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Review on ๐Ÿ–ฅ๏ธ Shop Vertiv Avocent SV340H: 4-Port Dual-Head HDMI 4K Ultra HD KVM Switch by Javarie Brumfield

Revainrating 3 out of 5

Good 4K @ 60Hz DisplayPort KVM but could be better

Good news first: Avocent SV340D switches my Dell UP2718Q and old 1920 x 1200 display to full resolution. For Dell, that's 3840 x 2160 @ 60Hz with HDR - awesome! It also switches stereo and USB3. It uses standard cables instead of expensive proprietary cables, although the switch itself isn't cheap. I bought it to replace IOGEAR DisplayPort 4-Port KVMP because I wanted to swap two monitors. I have mixed feelings about the replacement - the IOGear seems more modern and works better for me in some ways, but they don't offer a dual head option. There are a few things you should probably know before you buy: - The switch has standard USB keyboard and mouse connections and a _completely separate_ USB3 switching system. I really don't understand. If you want to use both keyboard screen switching and USB3, you need to connect _two_ sets of USB cables to your computers: a standard USB cable and a USB3 cable. Why not put everything on USB3? This is backwards compatibility. The standard USB keyboard and mouse ports do not have any special functions that your mouse or keyboard might have - they are reported as generic devices. This means that the latter won't work if you're using (let's say) a gaming mouse with extra buttons. The IOGear switch I used includes a "pass-through" mode designed to fix this situation, but I ended up ignoring Avocent's standard USB ports entirely. I connected a USB3 hub to one of the switch's USB3 ports and connected a keyboard and mouse to it. The documentation is _extremely_ sparse. Okay this is KVM so no space shuttle manual needed but the manufacturer could do more than 6 pages. The documentation gives the impression that the switch has undescribed features. For example, it implies that you can switch screens with mouse gestures, but doesn't explain the gestures. It describes the complex-sounding process of copying and pasting/transferring files between computers, but requires the installation of an agent and driver.

Pros
  • Stylish and modern design
Cons
  • Long delivery time