X-bit labs

Startup Sells USB 2.0 Graphics Cards.

Category: Video

by Anton Shilov

[ 06/07/2004 | 02:36 AM ]

A Japanese company is selling graphics adapters intended for USB 2.0 bus. While the unusual devices will hardly be interesting for gamers, the new product from Telegnosis may bring some flexibility to customers who need dual-display configurations on their personal computers that do not support it natively or to service companies.

Telegnosis’ USB 2.0 VGA adapter allows to display 640x480, 800x600 and 1024x768 resolutions with 8/16/32-bit color depth. The device will not be suitable for gamers as it does not sport Direct3D, however, the target market for the product seems to be business-oriented customers who need some additional capabilities from their notebooks or desktops.

It is not clear which graphics processor is used in Telegnosis’ device. Keeping in mind the small size of the adapter, it is likely that the USB 2.0 VGA is powered by a mobile graphics processor with embedded memory.

While the USB 2.0 VGA adapter does bring some advantages, not a lot of end-users are likely to get it. Those who require and can afford dual-display configurations typically have special graphics cards to handle them. A likely market for the product may be service centers, where the adapter may serve for diagnostics purposes.

Akiba PC Hotline reports that Telegnosis’ USB 2.0 VGA adapter costs about $80 in Tokyo, Japan.