IOGear USB-to-DVI monitor adapter

[billchouca]

First post to Thinkpads forums, which I've found to be very useful. I wanted to let others know about this product, which I did not find in the archives.

IOGear GUC2020DW6: http://www.iogear.com/product/GUC2020DW6/

This is a great product! I have a Lenovo X60 and there are no built-in options for outputting to a digital video connection like DVI or HDMI. Lenovo makes a USB-to-DVI product as well, but my X60 is not supported; only the X61 and newer machines are supported.

Pros:
Great digital output to a 22" NEC LCD at 1680x1050 resolution. I'm using the LCD as the primary monitor and not simply extending my desktop as others have done. The quality of the desktop looks exactly like what I get with my other laptop, the Lenovo X301, with its DisplayPort output (hooked to a DVI cable via a DisplayPort-to-DVI converter to the monitor). Texts are crisp, which is the reason I got this product in the first place. With my VGA connection to the 22", smaller texts are fuzzy and a strain for my eyes.

Cons:
As others have noted, video playback is not really possible. I am able to videos at smaller resolutions (i.e. not full-screen) at Youtube and Hulu. However, if you try to view these videos at full screen solution, the video will not play and simply freeze up. For me, this is not a concern because watching video via VGA is good enough.

Conclusion:
For this price ($70), the product solves my problem of not being able to see smaller texts clearly. It is much cheaper than Lenovo's USB-to-DVI option ($150+), and in fact the only option for me because Lenovo's solution does not support my X60. Get one if you don't mind switching back to VGA for video playback.

FYI, Lenovo's solution can be found at http://shop.lenovo.com/SEUILibrary/cont ... 7343AFFB25

[virge]

This might be a silly question... but I have to ask. Why doesn't the Lenovo device work with the X60?

Also, have you tried the USB Port Replicator? It seems like an interesting device and provides DVI along with many other ports. http://shop.lenovo.com/SEUILibrary/cont ... u_area=yes

[billchouca]

That's a good question. I don't know why the Lenovo USB-to-DVI solution doesn't work on the X60... perhaps it's because the computing power isn't enough? It's listed here: http://www-307.ibm.com/pc/support/site. ... 72682.html

I looked at the USB replicator as well, but it is not supported on the X60 either: http://www-307.ibm.com/pc/support/site. ... MIGR-72822

Honestly, I would've loved for either to work. The IOGear still doesn't do Hulu full screen. But it is relatively cheap so I'll take it

[m509272]

I read somewhere that upgrading the drivers might help your video problem. I have a Diamond USB/DVI dongle.

Google for displaylink software and you should see the download in the first few hits.