advice needed - external monitor for T560 with 2880x1620 display

[qwer5r]

I just got a T560 with the HD display (2880x1620 resolution). My aging eyes don't go well with my old X230 (or my even older X200). The new laptop is great, but my old external monitor is tired, old, very low res, and only accepts VGA input.

My concern is that there doesn't seem to be any monitors on the market with 2880x1620 native resolution.

There are plenty of monitors with 1920x1080 and a few with 2560x1440.

The 1920x1080 seems a possibillity because it is one of the display settings available on the T560. But what about the 2560x1440? Are the problems/pitfalls with trying to drive that resolution of external monitor with the T560? In particular, note that the display settings on the T560 shows it can output 2048x1152 and 1920x1200 (and 1920x1080) but it doesn't list 2560x1440.

Do any forum members here have a 2560x1440 monitor driven by a ThinkPad with 2880x1620 display? How does it work? Any issues I should be aware of? (Thanks in advance.)

[RealBlackStuff]

Some info here: http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.ph ... 05#p786405
I'm sure others will chime in.

[brchan]

The T560 sports a Displayport 1.2 port, which means you can run native 4k @60 Hz. Any resolution lower than that is supported, most definitely including 2560x1440.

Also, sometimes depending on what monitor is plugged in, not all lower resolutions may show. In this case, you can still set a custom resolution. But if you get a 2560x1440 monitor, it will run at its native resolution.

[qwer5r]

Thanks, RBS.

As you know, the thread you linked to is focused on using a VGA interface to drive a high-res monitor. That's not my issue. My laptop has HDMA and a mini Display Port, so I'm not worried about VGA.

In contrast (no pun intended), my concern is how things will work by trying to drive a 2560x1440 monitor when that is not a selectable output resolution of my T560.

[qwer5r]

The T560 sports a Displayport 1.2 port, which means you can run native 4k @60 Hz. Any resolution lower than that is supported, most definitely including 2560x1440.

Also, sometimes depending on what monitor is plugged in, not all lower resolutions may show. In this case, you can still set a custom resolution. But if you get a 2560x1440 monitor, it will run at its native resolution.

That's the good news I was hoping for. Do you mean once I attach my new monitor and via the mini Displaypoint, my laptop (running Win 10) will display resolution choices it doesn't now show (i.e., 2560x1440)?

[brchan]

That's the good news I was hoping for. Do you mean once I attach my new monitor and via the mini Displaypoint, my laptop (running Win 10) will display resolution choices it doesn't now show (i.e., 2560x1440)?

Yes, it will show resolutions for that specific monitor. Right now it is showing resolutions for your in-built display.

[qwer5r]

That's the good news I was hoping for. Do you mean once I attach my new monitor and via the mini Displaypoint, my laptop (running Win 10) will display resolution choices it doesn't now show (i.e., 2560x1440)?

Yes, it will show resolutions for that specific monitor. Right now it is showing resolutions for your in-built display.

Understood. Thank you. This solves my "issue," which I guess was never a real issue after all. I'm going to go ahead and order a Dell U2515H monitor for that 2560x1440 resolution.

[qwer5r]

My external monitor arrived this afternoon, and I've just set it up. It looks great. Thanks for your re-assurances, brchan. Everything is at full resolution, as expected.

I have a new question, however.

My previous laptop was an X230t and I had it mounted on an Ultrabase in the office, which was how I connected to my old external monitor. My new T560 doesn't have an ultrabase -- it has a USB 3.0 ultra port.

The ultrabase had an on/off switch, so I could power up the x230 laptop while the lid was closed, using an external keypad and the external monitor.

The USB 3.0 ultrapoint doesn't have a laptop power switch. How do I power up the T560 laptop with the lid closed, so I can avoid the awkward desk setup in which the raised laptop lid blocks the bottom half of my beautiful new monitor? I suspect I'm missing something obvious, but can't figure out the right way to do this.

[brchan]

Glad the monitor is working well for you!

In regards to powering on the laptop with its lid closed, you would need a docking station. If you want to keep the lid closed but with the laptop still on, you can set Windows to "do nothing" on lid close. This should be in the power options of the control panel.

[qwer5r]

... If you want to keep the lid closed but with the laptop still on, you can set Windows to "do nothing" on lid close. This should be in the power options of the control panel.

Thanks. Once again, I should have realized this. I have now made this setting change.

... In regards to powering on the laptop with its lid closed, you would need a docking station. ...

Okay, what I imprecisely described first as a "USB 3.0 ultra port" and then as a "USB 3.0 ultrapoint" is actually a "ThinkPad USB 3.0 Ultra Dock," which I purchased along with the T560.

Does this qualify as a "docking station?" There is a power supply and a power switch on this ThinkPad USB 3.0 Ultra Dock, but I haven't tried using it to power up the laptop -- I thought it was needed for the operation of the dock itself.

After I post this message, I will power down and experiment with the switch, come back and report my findings.

[qwer5r]

Okay, from a powered down state, with everything connected, hitting the power button on the ThinkPad USB 3.0 Ultra Dock unfortunately does nothing.

I have resorted to lifting the laptop lid a couple of inches, reaching in and pressing the power button on the T560 until the login screen appears on the external monitor, and then closing the laptop's lid.

Not elegant, but it works. If anyone has any further suggestions, I'd welcome them. Big thanks for all the help I've received so far.

(BTW, although I've only been using it for a few hours, so far I can recommend the Dell U2515H monitor, a 25" with 2560x1440 resolution. Perhaps not the best for heavy duty gaming (not so great response times) but seems to have very good color accuracy, and productivity work is good with all the real estate on the screen. I found it for $306 from a vendor on Amazon, including free shipping.)

[qwer5r]

Oh, one more complication. With the laptop lid closed, the T560's internal speakers apparently are turned off. I don't use sound too much, but it looks like I will now need an external speaker or two.

[brchan]

The usb dock isn't a true docking station. The Thinkpad ultra dock (that uses the bottom laptop connector), is, and has a laptop power on button.

For speakers, it is a software configuration issue. I am not sure how this works in Windows, but under Linux, my speakers work with the lid closed. I tested this successfully using my T60, T61, X301, and W530, so it is highly likely it would also work under your T560.

[qwer5r]

Well, brchan, I'm not going to replace my ThinkPad USB 3.0 Ultra Dock with an ultra dock, nor am I going to spring for the ultra dock as a supplement to the ThinkPad USB 3.0 Ultra Dock. I guess that means I will continue with the "lift-lid-hit-power-button-then-close-lid" work around, as inelegant as it may be.

As for the internal speakers, your guess was correct. I opened the settings screen that controls audio devices and saw that when the system detected the presence of the external monitor, it also selected the monitor as the default "speaker." The fix was simply to manually select the laptop's speakers as the default audio device.

Anyway, thanks again for your very helpful suggestions.