Using a second PC as a second display

Luna not

 

Last year I kicked in $99 towards Luna when it launched. It is a dongle that let a Windows or MacOS computer use an iPad tablet as a second display. It works, but is $99 and does not support Android or Windows tablets as second displays, even a year later. This would be handy for me on road trips, as I usually take a Windows laptop and an Android tablet with me, anyhow.

So I looked around at other possible linkages. I normally ignore "Watch My Youtube Video!" solutions, but thought I'd give one a try, as it promised "How to use a Windows laptop or tablet as a second screen." This would be ideal, I thought, as I have a Windows laptop and a Windows tablet.

Thank you to Ian Dixon and his "How to use a Windows laptop or tablet as a 2nd screen" video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VTf_aXM_Vl8.

Well, as it turns out, the video delivered. It turns out that Windows 10 and 11 can connect to other devices running Windows 10 or 11 through Win+K -- connect to wireless display. And it's free!

 

Installing Wireless Display

The only catch is that the Wireless Display app might not be installed on your computer, but fortunately that's an easy fix:

1. Open Settings
2. Search for "Add an optional feature"
3. In Add a Feature, search for "Wireless Display"
4. Install it.
5. Reboot your computer.
6. Repeat for the other Windows computer.

In my case, I am using my Dell laptop as the primary machine, and the HP X2 tablet as the secondary display.

 

Connecting One Computer to Another

To connect one to the other, follow these steps:

1. The secondary computer, start Wireless Display
2. On the primary computer, press Win+K, and then wait for Windows to locate the second computer.
3. Click on the secondary computer's name when it appears.
4. Turn on the option Allow mouse, keyboard, touch, and pen input from this device.
5. At this point, the display is duplicated on the secondary screen. To extend the display, press Win+P and choose Extend.

 

The two computers communicate over WiFi, and so I find the repeat speed when typing is slow and slight jitteriness when scrolling the secondary screen; what would be cooler if this could be done with a USB-C cable for faster speed.