OK so I finally got off my rear and went to a local Best Buy to get one of these. On arriving I asked arround I asked a CSR to check for me. He said that he thought he saw some in the back. OK so I get a bit excited.... While waiting I look arround to see if I can see a floor sample of the monitor just to see what I was getting into. Nada, no floor sample. Anyhow he returns with an LCD monitor box in tow..... getting more excited now.... next he tells me the news. He says that they didn't have the monitor in stock, and wouldn't get any more this week. But they have a few Kogi's left, and mentioned that the store has listed it as an "equivelent" to the VPR. I told him thanks, but no, I would rather have the VPR. Thankfully though the CSR was a nice guy and checked the system for me to see if any of the other local BB stores had it in stock. Bingo, 2 other BB stores in the area have a few in stock. OK so I pack up and move on out to the next BB store in the area (Westminster, CA).
Get there, and like the other BB store (Costa Mesa), once again there are no VPR's on the floor or on display, however new shipments of Kogi monitors abound. So I go to the desk knowing that they should still have a few in stock. Ask the CSR who, once again a nice guy, tells me "sorry, but we don't carry those monitors, we only carry the CRT 17" monitors." Hmm, OK..... so I tell him that the Costa Mesa store says that they should have a few in stock. He thinks it over for a while and checks the computer. Looks up 17" Flat Panel LCD monitors in his system, and comes up with a string of Viewsonic monitors under "V". no VPR. OK now he looks up VPR and brings up several desktop PC's, still no 17" LCD...... OK finally he goes to the Bestbuy website and looks up the model number. Finds the model number and looks that up. Sure enough 6 in stock!!
"Wow!" he says, "I wanted to buy one of these yesterday, but I thought we were out of stock." He then goes on and tells me that the VPR was actually an equivelent to the Kogi, and that he doesn't think that the $160 rebate will print up for the VPR in store since it was an "online only" deal..... hmm I didn't remeber reading that, so I insist on getting the VPR. He then tells me that maybe I should just wait for the online store to be back in stock since I would be saving more money buying it online. Once again I politely decline and insist on getting the VPR. "How about a Kogi?" The VPR was acutally used as an "equivelent" when the Kogi was low on stock, and the $160 rebate will print out for that one in store............ OK so for the last time I decline and go for the VPR. So he asks me to follow him and lo and behold a bit off the beaten trail, a stack of 6 VPR 17" LCD's in the high recesses of the overstock area. The CSR then kindly passes me to another CSR to ring me up. And what do you know $160 rebate prints out!!! Wow what an event for this monitor.
The new CSR then tells me this:
The Kogi were the original 17" LCD on sale with rebate. However rumor had it that the stock ran out in several stores, so there was a rush to find an equivelent to satisfy a few angry Kogi-less customers. So someone decided that the VPR 17" was the equivelent.......... so bing bang boom in the system it goes, and now everyone has the VPR discounted with the $160 (and for a time $50) rebate printing up. Anyhow I guess some store managers realized a problem, and that perhapse the VPR was a bit better then the Kogi. Thus some stores removed their floor samples, and put the VPR's away. Only the people who went in an asked for it specifically would get it. Otherwise, not even a trace on the showroom floor.
Granted this may not apply for all BB stores, just the 2 I went to. Everyone wants you to buy a Kogi...... Naw I like my VPR. As for how I like it? I haven't played any games on it yet. But in the office its great, even in analog mode. I compair this to the Planar 17" a friend of mine bought last month for over $500 and its on par if not a bit brighter and clearer. Like a few others here, Warcraft III is the game of choice for me right now, and ghosting isn't really an issue since it's a RTS. I would be more worried about ghosting in a FPS or any other game where quick turning and aiming are factors. Still this will go nicely with my Shuttle SN41G2 I have on order. Thanks agent2099!!!