ThinkPad Dock II - what´s a half-size PCI card slot ?

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tomkit66 · #1 Post by **tomkit66** » Wed Aug 31, 2005 8:57 am

Till tomorrow I will have to make my mind up to buy either a T43p or a X41.

To run two external 19" monitors I would need the ThinkPad Dock II. But now I am not sure if a Matrox Dualhead will fit into a half-size PCI card slot?

Does it ?

Thanks
Tom

brainpicker · #2 Post by **brainpicker** » Wed Aug 31, 2005 9:32 am

This is the only current Matrox card I know might fit: http://www.matrox.com/mga/products/mill ... rofile.cfm

It's a P650 Low Profile and is specifically made for graphics pro's who use their laptops in docking stations.

There ARE some older cards like a G550 Low Profile my friend has but they may not meet your power needs. If they can, look around at Insight, CDW or PC Conections for an open box or refurb as they all carry a full line of Matrox including the pro stuff. I've seen some for around $100 from time to time (low profile ones).

I love Matrox cards. Having bad vision I can tell you for 2D stuff they are far clearer than any of the others Ive tried.

Yak

#3 Post by **RonS** » Wed Aug 31, 2005 12:42 pm

I know that the current line of Matrox Parhelia and QID cards won't fit, by just a millimeter or so. Very frusterating.

Most of the video cards on this list should fit fine, and some are a great bargain:
http://tinyurl.com/e3kdx

tomkit66 · #4 Post by **tomkit66** » Wed Aug 31, 2005 4:35 pm

RonS wrote:Most of the video cards on this list should fit fine, and some are a great bargain:
http://tinyurl.com/e3kdx

Hmm I am not sure if most of the cards should fit because most of them are standard PCI´s, no?

If I search for "Low Profile PCI" I get only a handful ....

tomkit66 · #5 Post by **tomkit66** » Wed Aug 31, 2005 4:37 pm

brainpicker wrote:This is the only current Matrox card I know might fit: http://www.matrox.com/mga/products/mill ... rofile.cfm

It's a P650 Low Profile and is specifically made for graphics pro's who use their laptops in docking stations.

Yak

Thanks! That was actually the one I was looking for. I know Matrox cards and nothing can beat them in the 2D field. Clear, crisp and sharp like nothing else, without being noisy

Inky · #6 Post by **Inky** » Thu Sep 01, 2005 8:15 am

tomkit66 wrote:Thanks! That was actually the one I was looking for. I know Matrox cards and nothing can beat them in the 2D field. Clear, crisp and sharp like nothing else, without being noisy

Yes!!! I have a Matrox P650 in my desktop system, because 2D quality is what matters to me the most. Even with DVI output through a MiniDock, my T42's graphics card (radeon 9600) makes my 21" LCD look less clear and sharp than the Matrox card.

I didn't know a low profile Matrox P650 was available! You've inspired me to upgrade my minidock to a dock II just so I can run that graphics card!

Now I wonder if there are any good KVM switches that will let me switch my external LCD between my desktop system and the DockII without distorting the DVI signal.

Thanks for this thread!

-Inky

jtreble · #7 Post by **jtreble** » Fri Sep 02, 2005 2:02 pm

FYI, in the past I've run the Matrox G550 PCI LP in a Dock II (mostly windows apps. used) with two DVI 1024 X 768 monitors with success. These cards are dirt cheap now.

jtreble · #8 Post by **jtreble** » Fri Sep 02, 2005 2:07 pm

I would also suggest that you look at the NVS 280-based cards as well (e.g., PNY...).

#9 Post by **RonS** » Fri Sep 02, 2005 2:18 pm

tomkit66 wrote:
RonS wrote:Most of the video cards on this list should fit fine, and some are a great bargain:
http://tinyurl.com/e3kdx
Hmm I am not sure if most of the cards should fit because most of them are standard PCI´s, no?

If I search for "Low Profile PCI" I get only a handful ....

The Dock II actually takes cards bigger than a "Low Profile PCI". Out of a dozen or so cards I've used in a dock, the only ones that didn't fit are the Matrox cards I mentioned above. Even cards that aren't labelled "low profile" fit just fine.

shutchinson · #10 Post by **shutchinson** » Sat Sep 10, 2005 9:23 pm

So out of the cards you have tried, which do you think is the best for striaght 2D performance? I've got a Doc II and am thinking about getting one of the 23" widescreen flat panels. (I wish I could afford and had something that could drive the 30" Apple monitor, but I digress).

Scott

#11 Post by **RonS** » Sun Sep 11, 2005 1:25 am

This one: http://tinyurl.com/aumlj

Ron

bigscreen · #12 Post by **bigscreen** » Mon Sep 12, 2005 11:10 am

I second the recommendation. I have a Dock II and installed a Matrox P650 with 64MB. The card can handle two widescreen monitors connected via DVI at once. While the picture was crisp and clear (better than then internal DVI output of my T40p trough the dock), it was pretty slow and loud. The Radeon 9250 with 128MB is passively cooled and significantly faster than the Matrox. (I wonder if the Matrox reserves 32MB only for each display it can run). The Radeon is reasonably fast (I assume the bottleneck is the PCI bus) and stays cool. I've even unplugged the internal fan of the dock II, so it runs quietly now. If you rely on the external PCI card, this is IMHO the best buy. New T43 models with PCI express, however, should deliver better graphics performance with equal quality through the DVI connector on any of the port replicators.

ThinkPad Dock II - what´s a half-size PCI card slot ?

ThinkPad Dock II - what´s a half-size PCI card slot ?

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