It has been a good four years since we've heard big things from the likes of Matrox. Headquartered in Dorval, Quebec, the company has been relatively quiet since the much-anticipated, but ultimately lackluster "Parhelia 512", which was announced in May of 2002. Today, they are breaking that silence with the release of the Matrox TripleHead2Go.
As a company, Matrox is well known for coming up with new and intriguing ways to use computer graphics technology. They pioneered the use of multiple monitors with a single video card ("MultiHead"), and now that feature is standard on virtually every video card. They also carved a name for themselves in the 2D quality/2D performance segment with their Millennium line of video cards, leading to the Matrox name becoming a common one amongst graphics professionals.
Even though the Parhelia was not the gaming card Matrox wanted it to be, it paved the way for the development of today's TripleHead2Go. One major feature that the Parhelia had was that of "Triple Head Gaming". The idea was that you could spread your game out over three displays, and enjoy a wider field of view, or additional display angles (i.e. Microsoft Flight Simulator). The concept of using more than one monitor for productivity had, of course, been seen before from both Matrox and competitors alike, but now Matrox has taken this a step further and combined the Parhelia's TripleHead capabilities with their previous DualHead2Go product to create an external display-connector break-out box which allows you to connect three displays to a single monitor output.
"Surround Gaming" is the new name of the game, but this new product promises to be an excellent solution for both the power user and gamer alike. Programming, web design, video editing, photo editing ... it has all been made possible on triple displays for the masses with a single video card. Laptop users are not left out in the cold either -- any laptop with a VGA video output can also add another three displays in addition to its own built-in display.
Matrox has created what looks like an incredible product, giving gamers a new form of immersion and allowing design/audio professionals a greater use of real estate. With our in-depth analysis, we will attempt to provide a real-world look at the benefits of the TripleHead2Go, as well as investigate any visual and performance impacts that going to triple displays may exhibit. We hope that this will give you a good understanding of a new product which could prove to be a revolutionary move on Matrox's part.
