Bernie Thompson | Plugable

Plugable’s USB 2.0 Graphics Adapter (DisplayLink DL-195)

Posted on 07. Mar, 2010 by Bernie Thompson in UGA-2K-A

Plugable’s new USB 2.0 Graphics Adapter is now available on Amazon.com.

The DisplayLink DL-195 chip inside this adapter is the best high-end chip out there for adding a display over USB. And because it pushes USB 2.0 and analog VGA to their limits, it isn’t likely to be beaten by any other chip in the USB 2.0 generation.

For this new adapter from Plugable, we wanted to offer that high-end choice, and also make sure that everything else about the adapter package itself meets or beats any alternative out there.

The Plugable UGA-2K-A includes a DVI->HDMI adapter (in addition to the usual DVI->VGA adapter)
The latest drivers are available on Windows Update and from displaylink.com
Open source available, so there’ll be new software written for this device, even years from now
Public problem reporting and support, so you can always get the full story about the product
Amazon’s fast shipping and A-to-z guarantee on your purchase

In future posts, we’ll cover some of the cool things this device can do by enabling many displays on any PC (things like create the ultimate day-traders’ war-room, with many displays built around a single laptop).

Until then, you can read more about the product launch in the stuffily worded press release here. And more on the product page at http://plugable.com/products/uga-2k-a/.

Upgraded Plugable Universal Docking Station

Posted on 06. Mar, 2010 by Bernie Thompson in Windows

The Plugable Universal Docking Station is getting some minor but nice upgrades to the latest chips for each function. All new units shipped from March 1, 2010 forward have these new features:

Upgraded the DisplayLink DL-160 to the newer DL-165
- Previous maximum resolution was 1680×1050, now 1920×1080
Moved from two 4-port NEC USB hubs internally to a single FE 2.1 7 port USB hub
- When using as a terminal, previously could daisy-chain 2 docks, now up to 4. All devices attached to the dock show on the same hub
Upgraded ASIX AX88772 ethernet chip to newer AX88772A
- Auto-MDX support (automatically detects straight or cross-over cabling)

We’ve also shrunk the paper package size for less waste, and a have smaller connector for the (otherwise same) AC adapter.

The size and look of the docking station itself hasn’t changed, and all the same adapters, cables, and other hardware are included.

To the laptop docking station user on Windows or Mac, the changes won’t be immediately obvious, as the same drivers support both versions of hardware.

On Linux, both old and new chips have the same in-kernel support. In the terminal case, the USB configuration is now simpler (all devices are off the same USB hub), and that means a change in the udev rules for devices plugged into usb ports (keyboard and mouse are one hub less deep). Look for a future post on that.

So, with the new version, here’s the Windows Update experience you’ll see — without using any driver disks first, just plugging into a fresh Windows 7 machine with its own network connection up, letting it find and download drivers automatically.

Win7 first connect experience. Mouse and composite keyboard also attached

If you need to distinguish the versions from the outside (e.g. so you can make sure to give a newer one to someone who wants 1920×1080 resolution), the model number on the bottom of the older units all start with 0920J1.

Enjoy the upgrades on the new UD-160-A docking stations, and as always make use of our public problem reporting and support at http://getsatisfaction.com/plugable any time.