VIA releases compact, fanless 10.4-inch Panel PC
(by Kirk Linsky)

On November 19, 2008, VIA Technologies, Inc, which is best known for its power efficient x86 processor platforms, announced the VIA VIPRO VP7710 touch screen panel PC. The VP7710 is a small, compact, fanless and very durable panel computer designed for intelligent display applications in demanding environments. VIA says the VIPRO is just the first in a series of advanced display technology products.

With the VP7710, VIA seeks to take advantage of increasing public acceptance of touch screen technologies. The VIA VIPRO attempts to address the rising demand for cost-effective intelligent displays in a variety of commercial applications such as ATMs, ticketing, vending and information kiosks as well as more complex fleet deployment systems in transport, delivery and logistics.

The VIA VIPRO is built to last, using a combination of steel and aluminum. Its housing has a footprint of 11.8 x 8.2 inches, is just over two inches thick, and weighs about eight pounds. The SVGA (800 x 600 pixls) TFT display has a wide viewing angle, measures 10.4 inches diagonally, and has an analog resistive touch screen.

The VIPRO is powered either by a 1.0GHz VIA C7 or a 1.6GHz Via Eden ULV processor. The system chipset and graphics controller also use VIA components (the CX700Me and integrated VIA UniChrome Pro II). There is up to a gigabyte of DDR2 RAM in a single SODIMM. Storage depends on the chosen operating system. The VIPRO can run Windows XP or Linux on an internal 2.5-inch hard disk, or XP Embedded or Windows CE 6.0 on Compact Flash media.

The machine has ample onboard connectivity with video, three serial ports, three audio ports and power at the bottom, and two USB 2.0 connectors, two PS/2 ports and an RJ45 LAN jack on the side (see picture).

This being a panel PC that is likely flush-mounted in some sort of enclosure (like a kiosk), the front side is sealed to IP65 specifications. The device can handle vibration up to 5G and substantial shock.

The VIA VIPRO is available to systems integrators and systems developers who will package it for custom applications and deployment.