ViewSonic VG1655 Review: The Budget Portable Monitor That’s Actually Available in SA

What It Is and Who It’s For

The ViewSonic VG1655 is a 15.6-inch portable monitor that costs roughly R4,500 to R5,500 in South Africa. That’s the headline: a full-sized portable display for significantly less than the ASUS ZenScreen or Lenovo ThinkVision M14.

But the real selling point for Cape Town-based remote workers isn’t just the price. It’s the availability. While the ASUS ZenScreen drifts in and out of local stock and the Lenovo ThinkVision requires checking multiple retailers, the ViewSonic VG1655 is consistently listed on Takealot with reasonable delivery times. When your monitor dies or you decide you need a second screen, being able to order one and have it arrive in two to three days matters more than saving R500 on an import that takes three weeks.

This is the monitor for budget-conscious remote workers who want dual-screen productivity without paying premium prices. It’s also a reasonable first portable monitor if you’re not sure the category is for you.

Key Specs

• Screen size: 15.6 inches, IPS panel
• Resolution: 1920 x 1080 (Full HD)
• Weight: 800g (monitor only)
• Thickness: 6.5mm
• Connectivity: 2x USB-C, 1x mini-HDMI
• Brightness: 250 nits
• Colour gamut: Approx. 80% sRGB (ViewSonic doesn’t prominently advertise this)
• Response time: 6.5ms
• Built-in speakers: Yes (dual speakers)
• Stand: Magnetic cover/stand included
• Price in SA: R4,500 – R5,500 (Takealot)

What We Tested

We used the VG1655 for two weeks, focusing on the questions that matter when you’re spending less: what do you actually give up, and does it matter for real work?

Takealot ordering and delivery: Ordered on a Monday morning, delivered to a Green Point address by Wednesday afternoon via Takealot’s standard delivery. The monitor arrived in ViewSonic’s retail packaging with all cables included (USB-C to USB-C, USB-C to USB-A, mini-HDMI to HDMI). No hunting for adapters.

Build quality inspection: Out of the box, the VG1655 feels lighter than it should — and not in a good way. The plastic body has more flex than the ASUS ZenScreen’s aluminium finish or the Lenovo ThinkVision’s solid chassis. The magnetic cover that doubles as a stand is functional but the magnets don’t grip the monitor as firmly as you’d want. It works; it doesn’t inspire confidence.

Coworking use (Open, Foreshore): Set up alongside a 15-inch laptop on a standard hot desk. The 15.6-inch screen size matched the laptop display well, creating a comfortable dual-screen layout. The magnetic stand held the monitor at a decent angle on the flat desk surface.

Cafe use (Deluxe Coffeeworks, Newlands): Smaller cafe tables test any portable monitor setup. The VG1655’s 800g weight and slightly thicker profile make it feel chunkier than the Lenovo ThinkVision M14 when you’re trying to fit two screens, a coffee, and a notebook on a table designed for one person.

Mini-HDMI fallback test: We connected the VG1655 to an older Dell laptop that lacked USB-C DisplayPort Alt Mode. The mini-HDMI connection worked immediately. This is a genuine advantage over USB-C-only monitors — the mini-HDMI port means the VG1655 is compatible with essentially any laptop made in the last decade.

Colour comparison: We displayed the same web page, the same set of photographs, and the same design file on the VG1655 and the Lenovo ThinkVision M14 side by side. The difference was visible. The VG1655’s colours are slightly muted, with less saturation in reds and blues. Whites have a faint warm tint. For email, spreadsheets, browsing, and document work, you’d never notice. For design or photo work, the ThinkVision M14 is measurably more accurate.

What’s Good

The price-to-functionality ratio is strong. For R4,500-R5,500, you get a 15.6-inch IPS display at Full HD resolution with USB-C and HDMI connectivity. The core function — giving you a second screen — works well. If you’re evaluating whether a portable monitor improves your productivity before committing to a premium option, the VG1655 lets you test the concept at lower risk.

Mini-HDMI gives you universal compatibility. This is the VG1655’s most underrated feature. USB-C monitors are elegant when your laptop supports DisplayPort Alt Mode. When it doesn’t, you’re stuck. The VG1655’s mini-HDMI port means any laptop with an HDMI output (directly or via a dock/adapter) can drive this monitor. If you carry a variety of devices or share the monitor with travel companions, this flexibility has real value.

It’s available on Takealot. This sounds like a minor point until you’ve tried buying an ASUS ZenScreen in South Africa. Local availability, local warranty, and Takealot’s return policy make the purchasing experience straightforward. No importing, no customs delays, no currency conversion surprises.

Built-in speakers exist. They’re not good — tinny, quiet, and you’ll never choose them over your laptop speakers or headphones. But they exist, which is more than the ASUS ZenScreen or Lenovo ThinkVision M14 can say. For a quick video preview or notification sounds when you have the monitor as your primary display, they serve a purpose.

Dual USB-C ports with power delivery. Like the Lenovo ThinkVision M14, the VG1655 has two USB-C ports and supports passthrough charging. Connect your laptop on one port, your charger on the other. This is increasingly a standard feature, but at this price point it’s a welcome inclusion.

What’s Not

Build quality reflects the price. The plastic body flexes when you grip the monitor at the edges. The magnetic cover doesn’t always sit flush and occasionally slides when you adjust the viewing angle. After two weeks of daily backpack carry, a small scratch appeared on the bezel despite careful handling. None of this affects functionality, but the ASUS and Lenovo options feel like they’ll last longer.

The colour accuracy gap is real. At roughly 80% sRGB, the VG1655 is noticeably less accurate than the 100% sRGB panels on the ASUS ZenScreen and Lenovo ThinkVision. For most office work, this doesn’t matter. For any visual work — web design, photo editing, colour-sensitive content creation — the muted colours and warm white point are limitations you’ll work around rather than ignore.

250 nits is middling. Brighter than the ASUS ZenScreen’s 220 nits but dimmer than the Lenovo ThinkVision M14’s 300 nits. In practice, the VG1655 performed similarly to the ZenScreen in bright environments: adequate at interior desks, strained at window seats, unusable outdoors. The 30-nit advantage over the ASUS was not perceptible in real use.

800g is on the heavier side. At 800g, the VG1655 weighs more than the ASUS ZenScreen (780g) and significantly more than the Lenovo ThinkVision M14 (570g). Combined with the slightly thicker profile, it’s the bulkiest option in this comparison. Not prohibitively heavy, but if you’re walking to your coworking space daily, you’ll notice the difference over a few weeks.

The magnetic stand is the weakest link. The cover-stand works by folding the magnetic cover into a triangular prop behind the monitor. It provides one primary angle with some adjustment range. On smooth surfaces, the base can slide if bumped. At a busy cafe where the table gets jostled, this is a recurring minor annoyance. A separate lightweight stand (even a small book) provides more stability.

How It Compares

Against the ASUS ZenScreen MB16AC (R6,500-R8,500): The ASUS has better build quality and colour accuracy but costs R2,000-R3,000 more, lacks HDMI, and is harder to find in SA. The VG1655 wins on value, availability, and connectivity versatility.

Against the Lenovo ThinkVision M14 (R5,500-R7,000): The Lenovo is lighter, brighter, and more colour-accurate. It’s the better monitor in almost every technical metric. But it costs R1,000-R1,500 more, has a smaller 14-inch screen, and lacks HDMI. If those trade-offs matter to you, the VG1655 offers a different balance.

The Verdict

The ViewSonic VG1655 is not the best portable monitor you can buy. It’s the most practical one for many Cape Town remote workers.

The build quality is adequate rather than premium. The colour accuracy will frustrate designers. The weight is higher than the competition. But it costs less, it’s available on Takealot with local warranty, it has HDMI for universal compatibility, and it delivers the core benefit — a functional second screen — without drama.

If you’re a developer, writer, project manager, or anyone whose work doesn’t depend on precise colour reproduction, the VG1655 does what you need for roughly R2,000 less than premium alternatives. The money you save could cover a month of coworking membership at a space like Open or Spin Street House.

For design professionals and photographers, spend more on the Lenovo ThinkVision M14. For everyone else, the VG1655 is a smart way to test whether a portable dual-screen setup improves your working life before committing to a more expensive option.

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