27 inch iMac as an external display for Lenovo ThinkPad X200

Question

27 inch iMac as an external display for Lenovo ThinkPad X200

Hi,

Has anyone tried using a Lenovo ThinkPad X200 laptop (with an X200 Ultrabase docking station) with the 27" iMac as an external display?

In theory this should work as the docking station has a DisplayPort monitor port which according to the specs on Lenovo's site supports up to 2560 x 1600 output. I guess I would just need a DisplayPort to Mini-DisplayPort lead to do this.

Has anyone tried this and have they had any success? Could you run the ThinkPad at the full resolution the iMac supports?

Cheers

iMac 21.5" 3.06Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo, 4GB RAM, Mac OS X (10.6.4), iPad 3G, iPhone 4

Posted on Jul 27, 2010 11:38 PM

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Answer 1

Macaby

Level 3

923 points

Jul 28, 2010 12:16 AM in response to Tom Hutchinson

Is the display port a 2-way port? I assumed it was only "out". I have a similar port on my MBP and as far as I know, it's "out" only.

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Answer 2

Jul 28, 2010 12:34 AM in response to Macaby

Apple's website says this:

Mini DisplayPort output with support for DVI, VGA, and dual-link DVI (adapters sold separately); 27-inch models also support input from external DisplayPort sources (adapters sold separately)

So it definitely sounds like this should work, but I'd prefer to know it definitely does with my particular (work) laptop before I buy a new iMac!

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Answer 3

Dah•veed

Level 9

66,505 points

Jul 28, 2010 12:48 AM in response to Tom Hutchinson

If the laptop's GPU is driving the video coming from the DisplayPort, then it should drive the iMac's full resolution of 2560 x 1440.

Take your laptop to an Apple Store and see if the staff can help you test the idea.

Dah•veed

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Answer 4

Jul 28, 2010 3:42 AM in response to Dah•veed

Thats what I think as well, it should work. Someone must have tried it already though to know for definite!

I've ordered a DisplayPort to Mini DisplayPort lead to try it out, but I'd like to avoid a long drive to the Apple Store if at all possible.

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Answer 5

Will-Hi

Level 5

4,307 points

Jul 28, 2010 5:05 AM in response to Macaby

The 27" iMac also allows DisplayPort input.

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Answer 6

Jul 28, 2010 6:36 AM in response to Will-Hi

That's exactly what I'm after - I've currently got a 21.5" iMac which doesn't accept DisplayPort/mini DisplayPort input and I'm thinking of replacing it with a 27" iMac to allow me to plug my laptop in.

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Answer 7

Aug 11, 2010 11:39 AM in response to Tom Hutchinson

To answer my own question in case anyone else was wondering - it works! I got a cheap Mini DisplayPort to DisplayPort lead from eBay and it worked with no problems.

Tom

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Answer 8

mrsushi

Level 1

4 points

Sep 3, 2010 8:30 AM in response to Tom Hutchinson

Did it work as an input with the 21.5" iMac? What cable did you use? What was the video source?
Thanks

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Answer 9

Will-Hi

Level 5

4,307 points

Sep 13, 2010 3:40 AM in response to mrsushi

The 21.5" iMacs do not support DisplayPort input, only output.

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Answer 10

Oct 22, 2010 3:07 AM in response to Tom Hutchinson

Hi Tom,

Any chance you could give some more information about the cable and settings you're using to get this working?

I have exactly the same hardware that you described. A work Lenovo X200 with Ultrabase X200 docking station, a new iMac 27" and I'm using a displayport-mini displayport cable from here:
http://www.novatech.co.uk/novatech/prods/cables/audio/visualcables/MDP2DPMM6.htm l

The problem is, when I hit cmd+F2 to switch to target display mode, the iMac screen turns black for about 5 seconds and the laptop display flickers a couple of times as if trying to change display settings, but then the iMac screen returns to OSX.

At this point I'm not sure if it's a problem with the cable, or with the display settings on the laptop.

If you could give me any pointers I'd be grateful.

Thanks,

Rob

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Answer 11

cmcbugg

Level 1

9 points

Nov 14, 2010 1:55 AM in response to bobcat1979

Yep, same problem here. When connecting my ultrabase x200 and hitting cmd+F2, the iMac screen goes black for a few seconds, and in Windows Devices a new plugnplay monitor briefly appears, but then the iMac display returns to OSX and plugnplay monitor disappears from the x200. I've read the iMac has to receive a displayport signal with a resolution of 2560x1440. The x200 supports up to 2560x1600, but does it actually support the iMac's resolution of 2560x1440?

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Answer 12

cmcbugg

Level 1

9 points

Nov 14, 2010 4:40 AM in response to cmcbugg

I finally got it to work, but only after selecting the ultrabase display as the extended desktop, and then choosing 2560x1440. Can't seem to get it to come up as the primary display - but at least it does seem to work.

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Answer 13

Jan 7, 2011 3:30 AM in response to cmcbugg

Thanks for that, mate. Much appreciated!

I've now got it working as extended desktop. If I manage to get it working as primary I'll post the steps back here, although I suspect it'd need an update of the display drivers to be able to output the required resolution, and as it's a company laptop and I don't have admin access, it might be a no go.

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