Elvis-Virtus

I’m a bona fide Multi-monitor user, and for me, it is one of the most beneficial setup for PC Users. I pity the people who uses one monitor as they haven’t yet feel how uncanny and surreal the feeling a multi monitor setup will bring you especially for your work.

Time and time again, I have been asked of countless questions, why am I using multiple monitors, what are the benefits, why don’t I just use one and so on.

In this blog, I’ll try to answer the 6 most frequently asked questions concerning the dual monitor setup. Here we go!




Is it expensive?
This is either a yes or a no, If you have some old monitors laying around your house, then you can easily use them for a multiple monitor setup which will almost costs you nothing. But if you are like me, who likes all his monitors to be the same and also the top of the line, well it will need a bit of investment. but fear not, it is a worth investment. (saving up for a third monitor)



If I were to give you a rough estimate, assuming you have a pc and all, you will just need to buy at least an 3 year old video card and two cheap ass monitors, that would cost roughly around 200 (dollars or less, and you can easily have a multiple monitor setup.



Can it be setup easily?
Setting up a dual monitor (as long your videocard supports it) is really easy, just plug it in and there you have it!, but setting up for more than 2 monitors especially for ATI’s Eye-finity will require a bit of research, as anything more than 3 will require additional hardware.


For ATI’s eye-finity setup, it is a bit tricky as your third monitor will need a display port input, if your monitor does not have it, you will need to buy an ACTIVE displayport converter, not a passive one.


Both Windows and Mac OS both supports dual monitor setups, just plug your monitor and let the OS handle it.



How will I know that my videocard or PC can support dual monitor or multiple monitors?

For Dual Monitors, It is easy, as long as your videocard was made at most 3 years ago, then you are all good, if you want to check it, your videocard should have at least two ports (DVI and VGA *any combination will do).


Videocards that was released 2 years ago can now support up to three monitors, but if you want more than three monitors, it will require additional hardware.

What is more useful, getting one big ass monitor or getting multiple small monitors?

This is one of the most typical mistake by people, they think that getting one big ass monitor is the best move, the one thing that they fail to realize that most software and videocard can only support up to the 1920x1080p, and when using that resolution on an 32’ inch monitor, I’m 100% sure it will tire your eye easily with all the squinting and any text lesser than size 14 is already unredable, trust me, I tried hooking up an 32 inch hdtv on my pc, and it was a painful experience. The only thing that big ass monitors are good for is movies.



The largest monitor size that is suitable for your desktop is 27”, any larger than that is an eye killer. This is supported by major computer brands, as if you were to check their monitors, you will see that all their monitors are 27” or less.

Is it really useful?
It is very useful especially with work, in fact according to some studies done by Microsoft and universities, increase virtual real estate can easily bring work up to 10-20%, while using a dual monitor setup, work is increased into 10-50%. I also find it useful especially when I run multiple programs at once.

Is it true once you tasted a dual monitor setup, you will never go back?

Give someone a second monitor, let them use it for while, and then try to take it away. It just isn't going to happen. They'll never go back to a mono display. Researchers in the Visualization and Interaction for Business and Entertainment group (VIBE), found that increasing a computer user's display space made it easier for them to complete their tasks.



That’s all for now

Peace Out!!