Connecting a pen display to a computer
Video
Inputs & outputs
Remember that essentially a pen display is a plastic box that contains two separate devices: (1) a pen tablet and (2) a display.
We need to account for 4 things to use a pen display.
Power to tablet
tablet component
very little power is needed
Data
tablet component
for example, pen position data is sent to the computer. Also the computer can send data to the tablet such as a firmware update
Power to display
display component
much more power needed than the tablet component
Display signal
display component
What is shown by the tablet
Display connector types
This document is going to talk about connectors a lot. So you need to know what they look like first. Read this guide on different display connector types before you continue.
Cabling options
Those four components are distributed over cabling differently, depending on the the cabling option involved.
Option A: one USB-C cable
Some pen displays can run on a single USB-C cable. This used to be uncommon. But Increasingly many pen displays support this option. More here: Connecting a pen display with one USB-C cable
Option B: 3 cables
One USB cable for pen tablet (power, data)
One power cable for the display power
One display cable to carry the display signal - This will almost always be an HDMI cable. Though some tablets support alternate connector types for the display signal
Option C: 2 cables
one cable provides power for the display component
one USB-C cable handles everything the other 4 components
The 2 cable setup is how I use my Wacom Cintiq Pro 27.
Option D: 3-in-one cable
This is a special kind of cable. One end will have a single USB-C connection. The other end it will have the different connections. Typically these will be: HDMI, USB-A, and some kind of power. More here: 3-in-1 cables
Connecting via HDMI
HDMI connectors are extensively used. So let's start by addressing HDMI which shows up in option B and option D.
In principle this is easy: Take the HDMI from the pen display and find an HDMI port and plug it in.
For the vast majority of you this will "just work".
But now let us explore all the complications
Which HDMI port on the computer should you use?
If your computer has multiple HDMI ports you need to pick one.
If it's a laptop - it shouldn't matter. Any HDMI port should work.
If it's a small form factor PC - then also it shouldn't matter. Any HDMI port should work.
If it's a PC that has a separate graphics card you might have an HDMI port in multiple very different locations
You could have HDMI ports on the graphics card (GPU)
You could have HDMI ports on the motherboard of the computer
As a general rule, always use the HDMI ports on the graphics card (GPU) . Only use the HDMI ports on the motherboard as a last resort.
more here: Motherboard HDMI ports vs GPU HDMI ports.
What if you don't have any HDMI ports?
If you need to make an HDMI connection but have no HDMI ports you can convert other ports to HDMI using an adapter. See Using HDMI adapters with pen displays
Dealing with NO SIGNAL
When you've connected your display you might see it show a message saying NO SIGNAL. Here is a troubleshooting guide to work through the NO SIGNAL problem.
What about connecting a pen display mobile devices?
Go here: Connecting a pen display to a mobile device
What about wireless connectivity?
No pen displays connect wirelessly. They all require at least one cable to connect to your computer.
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