10 out of 10 people found this review helpful.
Does the job that it is designed to do! Don't expect HiFI
Date of Review: Apr 22, 2008
The Bottom Line: A good cheap solution to put that extra monitor to good use as TV
I purchased this KWorld 1680 adapter to use a spare 17inch LCD monitor as a TV in my home Gym.
Here are my impressions:
It is an inexpensive solution that really works. For around $55 you can convert your monitor into a fully functional TV. It comes with NTSC tuner and a small speaker. The real added plus is that they supply every cable imaginable. So you are ready to go without any extra hardware whatsoever! So right of the bat, if that is your need just go for it. If you are an audio/videophile looking for a high-end solution then read on ( and go elsewhere).
(1)Looks and Build:
It is cheap, it works and it comes with everything you need! It is a small unit, decent looking and inconspicuous enough so it sits in your setup discretely! Build quality is ok. Do not expect mahogany cabinet at this price!
(2)Tuner
It DOES NOT have a HD tuner in-built but it is capable of accepting a component ( Pb, Pr, Y) connection from an external HD tuner, such as your cable box to give you a much better picture. It however has a NTSC tuner. The NTSC tuner is very mediocre! I have an external HD tuner. If I use that with the off-air antenna and then connect the tuner output to the input of this adapter the picture is very good. (just short of excellent). But If I use the native tuner inside the KWorld with the very same antenna; I get a grainy picture on some channels while other channels do not show up at all! So it needs a very strong signal to perform. If I input the cable connection (without the cable company tuner) the picture is significantly better.
(3) Picture:
As I said above, the picture is mediocre with built-in tuner but it is very very good with external HD tuner. Of course, I am using a pretty new and decent LCD monitor. So you may get vastly different results depending upon your monitor! The picture is smooth. Nothing is choppy or wavy. It looks like regular TV (not Internet TV). Mind you it is still NOT STUNNING. Just very good!
(4) Sound
It comes with a speaker which is mediocre. It sounds exactly like a small transistor radio. It is clear but the sound has neither character nor depth. It allows you to output the sound to some other speaker system (headphone or an audio system) I believe the amplifier inside is also mediocre because the sound is equally mediocre when I connect the headphones to the adapter. I have not tried inputting the audio to an external amplifier. I think that will improve the sound quality dramatically but I do not have any plans because I do not need that from my gym TV.
(5) Remote:
It is adequate. Pretty easy to use and navigate. Small buttons but does the job well!
One more remote to manage! However, if you have an external tuner such as cable box, and do not plan on using the monitor for dual purpose (computer monitor and TV/game monitor) you will only need this remote to turn the unit on/off. I have not been able to find the code for "Kworld" to program my universal remote as yet!
(6) Bells and whistles:
It allows you to simultaneously connect one computer source, one picture & audio source and one antenna input.
Remember, since it uses something called MMI input, you can connect ONLY one of Component, S Video or composite at a given time without manually fidgeting with cables.
The input switching is very easy (PC->Antenna->component)
It has PIP. I have seen it work but I do not plan to use it as this monitor is dedicated as spare TV.
It claims to have other functions (calendar, games and such). I have not tested those as I do not plan to use those!
Use it for what it is meant to do and you will love it! Overall for $57 you have a solution that lets you use your monitor as a TV or game monitor. If you are planning to use it with top of the line projector/monitor and expect stunning true HD/Home theatre experience, you WILL be disappointed so look elsewhere!
PS: it is available on newegg and buy.com both for $59 today.
