I always have been sceptical about any screens that latch onto laptops. Most designs look incredibly bulky, and unbalanced – basically an accident waiting to happen. I don’t dispute the usefulness of the portable displays, I reviewed enough of them to have a good idea of how practical they can be. It was just hard for me to imagine working with these winglets attached to my laptop.
From Duo to Quad in seconds
I drive a 32″ 4K monitor from BenQ on a day-to-day basis. A large screen estate is made more useful thanks to PowerToys and its excellent screen management. It’s a productivity monster, that turns my display into a borderless set of four 1080p screens. An awesome idea, if you have a dedicated office space. This monstrosity is hard to hide, and even harder to move.
To be more portable, I decided to update my laptop as well. After 8 years of struggling with a 14″ machine with dual CPU cores, I splashed out and got myself an Asus Zephyrous Duo – a dual-display laptop that gives you a touch-enabled panel alongside its 165Hz, 15.6″ screen. It’s useful in a pinch but doesn’t really provide the same comfort of use and productivity as a traditional dual display setup.
OIIWAK isn’t a brand I ever heard of before, but I know the PR person behind it, so I agreed to test drive their solution: dual 14″ displays for laptops.
Secret office with OIIWAK dual displays
It’s something out of Matrix. Thanks to Oiiwak my already atypical laptop has been transformed into a quad display terminal capable of…
OIIWAK 14″ dual display solution is rather interesting. Two 1920×1200 ISP (16:10) panels wrapped inside an aluminium frame. These are 14″ and fit my 15.6″ laptop beautifully. The foldable, spring-loaded frame clings securely to any screen in the 13-16″ range. The fit feels solid and small tabs at the top prevent the external displays from sliding down.
As the crab-grab is strong, I found that I can sit the frame at any height, which further enhances the usefulness of the setup. Metal hinges are pre-tensioned, allowing monitors to retract all the way back, or remain at an angle. The panels feel stiff, don’t bow and the overall build quality feels very good. There are two hoops that aid the clamp/release process and I used them as cable management slots.
A fully retractable, flush stand keeps the frame in line with your laptop’s tilt. I expected the whole setup to wobble like crazy, but thanks to the OIIWAK’s frame and the stand, the multi-monitor set-up doesn’t wobble any more than my laptop without it.
Each panel comes with the following I/O: Mini HDMI, 2 x USB-C for power/video and a dedicated nipple and button for the OSD menu. Even at 50% brightness (400 nits max), I had no problems matching my main screen brightness, and the fact I wasn’t tempted to play with colour preferences, speaks for the panel calibration. These are not panels for colour grading, but if they match the quality of the display on my £2300 laptop – who am I to complain?
In use
They are plug-and-play. At least for anyone with 2 USB-C ports capable of the video output. If you use other input methods, be prepared to power up the display via USB-C ports. I had no issues, but the Amazon listings warn about compatibility issues with Chromebooks and Apple’s 2020 M1 and 2022 M2 processors.
There is nothing particularly special about these 60Hz ISP panels. They do the job well. Apart from the typical installation, you can deploy a single screen in a vertical orientation while using the frame as a makeshift stand. It’s probably not the intended use, but works surprisingly well.
I think I expected my head to play ping-pong between screens more, but when fitted at the angle these are surprisingly easy to switch to. It’s not the most ergonomic setup, but for short bursts of productivity on the go – it works surprisingly well.
As I review these near the release of the Starfield game, I can’t help but laugh about turning my motorised desk and a rather awesome bay window into a spaceship cockpit. Don’t tell me, the setup doesn’t look like the inside of a spaceship perched in some random garden. Okay, perhaps it’s just my imagination then!
It’s a great solution for anyone looking to transform your living space into an office in 3 min. I have a motorised Maidesite desk, and a comfy chair and that’s all I need to create a temporary office space in my living room. With multiple monitors attached – any productivity task is easily handled – at the expense of the constant procrastination associated with that extra screen estate.
Weak points
I should mention, that OIIWAK panels have no sound. It doesn’t bother me in the slightest, but your preference may vary. There are some key points to discuss. The most annoying design choice is the fact that once deployed, there is no easy way to move the computer around. I can fold the setup into a box-shaped art installation, but that’s an awkward way to move things around. It’s far safer to unclip and fold the frame, and then move things one at a time.
Speaking of OIIWAK in the folded state. Due to a peculiar hinge design, the whole set folds down to an incredibly thick package. It’s a little less portable than I would like, but the clever folio design keeps screens protected.
Lastly, I word about included cables. OIIWAK gives you all the cables you need (and don’t need) and none of them have any cable management traits. I appreciate the 90-degree bend on the USB-C port – but why not 180? These adapters are fortunately available on Amazon for cheap. Ideally, they would ship this thing with a single set of cables but tailored to your PC.
I wish the frame came with an integrated ribbon for both displays and ports inside the back of the shell. Instead, the cables hang down loosely and make the setup look more messy than it should.
Final thoughts
OIIWAK will boost your productivity, or empower mega procrastination – either way, you can turn the living room table into a multi-monitor office in a matter of seconds. Despite the flaws, it’s a great solution for anyone looking to transform their laptop into a Matrix command centre for a couple of hours. And if you take it with you to a coffee shop – you will get all the looks! Priced around $559, it’s not the cheapest upgrade, but considering how much I spent on my 32″ 4K display – it’s also not unreasonable. If you want to save some more money, I have a less expensive dual display set coming soon too. I know I won’t use them every day. But on occasion when I want to enjoy the sunny side of my flat and be all productive – I no longer have to hide in the northern lands of my office space. Questions? Leave it in this Reddit thread.
🆓📈💵 – See the transparency note for details.
