Using the "Monitor Port" with external display? (Images Attached)

I have a Samsung Chronos / Series 7 laptop (NP700Z5A-S0AUS) and wondering if I can connect it to a large external display I have through the 15-pin monitor port on the left side (to the left of the headphone jack). I can't quite figure out what kind of port this is... the manual calls it a "Monitor Port (15pin D-SUB)" port but that's not making sense to me. Can't tell if this is proprietary, or Micro-HDMI or something else.

The display I'd like to use is a Dell 3007WFP 30" LCD, which uses DVI-D input (Dual Link) and runs at 2560x1600. From what I can tell about the display, this monitor needs to run at its native resolution or exactly half (1280x800), it does not have an onboard controller for scaling the output. If you don't give it the native or half resolution, it just stays off.

I have connected this display to my HDMI port using an HDMI-to-DVI-D cable. But it appears that my laptop's HDMI output doesnt support up to 2560x1600. Windows recognizes the display but says it only goes up to 1280x800. Going into the advanced Intel graphics properties, it also only let me go up to 1280x800, but if I go into the advanced Intel settings and try to enter 2560x1600 manually, it says "the custom resolution exceeds the maximum bandwidth capacity". Which leads me to think that the HDMI port won't work, so I'm looking now at the smaller monitor port.

Can anyone suggest an adapter that would connect these two devices?

 

That port is indeed a proprietary Mini-VGA port and requires an overpriced Samsung adapter. See this post for correct model number and links to other posts and threads about this.

It's an analog port which I have used up to 1920x1200@60Hz (NP700Z3A similar to yours). I very much doubt it can do 2560x1600, and even if it did, and even if you could somehow turn it into a digital DVI-D signal, it would make for a poor picture.

Your best bet is trying your HDMI port with a custom resolution of 2560x1600@30Hz, which is the same pixel clock as 1280x800@60Hz. Some members have succeeded in doing that -- but with newer Samsung models than yours. You may need an HDMI-to-DVI-D adapter or splitter cable -- and as I recall, they are hard to find.

Edit: Don't be fooled by DVI-D-to-HDMI adapters, which are easy to find because Mac users would buy them to connect to HDMI monitors. You need the reverse.

Edit2: I am not thinking straight today: Of course 2560x1600@30 is not the same pixel clock as 1280x800@60. Still, I think there is a good chance your monitor can sync to 2560x1600@30. You can try CVT-RB as your Timing Standard (it doesn't waste bandwidth on blanking, which is only needed for CRT tubes).

 

Thanks Dannemand, will try the lower clock speed at the high resolution. I had tried it at 60Hz, didnt think to try a lower speed. Hopefully if it works, the picture quality won't be compromised at the lower refresh rate. I need it to be sharp for my work, which is why I dont want to use it at 1280x800.

Is there a way to find for sure about the capabilities of the mini-VGA port? you suspect it won't go as high as necessary, but how can you tell without buying the adapter?

Slightly OT... if I can't get this to work with my laptop, is it possible to connect this to any of the common TV devices on the market, like a Roku? or an HDMI based device like Chromecast? Can those put out 2560x1600? Want to find a use for this display as its in great shape and huge. I had originally gotten it along with a used Mac Pro with a high quality display adapter, but that adapter died and I'm down to laptops only now.

 

I can almost guarantee that you won't be able to use the Mini-VGA at that resolution. It is designed for analog CRT monitors, and would require a very fast pixel clock to drive 2560x1600@60Hz (around 270MHz). Then comes the challenge of turning an analog VGA signal into DVI-D.

You basically need a computer with either DisplayPort (very few Samsung models had that and none in recent years) or newer HDMI ports. It's not the HDMI specification that is the limitation, but rather the graphics card and the computer's HDMI implementation. But it is possible that you can make it work at a lower refresh rate, which will still look good.

The posts here and here have more info and links to several other posts on the subject. As you can imagine, this comes up from time to time

 

Thanks for all the help I went through all the possible combinations I could think of using the HDMI-to-DVI-D connection, and none of them worked. The display always remained at 1280x800 and wouldnt go up to 2560x1600. The only change was that at the lower clock speed settings, at least the Intel configuration tool didnt tell me that I was exceeding bandwidth. Guess I will have a display to sell now

 

It sounds like a nice display. I'd keep it for the next laptop, it'll be good for many years. OTOH, the NP700Z5A is 4 years old.