SideTrak Review: Sliding USB Laptop Monitor
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- Опубликовано: 19 окт 2024
- SideTrak is a USB laptop monitor that attaches to the back of your laptop and slides out for easy use. Today I put it to the test to see if it's worth the price.
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#sidetrak #laptop #usbmonitor
$300 for something that looks and feels like it is a $50 knock off product , too many cons to justify that price tag .
150 to 200 is what i was guessing
Just get a 15.6 travel monitor for half the price. They are thin for travel, USB powered and bigger screen size.
@@practicalguy973 but they do not attach to the back of the computer
@@bland9876 Thats probably a good thing. No metal bracket that adds weight and is shown in this video to not operate smooth. Taking a travel monitor and having to place it beside is likely the same effort and you can pack a larger screen.
Yup just buy a USB monitor for half the price, not this flimsy little thing.
$300 is when I noped out of there....
I could buy a real monitor for that
If that’s USD I could buy 3x of my current laptop lol
ByZocker I got a used one and it does quite well. I mainly use a PC so the laptop doesn’t need to be high spec :)
ByZocker all it has to do is go on the Internet, play movies/music, and run a lightweight software program I use. It has an SSD, and it also folds into a tablet. For the money, it’s excellent. Because of 2nd hand value
ByZocker that has no relevance lol
The hinge seems rather flimsy. That may not spell out well while on the road.
It looked to me like it was supposed to hinge downwards so the screen wouldn't appear at an angle while viewing
Yeah, this thing is definitely not me-proof. Used to travel a lot for making photo's and then a second screen would be nice to have while editing my images on my macook air 13", but this seems way too fragile to carry with me all the time.
it just there as a choice.. when you travel.. you not a carry this shit with you.. unless you had a car....
It is fairly flimsy but I've had it for 6 months and it is OK. The worst part of it is they told me I could leave it attached to my laptop when I travel, but the weight of it on the magnets pulled the electronics apart in my screen. I had to purchase a new laptop. Now I have to use the Slide as a stand alone. They have stand alone ones too
I am a teacher and I have been using my sidetrack since I am having to teach in Distance Learning. I have found the product to be quite useful, although it didn't stay on very well. The magnets don't hold for the long haul. I ended up having to tape the sidetrack to my computer with shipping tape (while making sure to avoid the slideout track-otherwise it won't slide back in). Though it did cost 300.00 dollars, it was worth it when I do Google Meets with my students and have to see them and what I am presenting. I recommend the product. It has been a lifesaver.
This is something I'd actually be interested in! Now I'm working from home, and I don't always want to sit at my desk all day. Sitting on my bed or the couch makes it hard to use second monitors. My laptop is on my lap but there's no place for the monitor. This would completely solve that problem! The size is pretty typical for travel monitors. I do wish it was more affordable :/
Be careful, the weight of the monitor attached to the magnets pulled apart the electronics on my screen and I had to buy a new laptop. I now have to use it as a stand alone monitor.
Me watching reviews for expensive products knowing I can’t afford it but still watching it because this channel is so good😂
*I'm
Lmao same
Pretty much lol
You and me both friend!
Flex Seal Man! I didn’t mean I’m i mean me😂
I've been watching you for years but for some reason I loved this video in particular. I don't even own a laptop, but I'm a computer/techy/smartphone kind of guy so this was really neat. It's fun to see you review products that aren't total garbage. You definitely said it had its flaws but I think the concept is awesome for a very niche market of laptop owners. If they improved the design, I could see it taking off. Still really good for a first-gen concept though.
I don't think $300 is unreasonable. Again, it's not for everybody, but having a dual display is a bit of a luxury on its own. You're paying for a 13 inch 1080p display, plus all the design and engineering that went behind it. With time, people could come up with better designs and the novelty factor will come down and I could see this kind of thing (but better) selling for $200.
That is a really interesting idea. I would like to see it once someone could make it thinner and lighter. I'm sure it will come. They have TV's that are super thin now. Great idea and another great video!
@Joe Horn and this could be the same thing. I'm not an inventor but I'm sure you could have something similar where the electronics are permanently fixed on the laptop lid and you just pull out the screen...
Something useful Laptops users. My wallet was excited until you mentionned 300 bucks... I wouldn't pay more than $100 tbh
Your reviews are so genuine! That company being so nice to you didn't make you bias at all! I don't know if I could do that. Great job!
Can you review some magnetic charging cables? I tried looking into them recently, and I couldn't find hardly any informative videos. Love your channel!
One thing I'd be interested to know is how much of an impact that monitor has on your battery life.
Great question
tbh after looking aat the price i can just get a portaable monitor for thw same price or cheaper
you can just buy a another laptop with that price jesus, they should lower it to 200
True, literally paying about $100 more for the slide out functionality
I came here to day this. You can get a really nice usb powered portable monitor for less than $200 and it would be bigger. The only real advantage to the sidetrak is that you don't need as much table space so it might be good for trains and airplanes (although on a plane you'd still be going into your neighbor's space on the cheap seats that I can afford).
Also, as a guy that has fixed a lot of loose hinges, I'd be a little worried about the stress on the laptop hinge if you open and close this a lot.
it's selling for equivalent to US$550 in Japan. Nice idea but not at that price.
Do you have a suggestion? That would be nice to know.
Thanks for adding the metric units, nice addition!
I have that same laptop James. Still rocking after 2 years and I still baby it...not sure I'd be sticking that thing onto the back of it anytime soon. Thanks for being the guinea pig as usual. Love this channel.
Look out, Linus Tech Tips! James' Freakin' Tech Tips is coming for ya! Kidding aside, amazing, straight to the point review!
Justin Düren Linus would drop and break that thing in under 5 minutes
Should have started off by saying it is $300. I can buy an entire second laptop for that price 😂
The best part is, not only will the 300 dollar laptop be bigger, but in windows settings you can use a spare laptop as an external monitor to your main laptop
@@ryantexada9269 thx - I was just asked about hooking 2 laptops together two days ago, and said no. I just looked it up and it doesn't seem difficult.
@@johnm93359 is super easy, but its a bit weird to set up at first but once it's connected it's connected and it works decently well for working and like research and stuff
A shitty one ☝️ don’t forget to add that
@@ryantexada9269 Didnt work for me. My laptop is from 2011 running win10, with a secondary hdmi monitor already set up. The second pc is a old 2n1 tablet running win10. they both warned me that they were not designed for this. I dont want to disrupt my primary laptop settings that I use daily for now. I will test further when I get a chance. Does anyone know if this works to setup a 3rd monitor (the 2n1) for my laptop. I discussed with the person who asked about it. She has a win10 laptop and a win7. So we are concluding that this is n/a for her hardware. I still want to play with it some more. I have some other h/w that I might be able to get up and running.
Thanks for the great videos. Like many people have said, there's something about them that are both informative and entertaining. A note about the issue that you're having with the second monitor not working after your laptop has been in sleep/hibernate mode. Windows OS might be defaulted to have your USB ports set to power down to save battery if it thinks the ports aren't in use. It's easy to check this. Right click the Windows icon in the lower left of the taskbar. Select Device Manager. In the opened window, scroll to the bottom and expand the USB Controller list. You can right click each USB port listed, and select Properties from the sub menu. See if there is a Power Management tab. Click the tab and deselect the power management option (remove the check box). Now see if the second monitor continues to work after waking up your laptop. When this property is active, it can make it look like peripheral attachments mysteriously stop working for no reason. Rebooting the laptop resets the property and restores power flow to the USB ports, and repeats the cycle. Check your check boxes. LOL 😉
Seems like it would put a lot of stress on the Laptop’s hinges. Cool idea they just need to make it sleeker, which they will eventually!
That's actually pretty cool. Impressed that it works easily as well... close to being a plug and play.
I guess we really should remember that it is just a 2nd monitor for a laptop. And seeing as laptops are supposed to be for "travel", then it being lightweight and compact should be considered a design feature, rather than a cost thing.
Besides the cost (which is debatable as it's not overtly expensive / too overpriced), I do have to agree that the biggest con is how it's attached.
But I guess that's the limitation that a product will have if it's supposed to cater to all shapes and sizes of laptops.
plug in and play would hdmi port or something? rather then USB
@@punker4Real Displaylink monitors usually work on USB without requiring driver install. My own travel monitor worked as soon as I plugged it in.
Really enjoy your show! Could you talk in general about your review writing method and the development of the intro scene over the years ( been watching old vods and love the improvement and change in style ). keep it up
Once you go dual monitor your never go back.
True
Unless you get chronic neck pain because your first monitor is too wide 😭😭😭😭
@ORFwithCRS Huh, when I was deployed I saved up so much I bought a new motorcycle with a check when I got back...oh wait, I was single :D
I got a second monitor at work, and loved it. I then bought a second one for home use.
My sister uses three monitors at her work.
I miss my tri monitors
Please make review on blue light blocking glasses .. many thanks
I'll see what I can do!
Waste of money
Play store has plenty of blue light filter apps
I bought this for $100 in my local store. I love it! And used it alot if im traveling very handy!
I have a Lenovo W701-DS (Circa 2011) that came from the factory with a second screen like this. This is a pretty cool little second display solution!
looking good and i hope you're feeling great! thank you for the comprehensive review
I actually just bought it recently, no complaints from me, great review from you to back up my initial thoughts about it!
Nice and quick review. Nicely done. You are right price is a bit expensive. Thank you for the review.
Thanks for sharing the review! It’s really helpful! Do think the metallic stickers on the laptop can be removed?
You might have mentioned that the laptop you attached it to was a large gaming laptop computer. Traditional mobile warriors tend to stick to 15 inch or less screens for ease of portability and weight. I mean I totally understand having a gaming laptop for content creation, but a mobile workstation tends to be more compact and streamlined. Much less aggressive design angles/shapes built into the body of the laptop.
Holy cow! I was watching this the whole time expecting it to be a $30 Amazon gadget. Like, oh, would be nice if there were a better version that had decent mounting hardware, but it's probably a trade-off with price. $300! I just bought a new laptop for $450! It looks like the other comments are saying the same thing but wow!! That price came out of nowhere.
i was like wow thats cool i need something like that then went to amazon and nope i do not need it that badly 300 is way to much
If you have a iPad you can use a free app call” X display “ it turns your iPad into another monitor
kingpolo1920 If you have a relatively new iPad, MacOS Catalina has a built-in functionality called Sidecar which turns an iPad into a second monitor for your Mac. Works flawlessly. Of course, we are talking the Apple ecosystem here.
Can you use this on windows or does it have to be a mac
or Spacedesk from spacedeskdotnet if you running an android or IOS tablet/phone. Works on Local Area Network (LAN) and Wireless
@@lucbarlowmarshall298 Didn't you notice he was using it on a Windows based laptop?...
This could be useful in situations other than a laptop. As a VR professional I sometimes lug around a small case desktop and having a monitor that fits on the side is an interesting idea.
As always, great review. Only thing missing is some technical things like resolution, refresh rate and how does it affect the battery life of your laptop if not plugged in?
However, you are not a tech reviewer so I give you a pass. And I will probably be passing on this secondary display as well. Much better battery powered, secondary displays for this price.
I think this is the first thing you've reviewed that I ended up really wanting
@Public Enemy #1 not a total disuassion
Thanks for these awesome reviews 🔥
Pretty neat! I think it would be nice if you could slide it up however instead of to the side. Since often you're cramped for space when using a laptop.
I like the feature where the extra screen can duplicate the main one when facing the rear of the laptop. That way, two people can watch the same movie, or RUclips video! At $300 though, it's about half the price of the MSI laptop I bought. If you edit a lot while on the road, then I can see how it'll be worth the money.
Great review as always James.
I have a 15" USB 3.0 monitor I use on my laptop when I need a 2nd screen. I love dual screens. It's also great since its the same size as my laptop screen. Also less than $200. Magnets around computers doesn't sound like a great idea.
The issue I have is the magnets on the back of the screen, I personally don't like having powerful magnets near any device. If there was another way to attach it and fix the sliding issue and the price tag,I honestly don't think it would be bad.🤷♂️
It would be extremely useful if the support frame allowed it to me mounted vertically for streaming purposes, because the second monitor could be used for Chat monitoring! What I don't like is the stability, it look really flimsy on that frame. Thanks for the review James! 🙂
I almost bought this during lockdown because I’m so used to using a dual monitor at work. I didn’t want to waste my money if it was crap. Now I wish I got it. Darn!!
Another great video !!
I just love your demeanor & would watch even a low quality review !! Thank you !!
For that price, it needs a stand at the corner. It wouldn't be a major change to have a thin piece swing down when pulled out.
IF you already have an iPad you can use it as a second screen with software. MacOS has this built in - called SideCar. Windows users can use a program called SplashTop to do same.
Good idea...but not for a $300 price-tag. Great review as always James!
Can't wait to see the rest of the gadgets video!
This is the first thing you have reviewed that I was actually looking at purchasing. Thanks.
You are absolutely right about this product. As soon as I saw the thumbnail I had to have it no questions as... Oh it's $300 no thank you.
Duplicating to the other side for someone sitting opposite is something I've seen programmers do in hackathons.
It really help when the other person can glance up and see your code instead of going around. OFC the regualr way to do that is lug a monitor to the hackathon location in addition to the laptop.
I’d like to see my husband’s employer buy him one. He’s been working at our kitchen table since mid March and used two monitors at the office. Two monitors at the kitchen table just isn’t practical, but a slide out monitor might be.
Hello,, this looks decent,, I'm curious, will the magnets affect the monitor of the laptop in any way?
I always appreciate the fact that you include metric measurements in your video’s.
Also, could you slide it to the left instead of the right?
I would carry that around in my laptop bag with a kickstand, not that flimsy drawer tracks. But if I was editing on the road, I'd probably invest in a wireless HDMI setup or just a really long HDMI cable and use my room's TV for the preview
That's a good design. But you're right about the price point. For $300, I'd like to see the main frame be anodized aluminum, or carbon fiber, instead of flimsy plastic.
Absolutely one of those 'why didn't i think of that' moments.... Great idea!
I like the idea of flipping the screen around so that your display can be duplicated on the back of your laptop 6:13
Great review!
Thanks for including cm. Way to go!
"Sometimes i have a problem sliding it in and out"...
Story of my life 👀
I would definitely have a use for that - and I have a Surface so the screen is already small, so wouldn't mind that. Only thing is it would block the kickstand
$299 on Amazon, currently!!! ouch. For 1/2 the price I can get a 22"inch 1080p monitor from walmart and just drag it around with me. Thanks for the review James - It is a great idea
You must be one of the lucky ones. I have seen many reviews of this product being DOA. I don't use a Laptop where this would be needed hell I use a chromebook. But fair and balanced review like it.
I would love this since I am teaching virtually for the beginning of the school year. Kids on one monitor, teaching screen on the other.. However, 300 is not in my budget. Sucks because it seems pretty cool.
I remember when USB was useless for anything but keyboards and mice, and maybe very slow CD-Rs. Now you can have a USB monitor. Wow.
Interesting product. Did you get a chance to test how much it drains the battery?
I was able to use my tablet as a 2nd monitor for my laptop. That might be a more affordable option if you already have a tablet. I just downloaded an application for my laptop and 1 on my tablet. I cannot remember how much it cost but I don’t think it was too expensive.
What is the brand of gaming laptop you use? Can you also use it for your editing?
I sometimes have trouble sliding it in and out too. Don't sweat it....it happens once in a while!
I like the concept , but like others have mentioned it's a bit pricey. Great review as always, James!
I don't see how some people think ur not thorough. I feel like u cover real world experiences pretty dam well!
Seems like a very cool, useful gadget. Thank you for the review!
I use a 10 inch full hd tablet and use Spacedesk app! Works very good for coding. You Will have to have wifi!
"Some times I have a problem sliding it in and out."
I would only go for this device if you don't have a tablet. You can download a variety of apps to have a second display using a tablet that work very well. Awesome concept for a device though!
James!! I am so disappointed that you’re not an Apple guy, but this gadget is pretty cool, a bluetooth connection would be amazing, but I’m sure they have plans for future upgrades, this is definitely something in to keep an eye on.
Does it work on MacBooks?
I needed this for remote work! Lol, if we happen to go remote again, Im telling my job I need one
It might do if you could apply it in portrait mode as well and slide it out. then it would be larger with the 17 inch just not as extensive.
This is a neat idea and cool product that’s only problem is the cost-to-value ratio. If this thing had a couple more features it’d be a hit.
For significantly less, I got a "portable gaming monitor" from japan which is great for when travelling. Stores separately from the laptop, has it's own case, has 2 hdmi inputs as well as 2 headphone outputs and speakers. The only downside of that is the colour accuracy is horrible. So I need to remember to use the main monitor if I need to do anything requiring that.
No need to stick it onto the laptop, and can be used with kickstands. It would be the perfect solution for me if colour accuracy was better but still. best and most cost effective solution for me out there so far.
Interesting, but I felt they missed a lot. For one, they need to have a few screen sizes, maybe 13.3 inch, 14 inch, 15.6 inch, to fit in different laptop.
Another part is WiDi capability, or maybe HDMI connector. You can just plug in to other device if you don't feel like using your laptop.
USB-C huh? Well, have you try powering this thing up using a USB-C capable phone? Can it be use using USB-C alternate mode? Is it Thunderbolt 3 capable?
I don't know if i liked it attached - maybe with and attachable stand .. looks nice
you can use an android tablet as a second monitor through usb too (or your phone, or both to get triple displays) yeee those would need a stand...but no additional purchase, if you already have a droid slate of any type
Good for Macs and regular kind?
saw this on Austin Evan's Mystery Tech video and it actually looked pretty interesting and i wanted to see this in actual use so here i am
Finally a product that i've actually been on the fence about.
FYI eBay has the same monitor brand new free shipping for $185 I've already ordered one
yes! more tech reviews!
Please tell me how you made that EPIC! Outro!??
i think its pretty solid, if i had a laptop id personally rather use that than a second monitor. Cause when you got that second monitor plugged in theres cables everywhere and you can never set it right next to your laptop screen, like a true dual PC monitor setup. This seems like the way to go even though its pricey, But you can bring your dual monitor setup wherever you go!
On the times you were having issues pushing the screen back in, it looks like the ball bearing on the far end is jumping the track @7:05 is a good example
That could be it!
I bought a different brand called the Mobile Pixels Duex monitor. I had issues with connections and drivers, even with everything done correctly. Didn't work for me. I'll look at this one because it looks way more functional.
Im running a 17 inch omen myself but I have 2 sidetracks glued them together to make a tri setup
with Macbook and an ipad you can do the same thing. Nice new update with Mohave OS...
I’d probably want to use the main monitor as a preview because of the better colour calibration. But then you have to edit on the tiny screen :)
Try a Lepow portable monitor or something similar. It's half the price of that sliding monitor on Amazon. Although it is technically a different product, I wonder how the quality of a much cheaper monitor compares to this one.
Does it have its own battery? How much power is it using?
You should review those laptop coolers that helps cool your laptop whenever it gets too hot.