Okay! It seems that everywhere you turn, people are talking about portable monitors and them being the best investment you can make as a professional or a creative. But then, is it what they say it is? Or is this just another hyped trend? That’s what we’ll find out.
We’ll be looking into portable monitors, using the Mobile Pixels Trio laptop screen extender as the example. After analyzing the pros and cons of these monitors for travel, we’ll check out some personal anecdotes or case studies showcasing different user experiences. Then, at the end of the day, even you will be able to answer the question yourself:
Are portable monitors worth the hype? Let’s get into it!
The Cons
Let’s start with the not-so-sweet truth of portable monitors. Why may they be less than amazing for travelling professionals?
- Smaller Screen Size: The average portable monitor is between 14 to 17 inches, and this feels congested in comparison to what is standard with a desktop.
- Lower Display Quality: While in some portable monitors the resolutions and color accuracies are up to par, they still may not match most of the great desktop monitors.
- Limited Connectivity: Most portable monitors have few ports, with some only having USB-C ports. This may pose an issue when trying to connect other devices such as cameras, external hard drives, and laptops not containing USB-C ports.
- Reduced Battery Life: The built-in battery of most portable monitors will last only a few hours on a single charge. This may really be an issue for a professional who needs to work for quite a while without access to an outlet.
- Potential for Breakage: Finally, portable monitors have more potential for breakage than traditional monitors, due to their small size and ultra-light feature. This actually imposes a lot of care for travelers and professionals who frequently move around with their set of devices.
Are the Benefits Convincing Enough? 10 Reasons to Extend Your Laptop Screen
So maybe portable screens may not be as amazing. But have you heard of a laptop screen extender? Not only do they debunk the cons of the portable monitor, but they are even much better and… yes, they are worth the hype. Here are 10 pros of the screen extender.
- Bigger Screen Size: The trick is to extend your laptop screen rather than replace it, which uses your laptop’s high-quality display, plus, granting you two more screens to work with.
- Compact and Lightweight: Laptop screen extenders are incredibly thin and light, easily fitting into your laptop bag. But at the same time, they are made to be more rigid and durable than portable monitors. Some extenders even come with adhesive and firm stands.
- Seamless Connectivity: Most extenders connect directly to your laptop’s existing ports (USB-A, USB-C, HDMI), eliminating the need for extra adapters.
- Minimal Battery Drain: Many extenders draw power directly from your laptop’s USB port, reducing the impact on battery life compared to portable monitors with built-in batteries.
- Surprisingly Affordable: Laptop screen extenders are generally less expensive than portable monitors or other ‘hyped’ digital devices, hence, offering a budget-friendly way to expand your workspace.
- Improved Multitasking: With the additional screens (two more), you can spread out documents, reference materials, and applications across the screens, thereby, boosting your productivity and workflow.
- Enhanced Comfort: The laptop screen extender is usually made to be flexible and foldable, which means that you adjust the view to eye level with an extender, hence, improving posture and reducing neck strain.
- Presentation Perfection: Did you also know that you can extend your screen for presentations or video conferencing? With the multiple screens, you can now keep presenter notes or control panels hidden from view.
- Work Anywhere Flexibility: The extender also helps you to easily extend your workspace at coffee shops, co-working spaces, or hotel rooms, maintaining productivity on the go.
- Easy Setup and Use: Moreover, most extenders are also plug and play, taking up only a very minimal set-up duration and level of expertise. That said, portable monitors are excellent solutions to some very specific needs, but for the larger majority of people using laptops and in the majority of situations, laptop screen extenders are more affordable, convenient, and user-friendly ways of expanding your workspace.
What People Are Saying
It’s not just records! Even past users of the triple monitor screen extender have said a few amazing things about the technology.
For starters, John, a software developer at a fortune 500 company in the United States said positive things about the extender. In his words, he said, “this triple monitor screen extender has changed my workflow completely. Now I can debug, code, and test at the same time, without all of this nightmare of going back and forth between windows.”
That’s not all. Sarah, a freelance graphic designer who has been working for over five years also added, “The triple monitor setup lets me have my design software, reference images, and communication tools open all at once. This has really made a difference in boosting productivity and my creative flow.”
Again, Michael, an interning financial analyst who has just started his career journey, said, “When I used to receive several spreadsheets and reports, handling all that was a mess. Now, with a triple monitor screen extender, I can be able to compare data side by side without any problems and make my analysis a lot more efficient.
These experiences have all showed that a triple monitor screen extender is an invaluable productivity tool across many fields for professionals.
Conclusion
Portable monitors have been hyped indeed and laptop screen extenders have lived up to their name. If you’re yet to get your very own extenders, you should do so right away to begin enjoying the long lists of benefits we mentioned. On top of this, remember that the extenders work well in various fields of work. So, stop hesitating and take advantage of the hype.
