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VAIO announces tiny laptop with tons of ports

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Re: VAIO announces tiny laptop with tons of ports

#231

Post by userbinator »

yyyk wrote: post #196
y4mi wrote: post #186

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I got a full HD (vertical, IPS), 2k (IPS) and a 4k (TN) screen on my desk. All have VGA. I also have a 4k tv on my wall. It also has VGA.

You have 4K equipment with a VGA port. But does it actually do 4K when using VGA or does it just downscale? I haven't ever seen any VGA cable which can go above 2048×1536, and that's also the maximum wiki mentions: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VGA_connector#Cable_quality

VGA is an analog signal, so there is no theoretical limit, and the degradation is graceful --- edges of individual pixels will start looking blurry as you get closer to the physical limitations, but a recognisable image continues to appear.

Re: VAIO announces tiny laptop with tons of ports

#233

Post by aembleton »

rbanffy wrote: post #211

I really like lots of ports, but, quite frankly, when I'm on my desk, I'd prefer to plug in a single cable over plugging in HDMI, Ethernet, USB and power. I like the fact my monitor has a USB hub that connects keyboard and mouse and, if the next one can do power, video, Ethernet and USB over a single USB-C connector, I'm all in for it.

Then get a USB-C hub with power delivery and have that at your desk with all of your peripherals and power supply plugged in. Then you just plug the USB-C cable in and you're away.

For example: https://smile.amazon.co.uk/LETSCOM-Aluminum-Adapter-Charging...

Re: VAIO announces tiny laptop with tons of ports

#234

Post by rbanffy »

aembleton wrote: post #233
rbanffy wrote: post #211

I really like lots of ports, but, quite frankly, when I'm on my desk, I'd prefer to plug in a single cable over plugging in HDMI, Ethernet, USB and power. I like the fact my monitor has a USB hub that connects keyboard and mouse and, if the next one can do power, video, Ethernet and USB over a single USB-C connector, I'm all in for it.

Then get a USB-C hub with power delivery and have that at your desk with all of your peripherals and power supply plugged in. Then you just plug the USB-C cable in and you're away. For example: https://smile.amazon.co.uk/LETSCOM-Aluminum-Adapter-Charging...

That's one of the many reasons why I think a VGA port is kind of silly to have these days.

Re: VAIO announces tiny laptop with tons of ports

#235

Post by flyinghamster »

yyyk wrote: post #146
kelnage wrote: post #129

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And of course there are still a lot of VGA-only projectors out there (especially the ceiling mounted ones in meeting rooms) - having a VGA port is a godsend when you come across them!

KVM switches are also a pain point - there are still many VGA-only KVMs which can get pricey to replace. It's probably not a problem for the laptop use case but it is for the home-lab setup.

Amen to that. The exorbitant cost to replace my perfectly functional KVM switch is what keeps me on PS/2 and VGA.

Does anyone make a backlit PS/2 keyboard, or are the power requirements too high?

Re: VAIO announces tiny laptop with tons of ports

#236

Post by yyyk »

flyinghamster wrote: post #235
yyyk wrote: post #146

Earlier quoted context omitted.

KVM switches are also a pain point - there are still many VGA-only KVMs which can get pricey to replace. It's probably not a problem for the laptop use case but it is for the home-lab setup.

Amen to that. The exorbitant cost to replace my perfectly functional KVM switch is what keeps me on PS/2 and VGA. Does anyone make a backlit PS/2 keyboard, or are the power requirements too high?

A web search found that the PS/2 interface apparently survived for a while in gaming keyboards due to advantages I wasn't aware of - apparently PS/2 had slightly better latency and N-key rollover.

Even those keyboard switched to USB eventually. The only recently made and currently available with backlight PS/2 keyboard I found is the "Zowie Celeritas II" gaming keyboard (the manufacturer's page says USB+PS2, the reviews say it ships with a usb TO ps2 adapter). However it's pretty expensive, and the red leds might not fit your taste.

Re: VAIO announces tiny laptop with tons of ports

#237

Post by lucb1e »

colejohnson66 wrote: post #217
lucb1e wrote: post #155

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes. VGA is frequently used, but so is C. This device has zero usable C ports it seems, it just has a C charger.

Would you prefer it had a barrel jack for power and no USB-C?

I don't have any C devices myself, and given the issues I've heard with C chargers, cables, and devices, I'm inclined to say "maybe". But I think the answer is rather "no", because of course in the long run, this mess will probably sort itself out and we'll be able to swap chargers super easily.

Two weeks ago a charger of mine finally broke on the hottest day so far (it was getting hot since day one, ~8 years ago, but this day finally did the trick), I ended up taking out the hard drive behind twenty screws and unplugging the laptop keyboard, because I didn't have a replacement charger. I wouldn't have had a replacement C charger either, but that would be different in years to come.

I guess more universal chargers is more better. Looking at you, work phone (Apple branded, and battery draining unlike any OS I've ever seen, so having only one charger is super annoying).

Re: VAIO announces tiny laptop with tons of ports

#238

Post by joezydeco »

owenversteeg wrote: post #207
joezydeco wrote: post #97

Earlier quoted context omitted.

it's a real hacker's port, dammit! Too young to remember the PC parallel port? That was the hacker port.

Hah, how could anyone forget them? lp0 on fire and daisy chained dongles (back when dongles were dongles), those were the days :) That said, I think the parallel port died out not too long ago. I remember the serial port went first (2003?), then a few years later (2005?) the parallel port went, which caused a number of people to think their parallel ports were serial ports. I know nearly anything with XP had both, an…

Serial ports are still around. I just got a Dell desktop i7 box and it has a nice little DB-9 on the back. Highly useful for embedded development.
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