I received the Mini DisplayPort Dual-Link DVI adapter yesterday. It works great on my 30-inch Dell monitor. From my point of view, the reports on distortion are just hype. The adapter is still a pile of junk compared to having a true DVI port, but at least it works and we can get on with our 30-inch lives.
It had been since October 15th that I’d been trying to get my hands on one. It certainly hasn’t been worth the wait. The adapter is big, bulky, and feels light and frail. Pretty un-Applesque.
But it does what it’s supposed to. The display is clear and crisp. And it does something else. It has a pass-through USB port that isn’t in any of the marketing images (or maybe I couldn’t see the tiny USB port on the hideously big adapter?).
Instead of two cables dragged across the desk (1 DVI and 1 USB – you other MBPro users know what I mean), the Dell’s built-in card-reader-USB-hub and the DVI are plugged in to the adapter just under the monitor, and then the adapter’s long chord runs across the desk. It relieved a little bit of clutter and made for a cleaner, easier, experience when attaching and detaching.
For those of you having problems, check out displayblog’s post, which includes Apple’s recommendation on how to fix the distortion.