The maker of the Dock Plugable says it has found a way to increase the number of external monitors that support M1 and M2-based Macs. While Apple claims that Macs with such chips only support one or two external displays, the new Washington-based USB-HD Connection Adapter claims to support up to four displays.
Based on appleThe Mac mini, which has an Apple M1 processor, can support up to two monitors. However, all other devices based on the M1 and M2 are limited to a single external monitor.
When it comes to solving this limitation, Plugable has released a USB-C or USB 3.0-to-quad HDMI adapter (USBC-768H4 . port). The adapter requires Windows 10, macOS 11 or later.
Belgabel Advertiser The adapter can increase support for M1 and M2 monitors because it is not dependent on alternate mode, the adapter said. Instead, the adapter uses a chipset silicon movementKnown for making NAND flash controllers for SSDs as well as drivers.
For Windows users, automatic driver update said, it can be connected. Meanwhile, Mac users must download Silicon Motion’s InstantView app. According to Silicon Motion, the app supports extended viewing and mirroring on macOS.
“Every time you plug in the dock, it automatically allows the monitor to display the laptop screen without user interaction.” Instant View website she says. Other products that use InstantView include shipyards Axl and the wave link.
Of course, there are objections to the pluggable adapter.
For example, Apple doesn’t officially support this product, and its support page for connecting displays to Macs states that “using docks or serial devices does not increase the number of monitors that can be connected” to an M1 or M2 Mac. So we wouldn’t be surprised if you hit some bumps in the road and pulled four screens out of one of these Macs.
And don’t expect to create a pixel paradise stacked with high-resolution screens. All four monitors connected via HDMI are limited to 1920 x 1080 resolution with a refresh rate of 60Hz. Even with all the ports used, Mac users are limited to the number of pixels as a single 4K screen.
However, the number of Windows users is increasing. By adding two adapters to a quad HDMI adapter, you can add up to eight monitors to your Windows PC, says Plugable.
We’ve seen products claiming to support a 4K display as well as adding another display to the M1 Mac, for example Anker 563 USB-C Docking Station and the Docks from Belgabel. But 4K is probably limited to 30 Hz.
It should also be noted that the pluggable dock does not support DisplayLink. The seller shrugs off expectations, saying the adapter is not for “games, graphics or design work” without going into details.
Finally, you won’t be able to play HDCP-protected content with the adapter, says Plugable.
Despite its limitations, Plugable is still an easy way to increase the number of displays and is attractive for basic multi-screen setups, especially for M1 and M2 users. Quad HDMI Adapter Works $120.
