How to Use Laptop as Monitor? Step-by-Step Guide for Beginners

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Have you been thinking of a way to extend the display of your desktop? Or use the laptop as a second or third monitor for the PC? Well, you’ve come to the right place. Extending your screen can even help your productivity and make things much more convenient for you.

You’d need a couple of hardware- HDMI cable and a port. But, these are not enough as you’d need to change some of the settings as well. Need to know more? Let’s check out how to use laptop as monitor!

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How to Use Laptop as Monitor: Step by Step Guide:

How to use laptop as monitor? It’s a piece of cake. Let’s go to a step-by-step guide on how this easy task is done conventionally.

Preparing the Laptop:

Start the laptop and open the ‘Settings’ app on your laptop. Now, select the ‘System’ options of the setting. Then, select ‘Projecting to This PC’ of the setting. After this, there are just a few steps to do.

Now, you’d see few options. Change the ‘Always off’ to ‘Always Everywhere’ option. You can also change to ‘Available Everywhere on Secured Network’s
After you have selected the network option, you will be asked to choose between ‘First time only’ or ‘Every time a connection requested’. Depending on your convenience, choose any one of them.
You’d have to create a PIN number to protect data to your laptop. While this step is not exactly mandatory, but it is highly recommended to protect the laptop from unwanted problems.
Now, the PC can be seen for projection when you plug it on. After selecting all of these options, you’d need to make a note of the settings window to make sure the name of the PC is visible there.

Connecting Main Laptop

First, go to the laptop and press the Windows key and P button together.
You would come across a prompt asking how you would want the screen to be displayed.
Now, choose the option “Extend” if you want the laptop work as a second monitor. This will allow you more screen and increase your productivity.
You would be able to see the device name as one of the options in the connection system.
You can also start using multiple screens after approving the action.

Issues with Conventional Way

The above-mentioned way is also called Miracast. However, many people are unable to use Miracast in their laptops. The reason behind the incompatibility is due to the graphics card problems. For using this procedure, you must have to use the Intel HD graphics card installed

For laptops having any other type of graphic cards installed, the Miracast would not work properly. Other than that, the desktop PC will need to use a wireless connection to connect to the laptop too.

How to Use Laptop as a Mouse in Windows 10?

For those of you running the Windows 10, you’d first need to choose the appropriate display cable. Usually, a HDMI cable or a docking station should be used as a mean. After that, open the ‘Settings’ and then select ‘Display Settings’. You can switch between the different modes very quickly.

After the laptop is connected successfully, you would see two or more numbered screens under the ‘Select and rearrange displays’ option.

If this option doesn’t work, you can click on the ‘Detect’ option and select another display. You can use the ‘Identify’ option to detect the screens. Click on the ‘Apply’ button to confirm!

Using Other Tools

You can also use other third-party tools to connect monitors or laptops with this one. If you laptop cannot be connected with the default options, you can use a software called ‘Space Desk’.

The work is simple. You would have to download Space Desk Drive Program to do that, first you must visit Space Desk website and download the software. Download the Space Desk Driver software and start the installation procedure.

You have two files sizes to choose from, one is 32 bit and another 64 bit. You’d then be prompted to restart the computer. After restarting, switch up to your laptop that you want to connect.

Go to the Space Desk website again but this time you’d need to download the viewer software. Then, install the program and open it. Go to ‘Files’ tab and connect to the nearby or desired laptop! And done!

Using Laptop to Control Your Desktop PC

Many people also ask how to control the other devices from laptop. It’s one thing to use a laptop as a mere monitor, but in this way you would be able to control other computers if given access!

To do this, people use a software called TeamViewer. Let’s look into the step by step guide on how to use the laptop to control your desktop PC.

First, go to the website for TeamViewer and download the TeamViewer on laptop and desktop.
After you have downloaded them, install the software at both computers.
Now copy your TeamViewer ID and paste it on the desktop at the Partner ID option. Now, click the connect option.
You will be asked for your desktop password. Type it in and enter. Log on to the account.
Finally, done! Now you would be able to control the desktop from laptop.

Final Verdicts:

Using a laptop as a second monitor is such a handy tool! Oftentimes, one screen is not enough to work properly.

Whether you are doing artwork or doing a calculation on excel, or playing video games – having a second monitor makes things much more convenient and easy.