EVGA intros sub-$100 UV12 and UV16 USB graphics adapters

We've heard your cries for USB-to-DVI adapters that don't cost two arms and a good portion of your left leg, and apparently so has EVGA. Announced today with DisplayLink, the company is serving up two new USB graphics adapters (UGAs) in the UV Plus+ family of wares, both of which are hitting resellers as we speak for "well under $100." Both peripherals are designed to play nice in Windows XP and Vista, and while the UV12 supports resolutions up to 1,280 x 1,024 (1,440 x 900 widescreen), the UV16 goes all the way up to 1,600 x 1,200 (1,680 x 1,050 widescreen). Kudos for lowering the bar EVGA, now it's time for everyone else to follow suit.

[JakeB @ May 5th 2008 6:35PM]

Sweet, its about time someone made these for a good price. Might get one for mt laptop.

[Ryan @ May 5th 2008 9:49PM]

Full review of the UV 12 here: http://www.pcper.com/article.php?aid=555&type=expert

[AJ in the East Bay @ May 5th 2008 6:36PM]

I don't know much about external graphics adapters. Are they any good?

[Evan @ May 5th 2008 6:44PM]

I wanna know to. Is it worth it? Mac compatible?

[JakeB @ May 5th 2008 6:47PM]

they are worth it for the older computers that you want to link to a newer monitor. But as far as anything else goes i wouldnt know. I basically want one so my Windows 98 notebook can run on a 20 inch monitor.

I still have Win98 cuz there are a lot of classic arcade games I like to play that are not compatible with Win2K and up. So for me I think I will get one.

[Mike @ May 5th 2008 6:51PM]

@JakeB

It's unlikely that it will be Windows 98 compatible. I've found USB compatibility with 98 to be pretty much abysmal no matter where you go, but that's just my personal experience.

As far as your arcade games go, have you tried running them in compatibility mode? Right click on the executable or the shortcut and select in under the properties there should be a compatibility mode option.

You could also try a DOS emulator, or some free virtualization software to run Windows 98 on top of a newer operating system.

[Jordan @ May 5th 2008 9:29PM]

Sadly with my experience the compatibility works just about nothing.

[DefPo3t @ May 5th 2008 6:53PM]

i love evga : )

[Maxim @ May 5th 2008 6:57PM]

I don't understand what this thing does. Does it act like a video card. I have an old laptop connected to an hdtv through vga so my parents can watch their movies off the internet. The laptop has a 32 meg card and the resolution isn''t all that great. Will I get the 1600 x 1200 on it even with an old card? or does it all depend on the laptop?

[Chad @ May 6th 2008 10:34AM]

@Maxim

It IS a video card you plug into USB. Does the laptop have decent hertz and USB 2.0? If not you might be disappointed in the performance but other than that it's just like putting another video card in your desktop.

[Doug @ May 5th 2008 6:58PM]

So... This means I could play CS:Source on my LAPPY!? Tommy Likey!

[poached @ May 6th 2008 12:23AM]

who the fuck is tommy?

[Juaquin @ May 6th 2008 12:44AM]

Uhh...no. It's just a graphics adapter. It barely supports 1600x1200 (on the higher-end model) - it won't be playing CS:S very well. The CPU will be doing most of the work - think of it as integrated graphics, but outside and connected by USB.

[joey @ May 5th 2008 7:23PM]

From EVGA:

"The GPU-less design utilizes a virtual driver and high-performance DDR memory with full support for Windows Vista Aero and high resolution capabilities."

Which I interpret as it does not have the horsepower to run the latest games/HD files. Looks like its just an emulator to expand your current desktop.

[ThePengwin @ May 5th 2008 9:59PM]

The questiom here is will it play doom....3?

[Dook_In_The_Urinal @ May 6th 2008 2:06AM]

@ThePengwin:
Please die of explosive diarrhea.

[Mark @ May 5th 2008 7:35PM]

The speed of USB can never hope to match the speed of PCI-E or even AGP.

[andres @ May 5th 2008 7:52PM]

nobody said it could

[Adam Moore @ May 5th 2008 7:40PM]

You'll probably find this not good for games. It's mainly so you can have multiple monitor setups to do work. For me, being able to have a coding screen, a screen for viewing the website as I'm updating it and a screen to do research while I'm coding would be awesome. Looks like the UV16 costs around $85. http://www.mwave.com/mwave/skusearch.hmx?SCriteria=AA73190

[Amol @ May 5th 2008 7:54PM]

Wonder if it is a good alternative for those pesky TV Tuners that you have to use so that you can hook up your console to your laptop. It'd be cool if there were no lag =P.

[andres @ May 5th 2008 8:08PM]

i think you have it backwards

[T-Bone @ May 5th 2008 9:35PM]

"the company is serving up two new USB graphics adapters (UGAs)"

Do wee really need acronyms for everything?

[phanbouy @ May 5th 2008 10:38PM]

GTFO! BBQ is l337 with VGA. COFFE anyone?

[whatishalo? @ May 5th 2008 11:35PM]

I hope these can work over a USB-CAT5 extender. I'd love to run a video line from our kitchen computer to our Plasma on the other side of the room. That way when people come over we won't have to crowd around the little screen

[zydeco @ May 5th 2008 11:44PM]

Better yet, instead of a USB-CAT5 adapter, can I use a wireless USB link to create a slave display somewhere in the home that shows pictures or other slow-moving graphics?

[Dook_In_The_Urinal @ May 6th 2008 2:11AM]

Or better yet, invest the money you would have spent on ANY kind of adapter and open a fucking cookbook for Christs sake.

[Chris Przybycien @ May 6th 2008 12:42AM]

I am compelled to walk over this object and expect to gain health

[tekdemon @ May 6th 2008 4:54AM]

I wonder if this thing is fast enough to display video OK.

[Colin @ May 6th 2008 9:46AM]

Does the lack of a GPU onboard mean that you need a beefy graphics card on the computer to really use it?

[Eli @ May 6th 2008 11:09AM]

No, it has an onboard graphics chip. The lag time to send data to the GPU and then back out the USB port would be prohibitive.

As always, my company sells the DisplayLink version of this (http://www.datapro.net/products/usb-to-dvi-video-adapter.html) starting at $89.00. We've got some other kind of cool stuff too. Mention Engadget in the comments and I'll make sure you get a free shipping upgrade ;D

[Don @ May 6th 2008 11:58AM]

With a DualHead2Go you can hook up two monitors to your laptop and get 1920x1200 on each one without any of the performance issues associated with USB bandwidth. And it works with Mac, 3D acceleration and all...