Any way to get DVI or VGA input for a laptop?

[CZroe]

Is there a product or device that can display VGA or DVI video input on a laptop? Via PCMCIA or USB2.0; it doesn't matter. Even if it's just converted to a low res analog window on the laptop, it would serve my purposes: Using the laptop as an emergency display for another PC (While working on that PC).

One of the most expensive parts of a laptop is the LCD. A stand-alone LCD is also expensive, so it makes sense to use the one you have in your laptop as a portable LCD for diagnostic purporses. What sort of tech DOESN'T bring his laptop when working on someone else's PC? I have been amazed that year after year laptops are released with no type of video input. Finally, partially thanks to XP Media Center Edition, there are a few laptops that are meant to be used as video displays for home entertainment purposes and they include various video input capabilities but there is still nothing with DVI or VGA input to my knowledge.

 

[RaiderJ]

I'm with you - I have no clue why this isn't a standard feature, or at least an optional one. Plus, it would be great for those of us who like to turn old laptops into computer picture frames!

 

[CZroe]

I've encountered situations where this would be so useful in the past that I would buy such a device immediately for my tool kit. Most recently, I am visiting my sister all the way accross the country in San Diego. I brought my tools and stuff, but no PC... My sister owned a nice Centrino laptop I bought her last year so I shouldn't have needed to bring anything else. My niece who also lives in the city had me borrow her PC for a few days to backup files, format, install XP and applications. I came prepared but it was a nightmare carrying her monitor up and down several flights of stairs and accross parking lots to a room barely big enough for a laptop (My sister lives in a single room). It made total sense to use the laptop as a display if possible and I should carry the tools to do it (I had all my other PC tools). My other tools such as a PCI wireless 802.11g card, optical drive cleaner, external USB2.0 battery-operated CD-burner/DVD drive, spare mouse and more sure came in useful... the landlady offers WiFi but no RJ45/CAT5, the CD-RW in the PC was dead and her trackball's cord was chewed through by her cat (The short shocked me good).

I'm getting to the point where I may just carry a USB video capture device with separate VGA-to-S-Video hardware (Like Avermedia is known to make). Are there any DVI-to-S-Video hardware? I'm sure that's much more difficult to do and doesn't seem to have much of a marketable alternate use.

 

[RaiderJ]

An alternative might be to get like a 5-10" LCD? I know they sell stuff like that on Carputer sites. Wouldn't be ideal, but would work well enough when needed?

 

[kpb]

The reason why this isn't a feature is because it would add cost to the laptop. The video card in a laptop and the lcd are basically setup to work specifically with each other. Skipping alot of the additional chips that would normally be in a desktop LCD which saves space and cost. It takes a chip or several chips to take a dvi or rgb input and convert it to what the lcd expects to get. Yeah there are some situations where this would be useful but I really doubt most people would consider it worth the added cost.