This $124 USB-C monitor turned my phone, gaming handheld, and iPad into something new

Summary

I bought an inexpensive USB-C monitor to give my laptop more screen real estate (at the time, it cost around $130)—IactuallyboughttwosothatIcouldrunatriple-screensetupfrommyMacBookPro,anditwasgreat.IlaterdiscoveredthattheseUSB-CmonitorscoulddosomuchmorewhenItriedplugginginvariousAndroidphones,mygaminghandheld,andevenmyiPad.Afterbeingsurprisedaboutwhatelsethismonitorcando,i{t}^{\prime }sbecomeoneofmyfavoriteaccessories.IboughttheARZOPA16"thinandlight2.5KportablemonitorI{t}^{\prime }salmostalwaysonsaleWeighingjust1.46lbsandcominginat0.36"(tha{t}^{\prime }saboutthesamethicknessasmyPixel10Pro),theARZOPAportablemonitorisa16"2560x1600IPS60Hzdisplaywitha16:10aspectratioand350nitsofbrightness.Ithasabuilt-inkickstand,withtwoUSB-CportsandoneminiHDMIport.Itevenhastwospeakersbuiltin,butthe{y}^{\prime }requiet,andIprefertheaudiooutputfromaconnectedphoneorBluetoothspeaker.Thequalityis{n}^{\prime }tamazing,buti{t}^{\prime }ssolidenoughforoccasionaluseandforthrowinginthebackpackwhenyo{u}^{\prime }regoingtotravel.TurnyourphoneintoadesktopOnewiregivesyoumulti-windowsupportBecausemostUSB-Cmonitorsrequirenoexternalpower,youcanpluginonecableandtriggerAndroi{d}^{\prime }sdesktopmode,whichinthecaseofSamsungdevicesturnsonDeX,andonaPixelrunningAndroid17yougetAndroi{d}^{\prime }sdesktopmode.WhenyoupluginyourSamsungGalaxy,thedisplaycomestolifeandatouchpadisdisplayedonyourphone,whichallowsyoutocontrolthedesktopenvironmentwithapointer.YoucanalsoconnectaBluetoothkeyboard/mouseforbettercontrol,butthephonetouchpadisprettypreciseandworksgreatinapinchifyouneedtogetmoreworkdoneinamulti-windowenvironment.PerhapsthebestreasontouseDeXisasa[powerfulwidgetdashboard](https://www.makeuseof.com/i-finally-found-a-real-reason-to-use-samsung-dex/),andusinganexternalmonitorisaperfectusecase.ThePixeldesktopmodeisjustasseamless(andisevenbetterwith[thesethreetweaks](https://www.makeuseof.com/pixel-desktop-mode-tweaks/)),butrequiresanexternalmouseasthereisnotouchpadpresentedonthePixelitself.Butonceyouconnectamouse,yourPixelbecomesadesktop-likeenvironmentwithmostAndroidappshavingfantasticsupportforresizeablewindows.AndwhenyoupluginyourPixel,yo{u}^{\prime }llgetapop-uptoaskifyouwanttousetheexternaldisplayasadesktopormirror.Mirrormodeishandyifyouneedasimplewaytoshowoffsomethingonyourphon{e}^{\prime }sscreenlikeamovieorphotoslideshow.Themaindownsidetousinganexternalmonitortorunadesktopmodefromyourphoneisthatunlessyouopttopluginthedisplaytoapowersource,yo{u}^{\prime }llbedrawingasignificantamountofpowerfromyourphonetorunthescreen.AdisplayforyourgaminghandheldNodockneededIfyouthoughtyouneededadockforyourSteamDeck,ROGAlly,orLegionGo,youdo{n}^{\prime }t.TheycanalloutputvideooverUSB-CDisplayPortAltMode,allowingyoutouseonesinglecablefromyourgaminghandheld.JustmakesureyoupowerthemonitorseparatelywithUSBpower,oryo{u}^{\prime }llquicklydrainthebatteryonyourhandheld.MirrorthedisplayonyourAppledeviceGreatforwatchingvideosorshowingphotosAppledevicesdo{n}^{\prime }thavedesktopmode(butiPadswithM-chipscanrunextendeddisplaymodeoverUSB-C),thoughAppledoesoffermirroringonboththeiPhoneandiPad,whichishandyforwhenyouneedalargerscreen(andperhaps[do{n}^{\prime }thave$2k for an iPhone Duo](https://www.makeuseof.com/apple-iphone-duo-ifixit-teardown/)). As is the case with desktop mode, unless you separately power the external screen, you’ll be using your iPhone or iPad’s battery as a power source for display mirroring, which does take a toll. A portable USB-C monitor is an accessory that does a lot They’re under $150onAmazonAtthetimeofpublishing,thismonitorwasonsaleforunder$124, which is a great value for a product that can do multiple things, and is cheap enough so that you might consider buying two — like one for the car and one for home. Of course, you can also use a monitor like this as an additional screen for your laptop or PC like any external monitor, but where it really shines is in its ability to turn an Android phone into a powerful workstation thanks to desktop mode and DeX. Arzopa Portable Monitor

• Brand
• Arzopa The ARZOPA 16” 2.5K Portal monitor is a 2560x1600 IPS panel that can connect to any USB-C, Thunderbolt, or mini HDMI source to provide a lightweight monitor solution with up to 350 nits of brightness.

By Brandon Miniman

Original Article