USB C monitor, iPad...

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Jason Davies

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Dec 13, 2023, 5:31:39 PM12/13/23
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Hi folks,

Currently a victim of USB-C connectors and cables all looking the same, would appreciate anyone who’s grasped it all better chipping in.

I have three USB C Apple devices:

  • ipad Air 2020
  • iPhone 15
  • Macbook Pro 2022

At work we’ve shifted offices to ‘agile working’ ie you find somewhere and plug in a laptop. This connects via USB C to a hub with two monitors than run through DisplayLink. That obviously only works on the Mac.

But the monitors are Dell 2421DC which will run HDMI, USB-C and Displayport.

So there are days I have hardly any time at the desk and I was hoping I could run one of the monitors from my iPad Air (or even phone) and have a BT keyboard, for days I don’t fancy lugging the MBP in.

So I tried connecting via USB C directly using the cable that came with the iPad Air (or perhaps the iPhone, not sure ) which I believe is data and power. If I connect my phone to the mac, it seems to register a data connector and prompts for ‘Trust this computer’. But none of them would connect to the display. I found the setting to switch to the USBC input to no avail.

I believe this should work so the likely candidate is the cable (I don’t have others to try). Or I could buy an HDMI to USB C cable but I’d rather not as that will eventually join the drawer full of adaptors that are no longer relevant. A USB-C cable will get longer use (and also charge the device). But which one? And have I missed anything here, maybe it’s not the cable…

Would be really helpful to be able to do this some days; I’m not sure I trust the large open area as a place to leave the laptop (my own, everyone else uses university-issued Dells and hates them) and some days I come and go a lot. The iPad would be a much better device to be using on those days, easy to slip into a large pocket.

Cheers for any help,
J

Tony Crooks

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Dec 14, 2023, 3:55:25 AM12/14/23
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Hi,

I’d go for a usb-c digital av multiport adaptor plus HDMI cable as the ‘safe’ way to go. Should work for all 3 devices. 

Regards,

Tony
Sent from my iPhone

On 13 Dec 2023, at 22:31, 'Jason Davies' via Sussex Mac User Group <sm...@googlegroups.com> wrote:


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Paul R Owen

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Dec 14, 2023, 4:49:28 AM12/14/23
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Hi Jason,

In addition to Tony’s suggestion, you could try this book which has just been released, 2nd edition.
Take Control of Untangling Connections.

This guy knows his cables and USB C is not as straight forward as it seems  at first, although they are simpler than earlier USB cables.

Good luck.

Paul Owen

P.S. I have three monitors connected by: Mini DVI, USB C and HDMI. I find the USB C the simplest and most reliable.  

On 13 Dec 2023, at 22:31, 'Jason Davies' via Sussex Mac User Group <sm...@googlegroups.com> wrote:

Jason Davies

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Dec 14, 2023, 5:53:56 AM12/14/23
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On 14 Dec 2023, at 8:55, Tony Crooks wrote:

I’d go for a usb-c digital av multiport adaptor plus HDMI cable as the ‘safe’ way to go. Should work for all 3 devices

I have been looking at these and it was my initial thought but my bag is so full of cycling bits and pieces, computer cables, spare this, passkey for that, something for this, that I would really like to have something that doesn't catch on everything else when I try to pull it out of the tangled mess;) It's kind of ridiculous how many small items with impossible numbers of corners I seem to need just to function...

Thanks to Paul for the tip, I have the same sinking feeling about reading a whole book;)

I can't actually diagnose what the issue is as what I have should work. I'll see if I can find another USBC cable I can borrow to narrow it down. It's not the expense of these thnigs, luckily, it's a kind of being appalled at how much junk I seem to end up with even only buying 'vital' cables/adaptors etc. I already have USBc to VGA but the monitors don't have VGA (I do have VGA to DVI and DVI to HDMI for a fabulous chain but I refer you back to my bag problem lol).

Cheers,

Jason

Tony Crooks

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Dec 14, 2023, 7:32:18 AM12/14/23
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Just looking at the 2020 iPad Air specs suggest that usb-c output to monitors with usb-c inputs doesn’t work regardless of cable. You might try a thunderbolt cable but seems an expensive trial?

Regards,

Tony
Sent from my iPhone

On 14 Dec 2023, at 10:53, 'Jason Davies' via Sussex Mac User Group <sm...@googlegroups.com> wrote:


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Jason Davies

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Dec 14, 2023, 8:27:08 AM12/14/23
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I found something (can't find it now, of course) that said it should work with the right cable, but had just hit on the same idea, of using a Thunderbolt cable to test (I have a 10 cm one lol), and that the apple ones are too low-spec.

But I also tested with the Macbook Pro and that cable did nothing so it's not specific to the Air. If it works with the thunderbolt one, I need to work out whether to trade in the Air for a newer one and then get the expensive cable...

I have a massive jumble of old obsolete USB cables (micro, mini, blah blah) and have – until now – been thinking how good it is to have only one connector. At least with the old jumble, I could tell what it could and couldn't do (mostly) by looking at it, sigh...

Cheers,

Jason

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