Adding 3 monitors to a laptop that has 1 HDMI port?

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5 Jul 2019
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Hi there,

I have a laptop that has 1 HDMI port and I would like to link up 3 monitors to it. What would be the best way to do this? I'm guessing I need some sort of HDMI box/splitter?

Any suggestions would be great, thanks!
 
To display different images? Not much chance I don't think. You'd have to trick the computer into thinking it was displaying one resolution then using the box to split it onto separate screens.

To display the same image across 3 monitors would be easy with the right splitter though.
 
I have some other USB connectors if that helps.

I basically want to use three screens so I can have different windows open on different screens
 
There should be a sticker underneath with the model number. Most type C ports can display to another monitor, but if it's a Thunderbolt port then it'll allow you to use a Thunderbolt dock with at least two display outputs. And then in some cases, there are those where the typc C port doesn't support any form of display outputs.
 
According to Dell, the service tag shows it's a Inspiron 5580. The manual mentions the type C port supports Displayport out. I can't tell if a normal type C dock will work with dual displays, but it should work with at least one.

What will the screens be showing exactly? If it's not GPU intensive you could get something like a DisplayLink adapter, so 1 screen can run off that, then a type C to Displayport for the second, then the HDMI port for the last monitor.

EDIT: I would try get a type C hub with two displays first and see if that works. There's also a chance having three external displays may disable the inbuilt laptop display since the IGP can only handle up to 3.
 
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DisplayPort supports daisy chaining.
So if it supports modern DP version it could be possible to connect multiple monitors with daisy chain support to one port.
Though GPU can have limit for total number of active displays.
(+ DP has version dependant bandwidth limit)
 
Thanks for the reply.

A lot of that goes straight over my head, sorry! :rolleyes:

It will be displaying a browser on one probably, adobe suite on the main and something else on the other, maybe a folder etc. I'm not using it for gaming or anything like that.

I know this is a big ask, but could anyone point me in the right direction of the product(s) I would need, say on Amazon(UK)?

Thanks everyone for your time, I really appreciate it.
 
Hi again,

Would it not work if I just got a HDMI junction box so I can plug multiple HDMIs into that? So one going in the the box and then 2 or 3 going out of that into the screens?
 
Would something like this work:

StarTech.com USB C to 4 HDMI Adapter - External Video & Graphics Card - USB Type-C to Quad HDMI Display Adapter Dongle - 1080p 60Hz - Multi Monitor Video Converter - Windows Only (USBC2HD4)​

 
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