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Case, Power Supply, Fan Reviews
  Product:     MTB Exclusive: VL System L.I.S 2 Blue Eye  
  Price:     $92 (CAN) / $70 (U.S) 
  Supplied By:     VL System
  Author:     DrMobius
  Date:     February 16th, 2004
  Rating:     star star star star star star star star star star

VL System L.I.S 2 Blue Eye LCD
Click image for larger view
VL System L.I.S 2 Blue Eye LCD
Click image for larger view
 

When the software is installing it also searches out for installations of Winamp and Windows Media Player. If it finds them it drops a visualization (Winamp) or plugin (WMP) into their appropriate folders that will allow either of these two programs to display a VU-Meter on the L.I.S. 2. In our previous review of an L.I.S. module the files included would only work on older versions of Winamp, however the files installed with the L.I.S. 2 configured without any errors. One thing I noticed was in our last review we were supplied with two visualization options; to either display a full VU-Meter, or to scroll the filename on the bottom with a VU-Meter on top. The only visualization that was included with this CD was a full VU-Meter.

VL System L.I.S 2 Blue Eye LCD
Click image for larger view
VL System L.I.S 2 Blue Eye LCD
Click image for larger view
 

The feature I find to be the most useful is the POP3 email notification. You can set up the L.I.S. 2 to check your email accounts for new messages and then display the number of messages waiting at the server by entering the server, login, and password into the e-mail section of the preferences. This has proven useful as you can quickly glance at the readout and see if you have any messages waiting. I did find that you cannot change the display name for the e-mail accounts, they will remain Mail1, Mail2, Mail3, and Mail4. Some people may not like this as it can become hard to remember which e-mail account you have setup for Mail1 as opposed to Mail3 and so on. Another thing to keep in mind is some e-mail servers lockdown if they receive too many pings in a given time, so you’ll want to be sure that checking every minute won’t cause any problems and adjust it for a longer interval if you’re not sure.

VL System L.I.S 2 Blue Eye LCD
Click image for larger view
VL System L.I.S 2 Blue Eye LCD
Click image for larger view
 
The L.I.S Blue Eye 2 includes a bundled software application called the CG Logo Builder. The CG Logo Builder allows you to create custom logos and images to display on the LCD unit. You are given 8 character boxes to work with, simply click on a box to change it to white. The boxes are arranged based on the fixed character positions (20 left to right) and are placed by using $1 - $8. Any custom CG logos are displayed in the L.I.S. Control Center (the graphical representation of the actual LCD panel) as "~" characters, but they appear correctly on the LCD screen itself.

VL System L.I.S 2 Blue Eye LCD
Click image for larger view
VL System L.I.S 2 Blue Eye LCD
Click image for larger view
 
Once all the different settings have been customized, you can configure the auto user mode to run through the different settings. This is basically a queue of events that cycle on the LCD screen and appear at timed intervals that are configured via the software. You can chose to display either one of the many different features constantly or choose the user mode to have it scroll through many different settings. You can repeat a specific display screen by right clicking on the icon in the system tray and making your selection. Under the preferences you can also expand the user mode for some additional "preferential basis" actions. These options allow the visualizations from Winamp or Windows Media Player to be displayed in the event they are opened.
 
Conclusion:

VL System’s new L.I.S. 2 Blue Eye greatly improves on many of the weaknesses of its predecessors and remains a wonderful all inclusive LCD display package. The display itself is very clear and VL System has opted for a inversed display which puts bright white characters against a deep blue background. I was very pleased with the clarity of this unit when compared to other LCD units currently on the market. The software included has many improvements over the past releases including the automatic updates feature and a new look which will be skinnable. Aside from the features covered in the review, it can also display CPU/RAM usage, operating system information, Windows profile and user information, Internet Explorer build and version, network information such as IP addresses and activity, hard drive usage and free space, DirectX version and information, and printer information. The addition of a fan controller function is a welcome change and while some may not like software controlled fan settings, I found it can be helpful for controlling temperatures of computers remotely. When comparing this unit to its competitors it has the same features and sports a cleaner look at a significantly lower cost. I only came across a few issues with the L.I.S 2 Blue Eye which was the lack of documentation included with the unit and the limitations of the software when compared to some of the other LCD/VFD control software such as LCDC. Overall, I was very impressed with VL System L.I.S 2 Blue Eye and award MTB's Seal of Approval with a final rating of 9.5 out of 10. If you have any questions regarding this review be sure to visit the VL System website for more information or discuss them in our forums.

MTB Award
 
Thumbs Up! Pros:
  • Professional quality LCD PCB circuit
  • Clear high contrast display
  • Clean front bezel
  • Hitachi HD44780 compatible
  • Great eye candy for any case modder
  • Installation can be completed in less than 30 minutes
  • Wide range of statistic display options
  • Software controlled fan voltage adjustment
  • Built-in auto update features
Thumbs Down! Cons:
  • Lack of documentation with the product
  • Some users may find the software limiting
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