Here’s something cool: Duet Display is an £8 app that turns an iPad or iPhone into an extra screen for your Windows or Mac computer. The ex-Apple engineers behind the app promise a simple, zero-lag experience, and Duet delivers in spades. If you wanted to be more productive or just make use of that old iPad you have lying in a drawer somewhere, this is a perfect choice.
Getting started is pretty simple. Just install the mobile app on your iOS device, and the desktop app on your Mac or PC. Confirm any driver install requests, then restart your computer when prompted. Plug your iPad or iPhone into your computer, and run the app on both devices… and that’s it.
Once set up, Duet works surprisingly well. The speed of a wired connection ensures minimal lag when working on the iPhone or iPad; it really feels like it’s just another monitor connected in the normal way. Your iPad or iPhone is also charging while connected, so you should be able to use the app all day without worry (as long as you started with a full charge, anyway). It feels pretty magical, truth be told.
Duet Display makes the most sense if your computer is a MacBook or another laptop, particularly one with a small display, as an iPad can almost double your screen real estate. It’s a much more convenient solution than bringing a small monitor or a portable USB display with you, particularly as it doesn’t require any external power to work… so you can use Duet as easily on a train as you can at a table.
Duet is also a great way to put an older iPad back to work. We used it with an iPad 2 (vintage 2011, yo!) and we were impressed with its performance. Of course, Duet also works with newer iPads, where it should offer better performance (and take advantage of Apple’s continued screen upgrades). You can even run Duet in split-screen mode on the iPad Air 2 or iPad Pro, letting you keep a third of your display for iOS apps on your iPad.
Duet works on the iPhone too, although the smaller screen makes it better for keeping an eye on your inbox or your playlist than full-on work or games. Duet only doesn’t work with the original iPad, which remains on iOS 5, as Duet requires iOS 7 or higher.
We’ve been really impressed with Duet, and we think you will be too. Let us know what you think in the comments below!