It doesn’t sound like it will be as good for gaming though: If you’re a video/photo/graphics professional, you’d probably want to check and see if this works for you. DisplayLink claims “Pixel-perfect graphics”, and “Compression tuned for video content and high-quality graphics” on their newer chipsets.
This is why DisplayLink needs to compress the captured screen.įor desktop browsing, email, software development, and other general computer tasks where the display doesn’t change much from frame to frame, DisplayLink compression can be very efficient and is unlikely to be noticeable. Even a single 4K signal is too big, let alone multiple displays. The latest DisplayLink chips run over USB 3.0 which has a bandwidth of 5 Gbps. Sending compressed video over USB is a pretty neat trick! However, DisplayLink has quite a few downsides to be aware of.Īn uncompressed 4K60 video signal requires 12 Gbps of bandwidth. From what I can tell, DisplayLink seems to be publishing regular updates to their drivers and is actively working on new features. I was pleasantly surprised to see that DisplayLink’s drivers have been updated for Apple Silicon and don’t require a kernel extension.
The DisplayLink chip decompresses the data and sends the display signal to the (real) display. The computer sends pixel data to the software driver, which then compresses the data and sends it over USB. The software driver presents itself as one or more displays to the computer. DisplayLink technology was first used in laptop docking stations but can now be found in other video-related products including adapter cables and monitors.ĭisplayLink has two components - a software driver installed on your computer and a hardware chip in the dock or adapter. It lets you send a video signal to a display over USB or Wi-Fi instead of via DisplayPort or HDMI. DisplayLink (not to be confused with DisplayPort) is the name of a technology created by a company also named DisplayLink. What are your options if you want to run more than two displays? Enter DisplayLink. Update: I ended up purchasing the ALogic DX3 and wrote a follow-up post about my experiences with it. I wanted a MacBook Air and already had two external displays which I wanted to keep using. For the Mac Mini, you can add two displays. For the MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, and iMac that means you can connect one additional display along with the built-in display. I couldn’t bring myself to buy a legacy Intel Mac, but the new M1 Macs only support up to two displays.
The personal blog of Daniel Compton - Projects Understanding DisplayLink, multiple displays, and M1 Macs
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