Webcams have been around for a few years and commonly used for taking personal mug shots, video conferencing, etc... The recent trend with webcams has been to integrate them into newer laptops such as Apple’s MacBook Pro. Desktops such as Apple’s iMac come equipped with an integrated web cam as well. There hasn’t been any means for a user who wants to build their own system or purchase an off the shelf system to have their own webcam integrated into the monitor.

ASUS has realized this and released the new PW201 LCD monitor. The PW201 is a 20.1” widescreen LCD display with a 16:10 aspect ratio capable of a 1680x1050 resolution. What sets the PW201 apart from other 20.1” LCD monitors is the integration of a mega-pixel webcam towards the top edge of the bezel, eliminating clunky stand alone USB webcams. Aside from the convenience of an integrated webcam the PW201 has pretty standard specs including an 800:1 contrast ratio and brightness levels of 300 nits.

As far as input options go there are plenty of options available including DVI-D, D-SUB VGA, Composite, S-Video and Component (YPbPr) inputs. In terms of aesthetics the PW201 has a stylish minimalist design that can tilt and rotate for portrait and landscape viewing modes. It’s also wall mountable with a standard VESA 100x100 wall mount. The monitor also features two built-in 3 watt stereo speakers.