Portable Monitors for Laptops
If you do the bulk of your work on a computer, you likely understand the importance of having a second monitor. Switching between multiple windows on a single screen destroys efficiency. So, working on the road with a laptop can be a challenge. To solve this issue while working overseas, we started looking for portable monitors for laptops. After a lot of research and testing, we decided that Cocopar’s 15.6-inch USB-C portable monitor is the best choice.
Why Trust Our Portable Laptop Monitor Recommendation?
We both work in computer-heavy fields. Jenna’s in digital marketing, and Chipp, well, he dabbles in a variety of things - real estate asset management, accounting, and writing. Can we do this work on a single laptop screen? Sure, but it’s certainly not practical.
Spending a significant amount of time traveling abroad and working remotely, we realized that we’d have to find a solution. We needed second screens, but having a bulky desktop monitor on the road definitely wasn’t an option.
Enter portable laptop monitors! In retrospect, buying one of these extra screens was a natural solution, something obvious to seasoned travelers. We had to learn the hard way. We left on our first year overseas with just our laptops and quickly realized our normal work took about twice as long on a single screen. In other words, experience forced us to research and find the best portable monitors. We didn’t buy this Cocopar on a whim. We did because, doing the “digital nomad” thing, having a second screen made our work lives exponentially more efficient!
Why We Love the Cocopar 15.6-inch USB-C Portable Monitor
Best Features
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Ease of use: While we may fall under the “digital nomad” umbrella, neither of us are tech wizards. Fortunately, this extra screen requires next to no computer know-how. Just flip open the protective cover, connect the monitor to your laptop with a single cable, and the second screen automatically registers.
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Travel compatibility and durability: This Cocopar monitor combines its monitor stand and protector in a single, rugged flap. When you’re using the screen, you just need to flip the protector to the back, where it doubles as a stand. When you need to move, the stand then flips back over and protects the screen, collapsing into a slender item that’s easy to slide into a backpack or laptop pouch.
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Laptop/system interoperability: Working overseas, Chipp used a Macbook, and Jenna used an ASUS. Unfortunately, many tech products support Mac and nothing else, or vice versa. This portable monitor solves that inefficiency, offering the ability to connect to Macs, PC laptops, and gaming systems. Not being gamers ourselves, we can’t vouch for this last feature, but we know it’s an option!
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Image quality: We’re also not professional photographers or graphic designers, so we can’t guarantee this portable monitor’s image quality would work for those fields. But, for the work we needed to do, the Cocopar 1920x1080 resolution was perfect - never got that too-blurry-screen headache common with low-quality screens.
Manufacturer’s Specs
Here’s a full list of the 15.6-inch portable monitor features published by Cocopar:
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Monitor: 1080P HDR, 15.6-inch monitor with 1920x1080 super clear IPS A-grade screen. 1080p resolution, 72% sRGB, 178° FULL viewing angle, FreeSync, HDR, low blue light features. Born to deliver you stunning visuals with awesome color reproduction.
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Double Type-C Port: Cocopar monitor provides 2 full feature Type-C ports. Only one USB Type-C cable is required to connect for power supply & display signal transmission. NOTE: Your device should support Thunderbolt 3.0 or USB 3.1 Type C DP ALT-MODE.
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Wide Connection and Portrait Mode: Cocopar monitor is compatible with laptops, PCs, PS4/5, XBOX, Nintendo Switch, Raspberry Pi with USB Type C and mini HDMI port. Besides traditional duplicate/extend/second screen mode, Portrait Mode redefines the usage of monitors for both business and entertainment.
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Ultra Slim, Light Weight & Portable: Measuring only 4mm (0.2 inch) at the slimmest point and 1.59 pounds weight. Smart Stand Case can be adjusted to different standing angles and protect the entire monitor. Perfect choice for its portability and ease of use.
Story from the Road
Filing taxes is a challenge in the best of times. Despite being a CPA, Chipp dreads that time of year. And, trying to reference multiple documents while completing tax forms on a single screen makes the whole process an absolute nightmare.
In our first year overseas, we filed our taxes while traveling along South Africa’s Garden Route - stunningly beautiful spot, but working on a single screen didn’t make things easy… What should’ve been a half-day process dragged into a second day, with Chipp needing to continuously flip through numerous spreadsheets, IRS forms, and other tax-related programs. Nightmare.
This proved to be one of the many work-related tasks that put us over the top, convincing us to go out and buy portable monitors for our laptops. Great decision, and tax time was far easier the next year! Well, the filing part was easier; the paying part is never easy!
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