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Lightning Review: ViDock Gfx Display Enhancer Adds Two Monitors To Your Setup
Posted by Jason Chen at 6:00 AM on July 31, 2008
The Gadget: The ViDock Gfx, a box with an ATI 2600XT inside that allows you to add two DVI displays to your ExpressCard Laptop (e.g. MacBook Pro). It doesn't affect your current display setup, which might already have an external monitor being driven by the on-board DVI port, which means you can have a total of three external displays plus your MacBook Pro's going at the same time. Mac and Windows versions are available in both 128MB and 256MB flavours, running at up to 2560x1600 resolution.
The Price: Still TBD
The Verdict: Multitasking bliss. We were able to add two 19-inch, 1280x1024 monitors to our 15-inch MacBook Pro without breaking a sweat. The two extra monitors (we were already running a 30-inch Dell off the internal DVI port) had very little slowdown while being powered through our ExpressCard port, and handled HD video like the Watchmen trailer without any signs of tears or imminent exploding.
What we did notice was that the unit was LOUD. In our pre-production unit, the fan ran started quietly on boot, but ramped up to 100% after a minute or two. It was loud enough to give us AND our unborn children a migraine. The people at Villagetronic said their release units would be softer, but note that the ATI 2600XT throws out a lot of heat. To us this means that you probably shouldn't expect this to be too much softer. Just something to watch out for if you need to use this in a quiet production environment. The other annoyance we've found is that the ExpressCard connection can't be hot-plugged on OS X, so you have to shut down your machine every time you want to swap in or out of the multi-monitor setup or else you'll get that curtain of death. Villagetronic tells us that it's a bug that Apple will fix in the future.
Is this great for multitasking? Oh sweet jeebus yes. You can have all your applications open at the same time, spread eagled across your four displays like Stalin planning to push the Nazis back into Germany (apologies for that undoubtedly historically inaccurate statement). Is it worth the as-of-yet-undetermined cost? Hard to say. Something like this won't be cheap, but if you're like us and value every pixel of your screen as if it's the last chopper out of Saigon (sorry again!), you'll look long and hard at the ViDock Gfx. [Villagetronic]
Tags: gfx | graphics | graphics cards | hardware | lightning review | macbook | macbook pro | reviews | vidock
Comments (AU Comments · US Comments)
There are currently no AU comments for this post.
smcallah
Posted 6:20 AM 31/7/08
@SigmundTheSeaMonster: Sweet, I have the same desk from Ikea too.
smcallah
Spkl
Posted 6:18 AM 31/7/08
is there any way to daisy chain these?
yes, i know it's not practical, but it would reek of awsome.
Spkl
jmote
Posted 6:16 AM 31/7/08
great idea if its not super expensive.
jmote
mcg1969
Posted 6:16 AM 31/7/08
Looks like only one of the outputs is dual-link, so if you're an ultrageek and want 3 30" displays you're out of luck. 3 24" displays or 2 30" displays would still rock of course.
mcg1969
grayskyz
Posted 6:15 AM 31/7/08
That thing just gave me a pant full of bone, I'll tell you what.... if its under the 400 mark, I'm in.
C.
grayskyz
eblingmis
Posted 6:14 AM 31/7/08
Oh, man, your historical references make my knees buckle like the Maginot line. Did it buckle, or did the Germans just go around it?
eblingmis
areopa
Posted 6:13 AM 31/7/08
On my MacBook Pro, I use the onboard DVI port and a USB based Gefan DVI adapter. Three monitors total. And, the DVI adapter has no fan! Works great especially when running Fusion with Ubuntu/XP on both sides of OS X with Spaces.
areopa
SigmundTheSeaMonster
Posted 6:11 AM 31/7/08
I got the same Ikea "Galant" desk!
SigmundTheSeaMonster
Y2KGTP
Posted 6:37 AM 31/7/08
Eh...I just use maxivista...
Y2KGTP
brainwav
Posted 6:29 AM 31/7/08
Daaaaaamn that's nice. Don't think the boss will see it as a justifiable cost though. Hard enough trying to get a 24" display.
brainwav
Munch the BanNail
Posted 6:29 AM 31/7/08
What a hermaphroditic image on top - A giant V morphing into a cock.
Munch the BanNail
ALT
Posted 6:28 AM 31/7/08
Hot and loud. Like yo mama.
How exactly do they know that Apple is going to fix that lil bug for them? I want it in writing when the pricetag is inked in.
ALT
Xenocide
Posted 7:13 AM 31/7/08
It looks kind of interesting but I think the Matrox TripleHead2Go is a better solution for adding a lot of monitors. Matrox's multiple monitor support is generally leaps and bounds ahead of ATI or Nvidia.
Xenocide
meefer
Posted 7:12 AM 31/7/08
Eh...I just use a 42" monitor...
meefer
djadamjay
Posted 6:59 AM 31/7/08
Eh...I just use spaces...
djadamjay
SuperCollider
Posted 8:30 AM 31/7/08
I use spaces on a 60" monitor, but the more displays the better.
@Xenocide: That Matrox thing has had my interest for a while now, but this ViDock has me back on the fence. Battlemodo, please?
SuperCollider
Jason Chen
Posted 8:42 AM 31/7/08
@SuperCollider: From the specs on the TripleHead2Go, it looks like that connects via your DVI port or VGA port, which leaves less total screen surface area (their max is two 1920x1200 or three 1360x768) while this one leaves your DVI port alone and adds on two 1920x1200s.
Jason Chen
buttrockz
Posted 9:21 AM 31/7/08
Aww I'm spoilin' my P3 with its ATI rage 64 video card this paycheck...
buttrockz
strangesnow
Posted 10:20 AM 31/7/08
i use the evga device off my USB. I already have laptop with an additional widescreen and the USB device runs an old 4:3 monitor. Max resolution for 1600x1200. The device is silent.
[www.memoryexpress.com]).aspx
strangesnow
SuperCollider
Posted 10:58 AM 31/7/08
@Jason Chen: Hey, thanks! :D
SuperCollider
mferrari
Posted 11:23 AM 31/7/08
First of all, what is with the word Zelda and what appears to be a triforce behind it? Is it some fan movie or something?
And, back on topic, there are 5 screens even though you said only 4 are possible.
mferrari
fastm3driver
Posted 11:44 AM 31/7/08
Can it play Crisis? Oh wait, it's a MAC.
The problem with these things is that they almost never support over 1920X1200 a rez I've used for over 4 years. The other thing is why do you need this; gaming or more screens for office type stuff. It seems like they used the wrong cards. Either you want the lowest power to display 2 extra 1920X1200 or you want mega power and they priced something in between. I would have gone with 2 versions, one with no fans and one super powered ones.
Personally I hate duel screens but 3 is sweet(except most programs still do annoying things and don't have settings for multi-monitors).
fastm3driver
Joseph
Posted 11:41 AM 31/7/08
Thats not likely to ever happen.
Joseph
Joseph
Posted 11:32 AM 31/7/08
@Jason Chen: I have a Dualhead to go setup in my house and it's awesome but the refresh rate is only 57Mhz at 3840 x 1200. I go from my DVI cable to the VGA, then I have two DVI's going to HDMI into my monitors. I'm supposed to be on the pre-order notification list for ViDock, but they never sent me an e-mail about this thing being released.
Ignore that gadget blog on my desktop :).
Joseph
Joseph
Posted 12:48 PM 31/7/08
@fastm3driver: I use two for software development. When working on iPhone apps, I have the Documentation up, a Debug Window, the iPhone Simulator, the Code, and a Web Browser. It's a lot easier to keep track of everything instead of clicking back and fourth, using Exposé or alt+tabbing between windows. I also do music production, which two screens help a lot with since all DAW's are tracked out horizontally. You can be zoomed out and see your whole project or have space for Audio Units or VSTi plugins. If you just browse the internet, check email or play video games you can get by with just 1 screen. It's really just personal preference.
Here is my desktop (To see the full pic, open the image in a new window.)
Joseph
Decaye
Posted 1:08 PM 31/7/08
I'm not sure if these prices are still accurate, but in the email I got from the pre-order list, here's what they told me.
US list price for ViDock Gfx editions:
Business Edition: $ 329
Professional Edition: $ 429
Mac Edition: $ 499
Europe list price for ViDock Gfx editions::
Business Edtion: € 299
Professional Edition: € 399
Mac Edition: € 499
European prices are intended local taxes included.
Decaye
Optimus-Prime
Posted 1:56 PM 31/7/08
I have a Macbook pro and use the triplehead2go analog edition. I have 3 cheap thin bezel 17 inch screens and the MBP has enough horsepower to run each at 1280 x 1024 for one massive 3840 x 1024 image. Its great in OSX but i can't get it to work in windows which is a shame because many games support that resolution.
Optimus-Prime
mobius8
Posted 7:01 AM 31/7/08
From an email they sent me:
US list price for ViDock Gfx editions:
Business Edition: $ 329
Professional Edition: $ 429
Mac Edition: $ 499
mobius8
berbar
Posted 11:36 PM 31/7/08
I apologize for the ignorance, but Zelda on a MacBook Pro?
berbar
xCruciaLx
Posted 1:33 AM 1/8/08
@berbar: Wallpaper.
xCruciaLx
KodyLumpa
Posted 3:44 PM 31/7/08
This was announced in Fall 2007 as shipping "soon." I suspect we'll be able to purchase Duke Nukem Forever before we can purchase a VIDock. A few months ago in an email from VillageTronic to me they blamed some of the delay on Apple saying "You may or may not know that Apple has to 'bless' any graphics solution before it will work on a Mac computer." As for the part about "Villagetronic tells us that it's a bug that Apple will fix in the future" don't hold your breath on that either. I used their VTBook with the same limitation for years and was always told the same thing. Don't get me wrong, their previous product - the VTBook - was awesome, and I'll be one of the first ones to buy a VIDock if it ever goes on sale, but I'm tired of seeing hype and "reviews" about a product that I've been waiting nearly a year for.
KodyLumpa