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Possible Duplicate:
Mac book pro - can I plug two external monitors in?

I do have a MacBook Pro (2010) and I would like to use it with 3 monitors: the internal LCD and two monitors using DVI.

From what I know the DVI dual-link should support two monitors up to HD resolution each (1920x1080).

The question is if this is supported by the hardware and in this case what kind of adaptor do I need.

Please do not suggest invalid alternatives like using an iPad or and USB graphics card.

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sorin
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  • http://apple.stackexchange.com/questions/7488/mac-book-pro-can-i-plug-two-external-monitors-in – g . Mar 24 '11 at 11:24
  • I have to mention that the this is not a duplicate of the linked question, this one is not about adding an USB display drivers, it is just if the hardware graphics card from MacBook supports it. – sorin Mar 24 '11 at 11:35
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    I didn't see anything about USB in the question. – g . Mar 24 '11 at 11:37
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    Personally, I think your question is better phrased, but I still think the two should be combined as they are the same question: MacBook Pro + 2 external monitors. – g . Mar 24 '11 at 11:39

1 Answers1

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False, Dual DVI means that it has more bandwidth, not that you can attach two monitors. Quote from wikipedia article:

To support display devices requiring higher video bandwidth, there is provision for a dual DVI link. A dual link doubles the number of TMDS pairs, effectively doubling video bandwidth at a given pixel clock frequency.

Dual link should not be confused with dual display (also called dual head), which describes those situations where a computer is hooked up to two monitors at once. Neither, either, or both of the dual displays could be dual link. Depending on the video card(s), the displays could be both analog (VGA), an analog and a digital, or both digital.

In order to attach two monitors, you could use a third party device like Matrox GXM (Graphics eXpansion Modules) - you can connect two or three monitors from your Display Port, however, there are some limitations (like the OS does not know natively that there are two or three monitors connected and treats it like one). The price is about $350 for the Tripplehead and around $220 for the Dualhead one.

Here is the GXM homepage.

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mspasov
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  • This looks interesting but it is quite expensive. – sorin Mar 24 '11 at 11:50
  • Yes, that's why I added the price information. There is no way to attach more than one digital monitor (and get a good picture) without costly hardware or using an external video card (in our case it's ruled out in the question). – mspasov Mar 24 '11 at 12:31