Original Surface Pro, Windows 10, 2 monitors?

1

I have an original Surface Pro (with one display port and one USB port) running Windows 10. I want to connect 2 monitors. Is this possible? If so, which adapter/hub should I buy?

2

Hello Marcy,

Thanks for reaching out and posting this question, as well as for considering Plugable for your needs! Connecting 2 external monitors is possible, but I’d like to better understand your setup and what else you may be looking for before making a product recommendation. There’s a few options available, but it comes down to two categories of products. You could use either a USB graphics adapter alongside the display port on the Surface Pro to connect two monitors, or alternately you can purchase a docking station.

Can you tell me if you’re just looking for something to hook another monitor up to alongside a monitor connected directly to the Surface Pro (via the one display port you mentioned), or would you prefer a docking station that also had extra USB ports (in addition to adding an extra monitor or two)? Once I understand that, I can provide a recommendation that is best suited for your needs!

Let me know if there’s any questions, and I look forward to working with you on this!

Regards,

Patrick
Plugable Technologies
www.plugable.com/support

3

Thanks for the reply!

I already have a USB hub with a scanner, external keyboard and mouse plugged in. The hub is pretty essential to me since the Surface Pro only has one USB port.

I assume the second monitor needs to go through USB, so unless it could be attached to the final port in the Hub (probly not, I’m guessing) upgrading to a new hub would make sense.

If the single display port can be used, that would work as well. I see lots of options around the Internet but I’m having trouble knowing which ones will work for a legacy computer like my Surface Pro.

Thanks!

4

Hi Marcy,

Thanks for the additional information. The biggest concern with Plugable display adapters and docks is whether the computer works with the required DisplayLink drivers, and generally Surface Pro computers do pretty well with the DisplayLink software. That said, it sounds like either would work but I would recommend a docking station over a USB graphics adapter. The reasoning is that USB Graphics Adapters can sometimes exhibit some weird behaviors and/or performance problems when used with a USB hub, so we generally recommend avoiding it where possible.

Here is a link to the docking station I would recommend: Plugable Universal Dual Display Docking Station (UD-3900)

Let me know if you have any further questions and I hope this info helps!

Patrick

5

Patrick,

Thanks so much for the reply. This is exactly the sort of information I was looking for. Without it I would have just been guessing and hoping for the best. I’ve got the UD-3900 in my cart.

Thank you!
–Marcy

6

Hello Marcy,

Glad to hear you went forward with buying the Plugable UD-3900 docking station! Hopefully all goes well, but if you encounter any issues just send an email to support@plugable.com and we’ll be happy to help!

Have a good day!