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ViewSonic's Holstein declined to disclose recent sales figures for the company's consumer-focused ViewPad tablets. But, he stressed that future ViewSonic tablets will be designed only with specific verticals in mind, many requiring the integration of certain industry-specific apps or solutions. In the transportation market, for instance, ViewSonic is exploring tablets that come with digitizers and apps specifically built for signature-capture. ViewSonic has also seen demand for tablets that can act as digital menus for the quick-service restaurant (QSR) market, along with tablets catered toward retail.
Tablets designed for enterprise users will also remain on ViewSonic's radar, Holstein said.
"We believe that, at this time, the consumer space was a little bit over-crowded and that we needed to redirect our attention and focus more on the commercial space," Holstein told CRN. "So I think moving forward ... as solutions start to materialize, you will likely see products coming from ViewSonic that have additional value-added features for particular vertical markets."
ViewSonic is also trying to breathe new life into its traditional PC displays, another initiative it believes can help its partners stay competitive. Specifically, ViewSonic is looking to take the always-on, always-connected experience users have grown accustomed to from their smartphones and tablets, and apply it to PCs. One example of this, Holstein said, is ViewSonic's new VSD220 Smart Display, a 22-inch, cloud-based monitor that runs Google's Android OS.
The new Smart Display can be positioned as both a traditional PC monitor or as a small-scale digital signage solution, allowing partners to target two markets with a single product.
"I think the Smart Display is a good example of the direction that we're going. That type of product does have a consumer side of it, but it also has a commercial side to it, as well, for vertical market applications," Holstein said. "And I think you'll see products coming in the very near future that are more in line with that and our overall strategy for cloud computing."
As for ViewSonic's consumer-focused ViewPad tablets, they're not completely extinct yet. Holstein said ViewSonic will continue to sell the remaining inventory -- a stock he said was fairly small -- and possibly explore opportunities for selling ViewPads in emerging markets.
PUBLISHED SEPT. 20, 2012
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