I used this ultralight portable monitor for a week and can't go back to one display

ZDNET's key takeaways

The ViewSonic TD1656-2K portable monitor is available now for $349. It's thin and lightweight, comes with a stylus, and has a crisp visual display that might even look better than your laptop. The price might be more than some want to pay, and isn't the best for particularly cramped workspaces.

I've reviewed a handful of portable monitors, but ViewSonic's TD1656-2K is one of the most premium mid-range devices I've used this year. Weighing three pounds and measuring just 0.4 inches thick, it resembles a tablet more than a portable monitor, provides a solid display, and doesn't drain your laptop dry.

The 16-inch device features a QHD touchscreen and a 16:10 aspect ratio with a 2560 x 1600p resolution, retailing for $349. The 60Hz refresh rate and 330-nit brightness pops on the glossy display, and the device comes with a sleek cover for portability. It also comes with a pen, which is a nice touch for those of us who prefer using a stylus over finger smudging.

Also: I switched to a split ergonomic keyboard for a week, and it's spoiled every other peripheral for me

The monitor itself is very sleek. It's thin and light, with a single USB-C port on each side and thin bezels surrounding the display. The right side of the device features two understated physical buttons for adjusting manual settings on the display, and turning it on or off.

The case it comes with protects the device while being transported, but it also acts as an adjustable mount for the monitor, since its thin form factor requires something to prop it up. More on this in a moment. 

The monitor itself is a no-brainer to connect. Just plug it in to your laptop via the included USB-C cable, and voilà. It features a flexible 65W pass-through power profile, meaning it can receive power in any scenario: whether your laptop is on battery, plugged in, or if the monitor itself is plugged in (which in turn charges the laptop). 

Also: This Lenovo laptop is my surprise pick for best MacBook Pro alternative (even for Apple users)

During my testing, I connected the monitor to a few different laptops, but used it most with my Chromebook Plus, which is a battery efficient laptop in its own right. It had no problem powering the monitor in addition to the laptop's own workloads, but it did run the battery down faster than normal.

You could potentially get an entire eight-hour day running on battery and using this monitor with some laptops, but for the majority of devices running on battery, you can count on a noticeable reduction in battery life, especially if you're running the monitor on high brightness.

This is a device that you thus wouldn't want to plug in and use all day if you're not plugged into a power source, but intermittent use on battery with video calls throughout the day should be good enough. Instead, it's best as a premium quality-of-life device to extend your laptop's display, whether that's for productivity, creative tasks, or gaming. 

Also: My new favorite travel accessory gives me an extra screen to work and play on

The monitor features two speakers on either side, which can be helpful for some users, but might be a little confusing for others. It's just another device you'll have to monitor for input/output controls, as even if you access media through your laptop's display, it could still play on the monitor.

When I was using it, I ended up switching all audio back to my laptop's internal speakers, even while using the monitor for video calls. The audio quality on the monitor isn't particularly good. The thin form factor of the device isn't going to provide much sound depth, but you're not using a portable monitor for high-fidelity sound, anyway.

Speaking of, if you're someone that does a lot of videoconferencing, this is a great quality-of-life device. Video looks great when maximized on the display, affording you your entire laptop's screen to work or take notes on. 

The IPS touch display on this monitor can also make any device into a touchscreen, even a MacBook. You just have to download vTouch for macOS, and your MacBook Pro can essentially function as a (wired) tablet. 

Also: One of my favorite laptops I've tested this year is ultraportable and has all-day battery life

If you're a laptop gamer, this is certainly a solid choice for a portable display, especially if you stream while gaming. The 60Hz refresh rate isn't going to replace a dedicated gaming monitor, but ViewSonic knows a thing or two about how to maximize the appearance of display hardware.

For example, displays with higher resolutions tend to appear brighter because of better overall pixel density, and that's the case here. The 330-nit brightness on this display might not objectively outshine your laptop, but it does look like a comparable extension thanks to the 2560 x 1600 resolution.

This, combined with the display's glossy finish, resulted in a sharp, balanced visual profile with no flickering or stuttering at all during the two weeks I used this device.

There aren't many things about this device that I don't like, but keep in mind that the case/stand may require some fiddling to get just right. One side is magnetic, which is the optimal way to prop it up, but that means a large footprint in the back, something to consider if your workspace is tight.

Also, the monitor's settings menu isn't something you'll access all the time, but it would have been great if that was accessible via touch, instead of using the physical buttons. This is hardly a dealbreaker -- I'm just nitpicking. 

ZDNET's buying advice

ViewSonic's TD1656-2K portable monitor is one of the better portable monitors I've tested. It's thin and light, and comes with a sharp-looking case, connection cable, and stylus, which is as complete a package as you can ask for. 

The accessible $349 price is a result of well-optimized hardware that looks sufficiently premium, and, depending on what kind of laptop you have, might even look better than your main display.