Connecting Clevo P150EM/P170EM to external monitor question

Hi there,

I have a technical question please, regarding connecting a P150EM/P170EM to an external display. (I still havent decided whether to buy a 15" or 17", but I am aware they both have displayports, HDMI and DVI Out.)

How would I connect a P150EM or a P170EM (Vortex III 15" or 17") 1920 x 1080, with Nvidia GTX675M,
to a Dell U2412M monitor and use the optimal resoultion of the monitor which is 1920 x 1200, instead of the laptop's resolution? The monitor has VGA DVI-D and Displayport connectors.

This is for photo editing and not gaming.

Many thanks.

 

there's no technical know-how in connecting an external display. you would simply connect it to your machine via DVI or DP and select the resolution for that monitor from within window's display settings. the resolution of the laptop's display panel has no bearing on the resolution you choose for an external display. as far as what's driving what, i only know that with optimus the dGPU is fed through the intel integrated graphics, but you can have up to two displays total with either of the machines you mention. graphics cards/adapters do have a maximum resolution that they can support, but WUXGA (1900×1200) is supported by all current cards/adapters.

 

Any of the ports should support 1920x1200, it's only more exotic resolutions and refresh rates that need to be powered by the display port.

 

And what about connecting TWO external monitors to P170EM?
Had a problem connecting Full-HD TV (via hdmi) and quite old LG display (via DVI and DVI-to-VGA adapter): only one of two external displays
can work at the same time. Any chances to make it work with HDMI+DP connections?

Another question is: what is maximum resolution supported? Can anyone confirm that 2560x1080 is supported?
If you don't have exact answers, any link to specifications is appreciated.

Thanks!

 

In regards of using external monitor, note that EMs does not support pre-boot external output, at least not at the moment. E.g. they can't show you the bios or OS loading/install screens on external monitor. Had I knew this in advance, this would be another point of consideration against purchasing EM series for me.

I use U2412M monitor myself, connected via passive HDMI<=>DVI adapter on monitor and Monoprice Ultra-thin HDMI cable. It works in 1920x1200 60Hz resolution perfectly, and this is active cable (using Redmere signal booster chip), its amazingly thin - thinner than USB! Makes it very easy to dock/undock the laptop and does not place strain on connector as with standard thick cables.

 

According to HD4000 specs ( link), it supports 3 displays and 2560x1600 resolution using DisplayPort.

Since 7970m connected through Intel's GPU, is it exact limits I can reach with my 7970m?

 

I had not realised that, I get it from my MSI even from the HDMI as well as the VGA, interesting.

 

I would not base any assumptions on specs from Intel website. These are theoretical maximums, and in real life mostly lower due to actual system implementation limits.
Clevo EM definitely should support such resolution via DisplayPort (and DP only), but I am not so sure about 3 displays. 2 - maybe, 3 - much less likely.

 

The display outputs are totally dGPU agnostic in an optimus or enduro setup, so it depends solely on the capabilities of the intel chip.

There has not been a lot of info regarding display output chaining as the cables have just not existed.

 

Yes, I keep it in mind.
Looks like the only option for me is to buy & try.
My 1st try will be LG 29EA93 (2560x1080) over DP, but I'd like to try 2xFull-HD external displays too.
I don't care about display features, I need largest workspace I can get, so I need maximum total resolution.
2560x1080 + 1920x1080 would be perfect

 

Ok, I've got Dell U2713HM with 2560x1440 resolution - it works over DisplayPort.
Maximum resolutions I'm able to get on windows, using:
DVI - 1680x1050 (and 1600x1200)
DVI->DVI-to-VGA - 2048x1152
DP->DP-to-VGA - 2048x1152
HDMI - 1920x1080
DP - 2560x1440

I was unable to connect another external display, I've tried all available combinations - either one of external displays works.
It seems that three-display configuration is unavailable on Windows, at least low, at least with quite old ATI drivers.

Still trying to get 3 displays on on Linux...

 

Did you end having any luck ?

 

It is available in Windows but is dependent on the hardware - which would be the iGPU. 3 Displays, however, is generally only feasible by having two external displays and the laptop's screen, not three externals. You could purchase an external video USB adapter for that.

 

The Intel chip ONLY supports TWO active displays.

2 external
or
1 external 1 internal

 

According to Intel:
"...Depending on your configuration, Intel graphics products can output to one, two, or three displays at the same time and support several different multiple display configurations.
Starting with the 3rd Generation Intel® Core™ Processors with Intel® HD Graphics 4000/2500, three displays support may be possible depending on your computer's configuration. Check with your computer manufacturer if three displays are supported on your computer and which display combinations are supported..."

Graphics &mdash; Multiple Displays FAQ

 

One of them needs to be a wireless display by the looks of things.

That or two display port and one HDMI or one LVDS. Since there are no two display ports you are stuck unless you use the wireless display.

 

How about laptop's internal display + display port + HDMI?

By the way, ARK for i7-3630QM also lists HD4000 as capable of using 3 displays...

http://ark.intel.com/products/71459

 

Internal display uses a clock where as display port does not, that's your issue here, it basically counts as an HDMI or DVI.

So you have 2 HDMI and one display port of which your internal display is taking an HDMI.

The HD4000 is capable of doing that if the notebook has 2 display ports on it.

 

I think you could just choose the external monitor as your main monitor. Windows 8 has better support for Dual Screen. I am running an external monitor from HP, stock at 1600x900, and still keeping the laptop screen at 1920x1080. Then i can either switch between them , which one will be my main display and still maintain the native resolution between them.
Here is a picture of my current setup.


Because you are trying to run 1920x1200 on External, so i assume that it would work the same as mine. and keep in mind, i am running extended desktop mode.

 

You should be able once in extended mode to run them at their native resolutions.

 

No, on Linux I can only enable one external display at a time, if internal works. No matter is it AMD (fglrx, x86_64 13.4) or Intel (i915) driver in use.
Had some issues enabling only 2 external displays and disabling laptop's.

Yes I actually meant that: 3 displays in total, including laptop's screen.

 

As discussed this machine can only run 2 monitors at any time including the internal display unless you use intel's wireless display technology.

 

Is this the same with the P150SM/P170SM models or have things improved?

 

They have 2 display ports so it should be possible.

 

Plus the DisplayPort is v1.2 (provides higher bandwidth - allows for higher resolution screens to be connected). In P150/170EM the DisplayPort is v1.1a.

 

What is the highest resolution that the P170EM via DisplayPort can output? I currently have 2 x 24-inch 1920 x 1200 monitor, and thinking or replacing it with a single 2560 x 1600 monitor or a 4K TV/monitor (3840 x 2160).

 

2560x1440 i believe for the hd3000.