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Villagetronic ViDock4 Plus Product Review

from a ViDock4 Plus everyday user

Introduction

A big change happened at Villagetronic this Summer. They stopped using Harmonic Inversion as their North America representative and rolled out new products for the ViDock: the external video card expansion solution line. The new generations are the ViDock 3, ViDock 4 and ViDock 4 Plus. I have gotten a hold of a ViDock 4 plus. The following is my review:

 

ViDock Product Packaging

When my ViDock 4 Plus arrived, the first thing that caught my eye was how Villagetronic put everything into a relatively small shipping box. I guess Vollagetronic has realized the ViDock 4 chassis is strong enough to sustain the potential impacts during shipping. They have gotten rid of the fancy packaging box used in the ViDock 2 and placed only minimum plastic wrapping materials around the ViDock 4 Plus chassis when shipping the unit. All the accessories are securely laid inside the ViDock 4 Plus chassis. My unit arrived in  good condition. I think this is a smart move for Villagetronic to help reduce the manufacturing cost. It also indicates that Villagetronic won’t sell any options with the graphic card pre-installed, due to the fact that they have already used all the internal space of the chassis when shipping.

 

 

ViDock4 Plus Package Includes:

• The ViDock 4 chassis
• The PCIe to express card convertor PCB w two 6-pin power output cables
• A 150W AC power adapter with two barrel type outputs
• A 75W AC power adapter with a single barrel type output
• A three-prong power cord for the 150W AC power adapter
• A two-prong power cord for the 75W AC power adapter

 

 

The test setup

I’m using the HP Compaq 6710b business laptop (running Windows 7 professional 32-bits version). The laptop does not come with the express card interface. Therefore, I need to purchase a docking station equipped with an express card port to use with my ViDock 4 Plus. The graphic card I installed is the XFX ATI Radeon 5770. It is the previous generation video card but can still play most of the modern games in a relatively high performance setting. I’ll run the 3DMark06 to compare the benchmark score before and after installing ViDock 4 Plus. I’ll also upload a video at the end of this article showing my settings while running the Call of Duty: Black OPS.

 

 

The installation

If there is one thing I want Villagetronic to add into the package, it is an installation manual. Although the assembly process seems to be simple and straight forward, users might still encounter things that confuse them. For example:

 

• When do I need to install the video card driver - before or after connecting everything to the express card port?
• Is it required to connect both AC power adapters to the ViDock 4 plus, even if my graphic card consumes lower than 150W power?
• On my ViDock 4 plus, there are two 6-pin power connection cables. Which one do I need to use to provide better performance, if my video card only requires one power connection?

 

Unfortunately, I missed the installation note inside the box,

 

 

and my first try to assemble the ViDock 4 plus did not work out. It made all the above questions start cycling in my head. To make things worse, the XFX ATI Radeon 5770 graphic card driver installer that comes with the CD cannot be activated without having the card installed in the computer first. I was really in a panic mode at that time. Luckily, the technical support at Villagetronic US replied to my email instantly. After downloading and installing the latest driver from XFX, my ViDock 4 Plus finally started to work!

 

In the following I’ll list my installation process. You can read this just in case you encounter issues while setting up your ViDock product. The operation system used is Windows 7 (32-bit) professional edition.

• Install the graphic card onto the PCIe  to express card convertor. The clip at the far side of the PCIe connector should click automatically, if you install the card right.

 

• Stop and observe where the power connector is located (and how many power connectors are present) on the card. It will be an issue if the power connector is located at the top of the card. The clearance between the card and the exterior chassis is just not big enough to accommodate a regular 6-pin male power connector. You will need to contact Villagetronic to acquire some short profile power cable adapter. 

 

• Connect the 6-pin power cable to the power connector on the graphic card. My XFX ATI Radeon 5770 card has the power connector placed at the front so there is no issue for me.   

 

 

• Carefully route the express card cable and the power cables so that nothing is in the way when you slide in the whole thing. The good news is that Villagetronic has taken time to design something that will make your life much easier. The ty-wrap shown in the picture to hold the express cable onto the PCB is really a life saver. I can only imagine the trouble if the ty-wrap was not there! 

 

• Slide in the whole assembly and close the back panel. In this generation, the back panel metal plate comes with more opening space. This is a big improvement because some graphic card vendors decide to place the output ports in some locations that will interfere with the back panel metal plate. You can even assemble the ViDock without having the back panel plate installed, too.

 

 

• Connect the graphic card output to the monitor. There is a DVI-to-VGA adapter included in the package. You will need to find your own DVI cable if that is the interface you plan to use.

 

• Plug in the express card adapter on the ViDock 4 plus to the express card port on either your laptop or your docking station. In my situation, the express card adapter is very easy to eject out if I use too much force to slide the adapter in. I don’t know if this is a compatibility issue or if it is the normal situation when using express port.

 

• Connect both AC power adapters to the ViDock 4 plus (there are a total of three barrel type connectors).

 

• Install the graphic card driver and restart the computer.

 

• Stop and listen. If the fan on the video card is running in full speed and making a huge noise, there might be something wrong with your setup. Please recheck your assembly.

 

• Right click on the desktop; Select Personalize; Select Display on the new window; Select Change Display Settings on the new window.

 

• On the new window, select the proper Display setting. You should be able to see the display on the monitor connected to the ViDock 4 plus.

 

The installation process looks tedious but it is really not. By following the above steps, you should have your ViDock 4 plus running in 20 minutes.

 

Performance

The HP Compaq 6710b is designed for business use. It can run through the testing process in the 3DMark06 benchmark program. But the score is horrible. With the Vidock 4 plus + ATI Radeon 5770 solution installed, it is now ready to provide some awesome graphic processing power to play modern games! Please see the before and after installation score comparison below.

HP Compaq 6710b without the ViDock 4 plus + ATI Radeon 5770 solution     

• 3DMark06 Score: 565
• SM2.0 Score: 185
• HDR/SM3.0 Score: 208
• CPU Score: 1620

 

HP Compaq 6710b with the ViDock 4 plus + ATI Radeon 5770 solution     

• 3DMark06 Score: 8550
• SM2.0 Score: 4102
• HDR/SM3.0 Score: 4286
• CPU Score: 1672

 

If you want an even more fancy score, you can replace the 5770 with the latest 5870 graphic card. That should give you enough graphic processing power. Following are some screen captures using my setup playing Call of Duty: Black OPS. The game runs very smooth on my setup.

 

Conclusion

ViDock is a fantastic solution to expand the graphic processing power of your laptop. The installation process is not difficult but can be improved if Villagetronic can provide a step-by-step installation guide. After correctly setting up the display settings, you can forget about the unit, and still expect it to run perfectly in the background to boost up the performance every time you turn on your computer.  In my limited experience, I have never heard the fan on the video card get to full speed (except the time when the express card adapter is not fully plugged into the port). Thus, the audible noise created by the solution is minimal. I’ll recommend the ViDock family to anyone who wants to upgrade the graphic processing power, but does not want to buy a whole new machine.

 

 

Here are two important notes before I end this review:

• Some users will experience memory allocation issues when using ViDock product with their notebooks. Villagetronic is currently working on an add-on software to solve this issue. You can register with us to get the latest progress on the software development.
• Don’t forget to register your ViDock product with Villagetronic. After telling them your computer settings, they will extend the warranty from 2 years to 5 years. Your time spent in completing the survey will be well worth it!