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Two DVI adapters for the Apple LED display
This has been mentioned before, but I thought it deserved its own thread.
There are now two third party adapters available that allow the Apple LED display to be connected to any graphics card with a DVI output:
https://www.gefen.com/kvm/dproduct.jsp?prod_id=8913
https://www.atlona.com/Atlona-DVI-to-Mini-DisplayPort-Converter-p-17859.html
Bare Feats has mentioned both products:
https://www.barefeats.com/gefen.html
https://www.barefeats.com/atlona.html
I’ll leave it up to the Herd to provide color commentary on the fact that we even need products like these form third parties rather than having an option provided by Apple itself upon releasing its new displays.
Yes, you can get graphics cards in the Mac Pro that have a Mini DisplayPort connector, but they have only one such connector. If you want to use two LED displays on a Mac Pro, you need two graphics cards (not an option for FCS) or one of the adapters listed above.
Also, the cable on the LED display is only three feet long, and I’m unaware of any commonly available Mini DisplayPort extension cables at this time. A three foot cable isn’t even long enough to connect a display to a tower unless the tower is sitting right next to the display on the same table.
Bravo, Apple.
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5 Replies
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Does this allow two LED displays to be connected to one graphics card that has the mini DVI port? I thought there was an issue driving two of them on one graphics card which is the reason there were not a card with two mini ports.
[Alan Okey] “Also, the cable on the LED display is only three feet long, and I’m unaware of any commonly available Mini DisplayPort extension cables at this time. A three foot cable isn’t even long enough to connect a display to a tower unless the tower is sitting right next to the display on the same table. “
Yeah, this does wonders when I have my computers 30, 60 and 90 feet away from the edit suites. We use Gefen extenders right now to feed the monitors / keyboards and I’m really glad I don’t have the LED displays. Though the Dell LEDs that someone else mentioned does connect with standard DVI-D connectors so that’s a step in the right direction.
Is it me or are the Mini DVI ports ADC all over again?
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[walter biscardi] “Does this allow two LED displays to be connected to one graphics card that has the mini DVI port? I thought there was an issue driving two of them on one graphics card which is the reason there were not a card with two mini ports. “
Just to clarify, Mini DisplayPort != Mini DVI. DisplayPort and Mini DispalyPort replace the DVI spec.
I’m not aware of any issues driving two LED displays when using the adapter. The LED display is 1920×1200, which is accommodated by a single-link DVI connection. If Apple released a 30″ LED display with an even higher resolution, that would present a problem, as the current adapters do not support dual-link DVI.
[walter biscardi] “Is it me or are the Mini DVI ports ADC all over again? “
It sure seems like it, but there are important differences.
DisplayPort is an open standard that was not created by Apple. Apple just happens to be a bleeding edge adopter of new technologies. Apple did devise the “Mini” version of the DisplayPort connector to make it more usable on laptops, which account for the lion’s share of their computer business. Apple is freely licensing the Mini DisplayPort standard to other manufacturers, but I suspect that there hasn’t been a substantial adoption rate thus far.
This is all academic, however, as it appears that Apple will be replacing all of its legacy connectors with One Cable to Rule Them All: Intel’s LightPeak. LightPeak is a 10Gb optical-based cabling standard that can be used to connect anything – displays, storage, peripherals, etc.
“Apple is expected to incorporate Light Peak quickly and will use it to replace other legacy ports, much as it did with USB on the original iMac, albeit on a smaller scale. Engadget said that based on what it saw, it expects Apple to roll out the new connector on machines next fall, replacing existing ports for networking, display, and general peripheral use. ”
Isn’t it fun trying to keep up with technology?
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Sorry, repost due to tinyurl address tripping the filter.
[walter biscardi] “Does this allow two LED displays to be connected to one graphics card that has the mini DVI port? I thought there was an issue driving two of them on one graphics card which is the reason there were not a card with two mini ports. “
Just to clarify, Mini DisplayPort != Mini DVI. DisplayPort and Mini DispalyPort replace the DVI spec.
I’m not aware of any issues driving two LED displays when using the adapter. The LED display is 1920×1200, which is accommodated by a single-link DVI connection. If Apple released a 30″ LED display with an even higher resolution, that would present a problem, as the current adapters do not support dual-link DVI.
[walter biscardi] “Is it me or are the Mini DVI ports ADC all over again? “
It sure seems like it, but there are important differences.
DisplayPort is an open standard that was not created by Apple. Apple just happens to be a bleeding edge adopter of new technologies. Apple did devise the “Mini” version of the DisplayPort connector to make it more usable on laptops, which account for the lion’s share of their computer business. Apple is freely licensing the Mini DisplayPort standard to other manufacturers, but I suspect that there hasn’t been a substantial adoption rate thus far.
This is all academic, however, as it appears that Apple will be replacing all of its legacy connectors with One Cable to Rule Them All: Intel’s LightPeak. LightPeak is a 10Gb optical-based cabling standard that can be used to connect anything – displays, storage, peripherals, etc.
“Apple is expected to incorporate Light Peak quickly and will use it to replace other legacy ports, much as it did with USB on the original iMac, albeit on a smaller scale. Engadget said that based on what it saw, it expects Apple to roll out the new connector on machines next fall, replacing existing ports for networking, display, and general peripheral use. ”
Isn’t it fun trying to keep up with technology?
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[Alan Okey] “and I’m unaware of any commonly available Mini DisplayPort extension cables at this time.”
Monoprice sells one. I have dual LED monitors using this cable:
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Thank you for sharing the link, I’m sure many people will find it helpful.
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