standard protocol like DVI-D, HDMI or DisplayPort. I notice that their desktop computer uses a mobile CPU, which has advantages and disadvantages. One of the biggest advantages is portability, which is useful even in a "desktop" computer like the Mac mini. Specifically, the reduction in the demands on the cooling system allows the electronics and the case containing the electronics to be small and light. (A 2011 Mac mini or the recently-announced Chromebox for example weighs only 2.7 pounds including the AC adapter which in both cases is built-in.) But if you integrate the mobile CPU with a monitor, you lose the ability to unplug the box with the CPU from your monitor, carry it around and plug it into some other monitor or TV (which is something I do a lot with my Mac mini).

spartango 14y ago
Worthy of note is the fact that the original Intel iMacs and Mac Minis shipped with Mobile processors (Intel Core/Core 2 TXXX rather than EXXX), for the reasons you mention.
- hollerith 14y ago
  Although some iMacs and maybe all iMacs now use desktop-class processors, all Mac minis still have mobile processors. (35 W TDP for the processors in the $599 and the $799 2011 models; 45 W TDP for the CPU in the 2011 Mac mini server.) Otherwise they couldn't be so small and light without overheating!
  - deleted 14y ago
    [deleted]
teyc 14y ago
There are tradeoffs when you create abstraction layers. For instance, Apple's new ad talked about larger batteries they fitted by not making batteries easily replaceable - there were additional housing and adapters - which all took up room. This has been a general trend over many years.

krakensden 14y ago

Well sign me up- that laptop sounds like a fantastic idea.

patrickgzill 14y ago

"I hate opening a PC and seeing stickers and flashing LEDs all over the place." === A-MEN!!!!

Stratoscope 14y ago
For anyone else who hates stickers as much as you and I do, I found the perfect tool for removing them: the plastic toothpick from a Swiss Army knife. The toothpick has a very flat tip that will go right under the corner of a sticker and let you lift the corner - and then the rest of the sticker will pull away easily. At the same time, the toothpick is soft enough that it won't scratch whatever surface the sticker is on.

aurynn 14y ago

Wow, first PC laptop I'd actually buy.