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Over the years, I’ve tested several dual-screen portable monitors that aim to vastly increase the amount of real estate you have to work with while mobile. Most of these monitors have a central panel that sits behind your laptop’s built-in display and two displays that jut out from either side (like a pair of ears).
The Asus ZenScreen Duo OLED (MQ149CD) differs in that the two OLED panels are stacked on top of each other (in landscape mode) or lined up side-by-side (in portrait mode).
Asus offers all this flexibility in a thin, lightweight form factor, complete with USB-C ( DisplayPort ) and HDMI connectivity options, albeit with a hefty street price of around $500. Despite the price tag, the MQ149CD represents one of the best portable monitors available today.
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Design of the Asus ZenScreen Duo OLED (MQ149CD)
The 2.36-pound MQ149CD offers a somewhat unorthodox (for a portable monitor) design. There are two 14-inch 1200p OLED panels (16:10 aspect ratio) joined together via two 360-degree hinges in a book-style configuration. When folded closed, the MQ149CD has the same footprint as any other 14-inch portable monitor, albeit twice as thick. However, when you open it, you also get twice the screen real estate (with roughly a 20-inch diagonal measured from corner to corner).
Build quality is good all around, with aluminum used for the display panel housings and hinges. Plastic is used for the black bezels around each panel. There are also tiny rubber feet strategically placed around the perimeter of the displays to provide some grip when using the MQ149CD in portrait or landscape orientation.
Image 1 of 2 (Image credit: Tom's Hardware) (Image credit: Tom's Hardware)
You can stand the two displays vertically (with each in portrait mode) using the open book footprint to keep the unit upright. You can also use the displays in landscape mode, where one display sits on top of the other. The bottom display features a kickstand that keeps the entire apparatus upright. The aluminum kickstand covers nearly the width of the display and provides a stable base when using both panels in landscape mode. The multi-position stand, along with the display hinges, allows for a wide variety of viewing angles.
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