INTRODUCTION

   With most modern graphics cards featuring video outputs for over 3 displays (some a lot more) professionals, enthusiasts and hardcore gamers should be more than just covered in case they wish to build a multi-screen environment. Still there are many people who don't actually want to have that capability at their home or office but would rather have it with them everywhere they go and at any given time. To cover that specific segment of the market there are quite a few manufacturers out there producing external video adapters for use with notebooks and netbooks (mostly) which allow for multiple screen output through the typical USB ports. HIS is amongst them and today we will be taking a look at their brand new Multi-View & Sound adapter.

     HIS - Hightech Information System Limited is an internationally acclaimed graphics cards company. Time and time again, HIS were compared and tested by hundreds of worldly renowned critics. The results are phenomena, HIS have proven to offer far superior, cooler, quieter, and faster graphic cards than any other leading rivals. Up to the fourth quarter of 2008, HIS has won over 1000 awards with AMD graphic solution from major media worldwide. HIS is being recognized by providing performance leading and award-wining products. HIS was established in 1987 with the mission to produce the highest quality PC products in the industry. Besides strong devotion to excellent products and services, HIS has been conducting business with the aim to "Glorifying God". Honesty and integrity are the two key principals of how HIS are conducted. Ethical business practice has been an everyday commitment to our clients, vendors, and investors. Headquartered in Hong Kong, and with sales offices and distribution networks in Europe, Middle East, North and South America, Asia Pacific Regions our worldwide customers benefits from efficient and localized services. ISO Certified, HIS's manufacturing facility in China is managed by a team of professionals with expertise in quality control and production planning. Working with world-class clients, HIS has been consistently meeting high quality standards and fulfilled volume order in short lead-time.

   Over a year ago HIS released the Multi-View II, an external video adapter which allowed for direct connection with up to 6 screens via USB 2.0 and HDMI (providing of course you have six of these adapters) with a maximum resolution of 2048x1152. Still although sufficient for slideshows, presentations and SD/HD video streaming the bandwidth limitations of USB 2.0 did not allow for smooth FullHD video streaming and gaming (if at all). Because of that HIS is now using USB 3.0 with their latest Multi-View & Sound adapter but does it really work as advertised? Well that's exactly what we are here to find out.

SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

The adapter is shipped inside a small blue box with the HIS logo, an large image of the product and its connectivity all at the front.

The contents of the bundle are listed on the left side.

Over at the bottom of the box we see a few words about HIS written in 12 languages.

Several tables including the features, specifications and system requirements of the unit are present at the rear of the box.

The contents of the bundle are placed on and beneath a piece of cardboard.

Inside the box you will find the Multi-View & Sound adapter, driver CD, quick installation guide and a USB 3.0 cable.

THE MULTI-VIEW & SOUND

The unit itself features a nice glossy white finish which as you can see makes it really hard to shoot with an white background (just like its predecessor).

A small HIS logo is carved on the top right corner.

The USB 3.0 port is present on the left side of the device.

The HDMI port which is placed at the opposite side is also capable of streaming protected content (DVD, Blu-Ray).

The device sits ontop of 4 tiny round rubber feet.

SOFTWARE

To use the Multi-View & Sound adapter you need to install either the included DisplayLink drivers or download the latest ones from the DisplayLink website (recommended). DisplayLink technology automatically detects compresses and streams everything you see on the monitor to the Multi-View & Sound device via USB 3.0 at resolutions up to 2048x1152. Of course the downside is that the adapter relies a lot onto CPU power (and available system memory).

For this review we used the latest 6.2.37116 drivers by DisplayLink which also updated the adapter itself.

Once the driver installation is over the display properties screen pops up. Since i used the adapter with my SONY TV the maximum supported resolution was 1920x1080.

The software also auto selects the HDMI audio device so you don't need to change anything.

Most settings such as resolution, rotation, display modes and software updates can be accessed from the DisplayLink icon placed at the task bar.

CONCLUSION

   Personally i was always in favor of owning a single large screen than several small ones and that will not change anytime soon since sitting (both for business and pleasure of course, when i get the time) in front of 30" screens is more than just enough for me, at least for now. Regardless of my personal preference however i was really impressed with the Multi-View & Sound adapter by HIS since it actually managed not only to stream heavy bitrate FullHD (1080p) media from both my primary X79 system and my Toshiba Qosmio notebook but it also held its ground when playing games. Of course it takes a few seconds for the DisplayLink software to keep up with the streaming content (and it does require a descent amount of RAM to do that) but once that's out of the way things are actually great. Granted i only had one of these devices here to test so i can't comment on how 6 of those will work when streaming heavy content (FullHD/Games) simultaneously but a strong system shouldn't experience any issues. Perhaps the single issue i can think regarding the Multi-View & Sound adapter is the very short USB 3.0 cable which is something i hope HIS resolves in the future.

   The HIS Multi-View & Sound adapter currently retails for USD89.99 (69.99 after mail-in rebate card) inside the USA (Newegg) and at 75Euros inside the EU a price tag which is not bad for a USB 3.0 external video adapter (although i guess it could be better). The only real question is if you really need something as good as the Multi-View & Sound adapter or if your needs can be covered with the less powerful Multi-View II adapter released over a year ago. Personal preference aside however the ability to stream FullHD content and play games via USB 3.0 is quite impressive and because of that the Multi-View & Sound adapter by HIS has earned our Golden award.

PROS

- Size
- Quality
- USB 3.0
- Streaming Speeds (FullHD/Games)
- Supported Resolution (2048x1152)
- HDMI (Video & Sound)
- Can Connect Up To 6 Screens (With 6 Adapters) 

CONS

- Price (For Some)
- Short USB 3.0 Cable