Plugable shows off new USB display and docking adapters

You might have heard of Plugable Technologies before, they make USB adapters that allow you to plug a monitor into any device. This allows you to have multiple displays on systems that normally wouldn’t support them, such as a laptop or notebook. Plugable just announced two new display adapters to their lineup. Press release after the jump.

The Plugable UGA-125 is available today, selling for $49.99 with free shipping, this model is a basic adapter that allows you to mirror your display to an external monitor, and not much else. The UGA-125-HUB is available shortly, selling for $59.99. This model is a display adapter along with a 4 port USB 2.0 hub. And for a universal USB docking station in a single unit, the Plugable UD-160-A is $96.99.

From the press release:

BELLEVUE, Wash.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Plugable Technologies has launched two new USB graphics products enabling easy expandability of any laptop or desktop system with a spare USB port.

The UGA-125 enables multiple VGA, DVI, or HDMI monitors or projectors to be added to any system via USB 2.0 (one extra display supported per adapter). Each display can extend the desktop or mirror other displays. The UGA-125 is great for multi-taskers who want to see and work with several applications or documents at once, including programmers, designers, writers, office managers, day traders, customer service and sales personnel, etc.

The second product in the UGA-125 family, the UGA-125-HUB, also includes a matching bus-powered 4-port USB 2.0 hub. This provides a simple solution for quickly docking any laptop to an extra display, keyboard, and mouse. Unlike proprietary docking stations, the simple hub solution works with any brand of computer, using standard USB 2.0 connectivity and components. Note that docking stations attached over USB will not charge the laptop they’re connected to.

Both use the DisplayLink DL-125 chip, capable of modes up to 1440×900 (widescreen) or 1280×1024 (standard) on higher-resolution monitors.

And both are fully supported on the Microsoft(tm) Windows Update system, providing automatic matching, download, and install of Microsoft-hosted drivers on XP, Vista, and Win7 systems. Windows and Mac drivers are also provided on disk in the package. And open source code supporting these devices is available on Linux.

“Plugable’s UGA-125 family of products highlight the flexibility of DisplayLink’s USB-virtual graphics technology,” said Dennis Crespo, senior vice president of marketing and business development for DisplayLink. “Peripherals can be mixed and matched to improve the computing experience — from using multiple monitors for desktop productivity to creating an entertainment media center or for organizing the mobile professional’s workspace, it’s as easy as a USB connection.”

Bernie Thompson, Plugable Technologies Founder added, “The productivity benefits — and ‘cool factor’ — of multiple monitors is well known. And USB connectivity is the easiest plug and play solution to get there. The UGA-125 family enables new price points to deliver these benefits to a wider audience.”