Customer Reviews
good but cheap 
2008-05-14
i just retired my 2nd or 3rd N4 (can't remember) and they've all failed after about 2 years of light use. It's a decent product when it works although it has limited resolution. VS has stopped making them which is probably just as well. Viewsonic has been a total _____ type of a company to deal with. I've purchased their monitors and LCD TV's and have found their CS to be about the worst in the industry. They clearly don't get it anymore. Too bad they were a decent company in the 90s.
You get what you pay for 
2006-08-11
This is a great investment if you want to turn a monitor into a tv and/or dvd/video game station. It does everything that it says it does. The remote is, however, very small and does not always function very well.
RF In went "OUT" after 2 yrs of use 
2006-07-22
Normally don't write reviews but I own to everyone cuz I read them before buying.
The N4 is a good unit, at least for two years it was. The biggest Con is the HEAT this box gets REAL HOT ... at least mine does needs a bigger case with internal fans.
I still get to see the source from the RF Coax In (Cox Cable), but the picture is distorted diagonal lines mixed up colors, etc
I'm actually looking at getting the Viewsonic N6, reason is it's a feature packed box, it has what I need. Will only buy if I can purchase an extended warranty thou .....
PS: Everything else still works
Seems like a good product 2006-02-22
Does what it's suppose to do, with the caveat that it does not support more recent monitors, i.e. those having a native resolution higher than 1024X768.
Works as advertised 2005-08-08
I simply needed a device to be able to connect an old flat screen monitor up to a cable feed from my TiVo. The product works perfectly.
Before setting everything up I hadn't even thought about sound, but I fortunately had some spare external computer speakers that plug right into the processor box. I was pleasently surprised to realize that the processor box's remote control could now give me control of the volume output going to my remote-less speakers.
My one complaint, like many others, is the operating temperature of the device. I added little "feet" to the bottom of mine to provide a little better airflow, but I don't know if it's really helping.
Great product, weird reviews from others. 
2005-05-08
The ViewSonic NextVision N4 video processor turns your LCD, CRT or projector into a TV and multimedia center quickly and easily. Simply plug your display or projector into the N4 for TV and multiple video entertainment connections. Adding a DVD player, VCR or digital camera is as easy as plugging into the N4. The NextVision N4 comes with everything users need to get started, including cables and a remote control. The ViewSonic NextVision N4 video processor offers a convenient, cost-effective way to add TV and multimedia capability to your desktop. Sleep Timer Remote Control
Awesome product! 2005-02-24
I have no idea why the two recent reviews of this product have been bad, but I think its an awesome product! I am using my Sony 21" as my TV and this product has a great picture. I just recently started using the S-Video cable and its AWESOME! Great product!
N4 - Nice try but ... 2004-03-19
Have a spare Sony 15" flat screen CRT monitor, in good shape. Wanted to view VHS/DVD entertainment w/o adding another screen to my small space, so ordered and installed the N4.
The device produced images on the monitor, but the output quality was so poor, and the configuration via remote control and onscreen display was so fussy I decided not to keep it and returned it to Amazon.
No resolution setting or scan rate change improved the screen output (640x480 to 1024x768). Most disappointing was playing back a high-quality DVD (Twin Peaks box set) which uses full screen framing and having the image distorted (compressed horizontally giving skinny figures) no matter how I changed the settings on the N4, the DVD player or the Sony monitor. Infuriating! A VHS tape played more-or-less OK. Used the RF inputs for VHS and DVD and the S-Video inputs for DVD w/o seeing any improvements. Sound quality was OK -- it's just passing on the audio signal.
By way of comparison, playing the same DVD in the combo drive on my Dell laptop w. 14.1" LCD screen and DVD software gives a beautiful, full-screen high-resolution image, great sound and all the rest.
N4 setup was straightforward but printed troubleshooting information was very sparse and of the "check connections" variety. Nothing to help me solve the horizontal distortion.
It's too bad -- a device like this that really works would be a boon. I should have guessed this item was not a success given the small number of reviews and low rating.
Do not buy this product 2003-05-02
This is my review for the N5 but I think it will do some good when it comes to buying an N4: whatever you do, do not buy the N4.
Now this is the one review you should listen to. Seriously. I bought the N4 because it was cheaper and I didn't care about closed caption or parental controls, wow, big mistake. The next day I returned it and got the N5, best choice ever. The N5's picture blows away the N4's, true it doesn't have surround sound support, but to me that's no biggie. The picture is crisp (when one sits a few feet back) and looks very close to that of a TV. My only problem is that when using this with a computer doing a VGA pass though, the computer screen is a but blurry, it's because of this that I strongly reccommend a dual input monitor. I'm running it on a 21" sony and it looks excellent. Also it supports wide screen, which is a plus for all us home theater buffs. In short, the N4 felt cheap and worked just that way. It also got extremely hot, too hot to touch, and did all this while skipping frames attempting to process Xbox.
Pros:
Excellent picture
Better construction than the N4
Runs cooler
Stand is great
Remote is easier to use by feel
Cons:
Costs more
