Reviews for Mini DisplayPort to Dual-Link DVI Adapter

I'm a Mac fanboy and I promote Apple and it's quality products wherever I go and also write software for the Mac. Unfortunately I have to write a bad review for this one.

My setup is Macbook 5,1 Unibody with a 30" Dell 3008WFP Monitor.
mini-DVI to DualLink DVI cable with firmware 1.02.

At first I thought it was my screen that was defective so I got an exchange from dell, since then I've exchanged this cable for the third time and still the quality is not what I am used to from Apple.

The new cable works fine at maximum resolution for a couple of days but then I start seeing pixelation ( like snow on a old TV set without cable) in the bottom half of the screen soon followed by the whole screen becoming green and flashing back to normal colours at a rapid 60Hz. My guess is that this adaptor cable looses sync after a while.

If I disconnect the screen itself from the adaptor and reconnect it, nothing changes the adaptor still flickers the screen image, but if I disconnect the adaptor from the mac book and reconnect it, the adaptor is good to go for a couple of hours before it starts behaving badly again.

I've tested my screen on another computer and also tested the screen with a normal mini-DVI to DVI Cable, both situations worked flawlessly.

Basically said, this adaptor is not stable at all.

Running a 2009 MacBook Pro connected to a Dell UltraSharp 3007WFP-HC 30-inch WideScreen Flat Panel Monitor. The monitor works perfectly when I use it with my older MacBook pros and older connectors.

Using the 2009 MBP with Mini DisplayPort to Dual-Link DVI Adapter, my external monitor does the following:

* Flashes garbled white horizontal lines randomly.
* When the computer wakes up after a long sleep, the external display shows 'double vision' with some vibration.
* While the computer is awake the external display sometimes just goes black (while still powered up).
* When the image being displayed is full black, there are random flickering white pixels distributed over the black.

For each of the above issues, my remedy is to unplug the DVI Adabpter cable from the MacBook Pro and then plug it in again. It resets the external display to 'normal'.

I've had Apple send me two new cables and the problem persists.

I purchased one of these adapters a few months ago and had nothing but problems with it. Recent reviews on this forum had improved, so I called Apple and asked it the adapter had been upgraded. After some discussion it became clear that the firmware had, in fact, been upgraded. The current version of the firmware is 1.02 and it works great!

Since the firmware couldn't be upgraded electronically by e-mail, Apple replaced my adapter at no cost. The new adapter has solved all of the previous problems.

Connected the adapter to my 30 '' cinema display - every few minutes flickering, sometimes the whole screen goes snowy and distorted and I have to reconnect.

Thanks Apple for making such a great Pro-product!!

Cmon Apple...you have got to provide support for 3rd party 30" displays, not just your own. Product is great idea if it worked. No success with my Gateway XHD3000 and MBP(2.8ghz)

As is this product is broken. For me when used with a Dell 30 I get random flickering from time to time and at least once a day the famous "Fuzz of Death". The only solution at that point is to disconnect the mini-dvi and reconnect. I was not happy to wait 2 months for this box, and I am not happy that it does not work. Stay away until Apple fixes it.

I am very disappointed. $99 and two months of waiting later, I got a product that doesn't work to spec. My Samsung 30" display (which conforms to ALL the specifications Apple laid out on its product literature for the MacBook) goes out of sync every few minutes. Unplugging it and plugging it back in gives me a few more minutes. This is not a useful product for me. Considering that I purchased the MacBook for the sole reason that it featured Dual Link DVI output, I am feeling swindled.

Works just fine with my MacBook Pro much of the time, but has periods when it flakes out: sometimes after waking up from sleep I get a bunch of static on my display (NEC PA271W). Power cycling the monitor clears things up, but it is annoying. Fortunately my monitor also has a DisplayPort input so I've switched to using a mini to regular DisplayPort adapter (also much smaller, cheaper, and doesn't need a USB port). If you've got no other option besides dual-link DVI then this adapter works OK, but I'd go with other options first if you can.

I've had this for a while and had the same trouble many people mention. It doesn't work at all without the USB connector. Moreover, it really wants a high power USB port such as found on macbooks. I think this is why so many people have varying success. If you plug it into a hub, you'll get anywhere from nothing to sparkles. The macbook USBs have higher power (as needed by iOS devices). If you use the AC USB adapter that comes with an iOS device, I think you'll have far better results.