Samsung DeX Pad

What would it take to become yous to use DeX, Samsung's arrangement for turning your Milky way viii, Note viii, or Galaxy S9 phone into a desktop PC? Samsung's guess for 2022 is to take the keyboard and mouse out of the equation, making DeX a solution for road warriors who desire to practise presentations when they're out and about. We got a few minutes with the DeX Pad at a Samsung Galaxy S9 preview event before the production'due south launch at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.

Samsung DeX desktop

DeX for Days

DeX works; its problem has always been that information technology'southward awkward. If y'all pop a Galaxy S8, Note 8, or S9 phone into a DeX dock, it tin blossom into a full-screen desktop experience, using an HDMI monitor, USB mouse, and USB keyboard. You tin can open your Android apps in multiple, resizable windows; apps that don't have the appropriate Android Nougat lawmaking to resize, appear in fixed portrait-style windows.

We reviewed the original DeX dock last year and didn't accept complaints with its functionality; rather, we just couldn't figure out why anyone would want to use it. Not many people are going to bring a USB mouse and keyboard in their bag on the road, and Android apps lack some of the functionality you'd find in their Windows versions, then we recommended just conveying an inexpensive laptop instead.

Samsung bit dorsum past explaining that DeX is an enterprise production, intended for a sort of hot-desk, sparse-customer workplace where people arrive, popular their phones into docks, and become to work. That's an interesting idea, but it requires buy-in from IT departments. It isn't a cracking thought for private road warriors, much less consumers.

DeXing Up Your Dossiers

The DeX Pad changes that equation past letting the Galaxy telephone lie flat and function as a touchpad or keyboard. That means you don't need to carry input devices with you. You won't want to write memos on the touch keyboard—the ergonomics would merely be completely ridiculous—but information technology'due south perfect for playing back content. Initially, only the touchpad office works; the virtual keyboard will come soon in a software update, Samsung says.

The dock has two USB-A ports in case y'all still want to adhere peripherals, a USB-C port for ability, and an HDMI out. DeX also now puts out full 2K, 2,560-by-one,440 video over its HDMI port, and non just 1080p. That gets yous more screen real estate. The original DeX dock's Ethernet port is gone (although that dock volition remain on sale).

Yes, you lot could just utilize an inexpensive USB-C-to-HDMI adapter, or mirror your telephone'south screen wirelessly. Only DeX'due south option of having big, resizable windows in a desktop attribute ratio is considerably more elegant. It'south as well more expensive, of course.

The result is a dock that'south ideal for presentations or for watching movies in hotel rooms, provided you take an HDMI input available. You can snap it in on a table, plug in the HDMI port, and brandish your phone'southward content on whatsoever big screen or projector that takes HDMI. If the DeX pad costs the same $100 that the original DeX does, it could be a useful tool for salespeople and others who want to play back videos, PowerPoints, or other material on the road. Bank check back soon for pricing and availability.