Solo Technology

My laptop sports a 17″ wide 1920 x 1200 pixel display. At the office I connect a 17″ 1280 x 1024 LCD to the side. I’d really like to add one more display to the other side, but there is only the one external (analog) display port.

I’ve seen USB video adapters for sale for some time now — anyone know if they’re worth messing with for basic office work? (example) I’m not expecting to play games on the dang thing, just run another 17″ or 19″ LCD.

Seems like these would be just the ticket for a laptop, but I’d sure like to hear someone say “Yeah, it’s not too bad” before I buy one….

5 Responses to “USB Video Adapters — Any Good?”

1. PowerDosh on March 28th, 2008 3:46 am
   

   I would imagine they’d be quite poor, simply due to data transfer speeds. Can you find a store somewhere that sells them so you can have a play before buying?

   Dan

2. Light & Dark on March 31st, 2008 3:50 pm
   

   Chris, I’ve actually read a number of reviews that found the USB adapters were fairly effective, especially for just office-type use. I’ve used Matrox video cards for years, and their Dual-Head-to-Go seems to work very well. (It’s all about data compression).

   I was reading up on this topic as I needed a dual-monitor setup for my CEO’s laptop - same requirements as you. In the end, I found a terrific solution I can heartily recommend if it fits your needs.

   It’s the Samsung SyncMaster 940UX, a 19″ monitor that connects directly via USB. Nice high-quality monitor - also has DVI available. Rumour has it a 20 or 21 in. may be in the works as well.

   Essentially, the monitor contains circuitry for a “virtual video card”. When you first plug in the USB, the monitor installs drivers from it’s built-in Flash memory. The setup I did with 2 monitors was seamless and flawless. Only glitch I’ve encountered is Quicktime movies seem to corrupt when played on the external monitors (play fine on laptop screen). Haven’t had time to troubleshoot that issue, but otherwise am extremely impressed.

   CEO’s using 2 of these plus the laptop screen in a triple monitor setup. You can daisy chain a ridiculous number of these together if you want - 24 I think?

   The monitor’s only about 50 or 60 bucks more than a regular Samsung, compared to at least $120 for the adapters that I found.

   If you’d like additional info, by all means give me a shout. (No Samsung affiliation here - I manage IT for a tourism organisation.)

   Paul

3. Chris on April 3rd, 2008 8:03 pm
   

   @Light & Dark - that’s an interesting twist that I never knew existed. Thanks for that tip, I might go that direction.

4. infodotnet on April 17th, 2008 3:20 am
   

   I just wondering if there is any usb or pcmcia vga adapter that is good enough to replace my OnBoard intel i945, because intel doesn’t have TnL (and i think all intel based vga doesn’t have TnL feature).

5. Chris on April 17th, 2008 8:07 am
   

   @infodotnet — I’d say that the odds aren’t great…

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