X-bit labs

Started by: 31415 | Date 06/13/07

Comments: 25 | Last Comment:  06/23/08

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1. What exactly is the graphcs card of this monitor? It is impossible to do full motion video just with the processor.

Also it would be cool if you could connect multiple monitors and keyboards and mice to the same computer and have multiple users using it at the same time. This might be possible under linux or under a virtual machine.

This could reduce the ammount of computers that have to be purchased for computer labs.

Think about it: a modern dual core cpu can probably run as much as 8 internet surfing sessions at one time without any problems.

That would be a good save on money and on electricity.

"What exactly is the graphcs card of this monitor? It is impossible to do full motion video just with the processor"

It's a software driver which can utilize main (hardware) videocard in some cases. As far as I understand, overlays are rendered by the hardware videocard and then transferred to the DisplayLink driver, so you can watch even DVD video on USB monitor (CPU load larger than with ordinary monitor, but still acceptable).

Also there's a special driver called "DisplayLink Mirror Adapter" (http://www.xbitlabs.com/images/other/samsung-sm940ux/dm.png) which is used when working in clone mode.

"This might be possible under linux or under a virtual machine"

There's also such software for Windows.

Still no Linux? (this field is required)

2. "Windows Vista whose interface requires 3D acceleration"
Vista doesn't require 3d acceleration. Only if you use the aero interface and with this monitor you just turn that off and my guess it will run just fine.

We don't have 940UX Vista drivers at the time of testing so we can't check Vista compatibility at all.

But there are other products based on DisplayLink chips (USB-to-DVI converters), some of them should work with Vista, but only in desktop clone mode, using "DisplayLink Mirror Adapter" driver.

DisplayLink Enables Vista's Aero 3D on USB Monitors
http://www.everythingusb.com/displaylink_12578.html

3. Well, this is a good start, but would be better if it were wireless. What I'm looking for is a wireless monitor (the smaller and lighter the better) that I can carry around my home or office from which I can operate my computer. I envision having a pen interace with a pop-up qwerty keyboard, much like a tablet PC. Currently I can control my office computer with my 14.1" laptop using Radmin, but it's rathercumbersome, and I would love to be able to just use something about the size and weight of the monitor portion of the laptop to directly control my main computer (that's where I keep all my audio and video). And it needs to be cheap too, not much more than the cost of an LCD monitor. I see DisplayLink's technology perhaps providing that interface.

Why don't you just get a Tablet PC then?

Honestly, wireless technology of today is far too slow to be implemented for this type of application. Unless they greatly improve the compression of this video, there is no way it can happen within the next 5 years at LEAST. And talk about a power drain! You would have to plug in this "moniter" wherever you plan on using it. Using a laptop with some RDP software would still be you best solution. And think of the advances with that technology compared to this, I think that will always have the edge.

Wow, spelled monitor wrong. Home row for the loss.

4. Were there any compression artifacts visible? That was what I was most interested in finding out from this review, and I didn't even see that mentioned. The signal is compressed, after all...

No, there isn't.

"The chips use lossless compression, which is expectable" (on the first page :)

5. An interesting enough article. One think I might just mention Oleg is that "expectable" isn't actually a word. You should probably use the term "to be expected" instead ;-)

6. It would be interesting to see how reacts those monitors with the USB over IP software:
http://www.usb-over-network.com/usb-over-network.html
You should make a test if you get a chance (there's a trial version)
it's supposed to handle usb2

It would be handy for a meeting room when people come with their laptop, connect to wireless lan, connect to the remote usb hub and then launch a powerpoint.
They'll probably need to put that technology in bigger monitors if it's for a meeting though...

7. Interesting. Anyone aware of a simple 1024 x 768 USB monitor? Application in mind is for temporarily plugging a monitor and keyboard into one of a stack of dedicated systems that have their netwok ports in use but USB ports all free. No fancy graphics needed- usually just a command line inteface to be displayed.

8. Does anyone know if Samsung is planning on supporting Linux?

9. woow nice news i wanna one this !!!!!
jejejej

10. www.proline.pl

11. Good review. Provided the information I was looking for.

12. Linux Support..??

13. Was expectable the word of the day?

14. i was thinking about this recently and i tried to search.Good work keep it up

15. Pix of the 2 monitors working are missing!

16. THANKS FOR THE INFO. I AM CONSIDERING THIS UNIT FOR 1 FEATURE MAINLY, THAT IS, LANDSCAPE TO PORTRAIT SWIVEL.

17. This sounds like it might be a good solution for some of the 'mini-PC' machines such as the Asus Eee PC with their tiny screens. With the two USB ports it sounds as though one could connect the monitor to the PC and then connect a mouse and keyboard, probably even a wireless mouse and keyboard!

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