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2 External Monitors with MBP

Dave Felix

Dave Felix

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Apr 9, 2011
964
17
Scranton, Pennsylvania
I believe this is possible, but can someone confirm? I have a MBP (6,2) and want to add two extra monitors.

My friend has two monitors and it works just fine, I just need to get the details from him. I'm not sure which Mac he has though. If my Mac can only support 1 extra display other than the one attached to it, I'm just going to get a 27 inch monitor. I would hope it can handle 3. I was going to use the Thunderbolt for one of the display and then possibly a usb to an external card to another. There's no support for them though, so I'm not sure. Any help is appreciated.

I would need the following:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004AIJE9G/ref=twister_B00KD13ZXK?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00NH13K8S...lid=2UG5SDCNMFPZ1&coliid=I3T1ETOUIED7SG&psc=1

http://www.amazon.com/Asus-VS228H-P...8&qid=1455143021&sr=1-2&keywords=asus+monitor
 
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You can use 1 monitor off the Mini DisplayPort on your machine (it doesn't have Thunderbolt) and another with the USB-DVI thing you linked to. Those are basically external graphics cards, so they don't require much power from the machine itself, and so you should even be able to add more of them on other USB ports.
Just be aware that performance typically isn't ideal on those implementations. For office type work it should be alright, but I wouldn't use it for gaming.
 
Thanks JTToft - I only plan on learning some programming and web surfing so I should be fine.

Looking into it, 1 dig display might just do the trick, maybe I don't need two monitors. When it says no support, that means it'll probably work but I can't get help on it right?
[doublepost=1455150849][/doublepost]Think I might just do one extra large monitor to make it easier. Then again, whats the difference if I just buy a small TV? they're cheaper too.
 
Last edited:
Dave Felix said:
Thanks JTToft - I only plan on learning some programming and web surfing so I should be fine.

Looking into it, 1 dig display might just do the trick, maybe I don't need two monitors. When it says no support, that means it'll probably work but I can't get help on it right?
[doublepost=1455150849][/doublepost]Think I might just do one extra large monitor to make it easier. Then again, whats the difference if I just buy a small TV? they're cheaper too.
Click to expand...

Small TV is a monitor with extra inputs. Most TVs are TN panels, so better refresh rates but worse viewing angles (to put it simply). High-end monitors are IPS, which is what retina displays/ipads use (worse refresh rates, better viewing angles/colors).
 
How do they compare though? Such as 60 refresh rate vs a 2ms on a monitor? I could get a 27 TV for roughly 150-200 bucks where if I wanted a 27 monitor, its around the same price. I've been eyeing an Asus monitor, but I dont know if I want to pull the trigger on it.
 
Dave Felix said:
How do they compare though? Such as 60 refresh rate vs a 2ms on a monitor? I could get a 27 TV for roughly 150-200 bucks where if I wanted a 27 monitor, its around the same price. I've been eyeing an Asus monitor, but I dont know if I want to pull the trigger on it.
Click to expand...
- The refresh rate (measured in Hz) and the latency (measured in ms) isn't the same thing.

And the size of the monitor or TV you opt for isn't really the important part. The important part is the resolution of the screen. That 27" TV would probably be 1920x1080. You could easily get a 27" (or smaller) monitor with 2560x1440, which gives you far more space to work on.

Unless you have some specific requirement that means you have to use a TV, you should opt for a proper computer monitor.

Post the monitor(s) you've been looking at, and we'd be happy to give you our take.
 
 
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If you're thinking two 1080p, I'd honestly rather get one 1440p. Shouldn't be much more expensive, and it'll run natively rather than the USB hack you'd have to use for the second monitor.
Plus 2x1080p only gives you 12.5 % more pixels than 1x1440p. And you'll get a sharper image with 1440p because of a higher PPI (subject to the sizes you choose, if course).
 
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Definitely worth the money. The monitor can hang off the edge of the desk, so I can easily order another one.
 
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