2 eternal monitors leaves the internal LCD blank; is there a solution for this?

[oaklandian]

Hello,

I have T420, recently upgraded with all the latest Win10 software bits.
I want to connect an external large screen and a Wacom interactive display (Wacom one) to my T420, while also using the built-in display. By plugging my DELL into the VGA and my Wacom tablet into the DisplayPort (using a converter to go to HDMI), both of these are working.
However, I cannot activate the 3rd screen (my actual laptop T420 screen); it just turns black and the display configurations do not even show the option of a 3rd window.

Does anyone know if there is a solution for this? I'd really like it to work!

Thanks!!!

[dr_st]

Welcome to the forum.

If it's an nVidia GPU T420, there should be a way to make this work. If it's an Intel GPU T420, then no.

[MikalE]

Triple Head2Go will fix you right up.

[cadillacmike68]

This Lenovo site says you can have up to 4 monitors with the nvidia optimus:
https://support.lenovo.com/mn/en/solutions/ht037605

There is an Intel site (can't locate at the moment) that says you can have 3 monitors with the integrated graphics.

Found it:
https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en ... phics.html

May your eternal monitors live on forever.

[dr_st]

There is an Intel site (can't locate at the moment) that says you can have 3 monitors with the integrated graphics.

Found it:
https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en ... phics.html

That's only for 3rd generation Core and later. 2nd generation Core (Sandy Bridge, as in the **20 series) is limited to 2 displays on the Intel GPUs.

May your eternal monitors live on forever.

Agree!

[oaklandian]

Thanks. Looking into this, but I have this configurations:

i5-2430M CPU
16GB RAM
Intel HD Graphics 3000

Looked up this configuration on the Intel website that someone provided me. It says there is only support for 2 monitors

So that begs the question; since my laptop is in good shape, can I augment it to handle 3 screens? I have never heard of the triple Head2Go option someone mentioned. Seems expensive.. Any other options?

Thank you all for the quick responses!

[cadillacmike68]

Its a small hardware device that allows your built in display port to output to 2 monitors and still make your internal screen available.

You would have to change the motherboard to get discrete GPU. I don't think you can upgrade the CPU because its the chipset that has the limitation.

Eternally at your service, Mike.

[dr_st]

I think the HD graphics may actually be integrated in the CPU in those generations. So - upgrading the CPU could remove this limitation, except you cannot use an Ivy Bridge CPU in a Sandy Bridge Thinkpad, without using Coreboot (free FW), because of BIOS limitations.

[MikalE]

So we're back to Triple Head2Go.

No, I don't work for them, nor do I sell them. This was an extremely popular flight simulator accessory for people that were building cockpits such as myself. Some would hook up one of these to each computer running a copy of flight simulator and have wrap-around visuals in the simulator.

I'm not talking about a desktop with two controllers on it. I'm talking about full size airliner cockpits.

[oaklandian]

Thanks.
With the Head2go module, does it give you the option to either expand or mirror screens? I'm only interested in expanding.

[TonyJZX]

read

https://www.matrox.com/graphics/en/prod ... splayport/

IMO this is quite expensive for what it is.

But I believe many current gen3 laptops dont even do three screens.

I wouldnt be sinking for this device when you can probably go a USB vga dongle? Performnance may be avg. even on usb3... which the 420 doesnt have.

[MikalE]

Thanks.
With the Head2go module, does it give you the option to either expand or mirror screens? I'm only interested in expanding.

I never used it myself, so I don't know the details.

There are eight views in MSFS and each view could be resized to how big or small you needed it depending upon the amount of monitors you were using and then displayed across each networked computer using the TH2G for a full wrap-around view.

I was using dual output video cards in tower systems and using two views per machine so I never needed the TH2G.

If there is an advanced dock available for your machine, you might investigate the multiple monitor possibilities using that.

I've been out of the cockpit building hobby for a decade now, so I don't know what inovations for video display they've come up with since then. There may be something better and cheaper than TH2G by now.

[oaklandian]

Thanks everyone. I am just so fond of my T420 that I am eager to get it.

However, it requires Display port 1.2.

Does the T420 have Display port 1.2, or does anyone know where I can I find this ?

Thanks again!!

[jayton4]

I use DisplayLink adapters for extra monitors. You can add up to 6 more screens using USB. Before Covid, the cheap DisplayLink adapters could be had for around US $20 on Amazon. Now they go for around $35-40 for USB 2.0 and can handle FHD.