Since the pandemic, remote working has become a part of many people’s lives. With that, the manufacturers started developing new gadgets to improve your working-from-home setup and raise your productivity levels.
Mobile Pixels offers its solution to people who do most of their work on a laptop and need an extra screen without using a separate full-sized monitor. Duex Max – a portable monitor attaches to your computer’s back via magnets. This sounds almost too good to be true. Check out our 14.1″ Duex Max monitor review to see whether you should buy one as your next portable monitor.
Mobile Pixels Duex Max Portable Monitor: First Impressions & Specs
If you’re used to multiple monitor setups, switching to work from a single laptop may be a nightmare. Luckily, there’s no shortage of portable monitors on the market. Mobile Pixels alone has multiple series of portable monitors, including the Glance series (a separate portable monitor that connects to your laptop via a USB-C cable), Duex series (for a double monitor setup), and Trio series (for a triple monitor setup).
The Duex series comprises 12.5″ Duex Lite, 13.3″ Duex Plus, and 14.1″ Duex Max monitors. I’ve been testing the 14.1″ Duex Max portable monitor suitable for 14″ and larger laptops. While you can use the Duex Max with a smaller laptop as a separate portable monitor, you won’t be able to mount it onto your laptop properly because of the size of the panel construction.
Mobile Pixels also sells different accessories with Duex Max. You can buy the monitor on its own, Productivity Bundle ($305.97) that includes the Duex Max monitor, monitor kickstand, and extra laptop magnets, and an extensive Mobility Bundle ($390.95) with the Duex Max monitor, privacy filter, levstand, mini mouse, foldable keyboard, and a sleeve for your laptop.
Before we move on to discussing the monitor’s design and the setup process, here’s the full list of the Duex Max’s tech specs:
- Dimensions: 12.6 x 8.9 x 0.25 in (32 x 22.6 x 0.6 cm)
- Weight: 1.8 lbs (816g)
- Material: PC-ABS plastic & robust aluminum alloy
- Display: 1080p full HD dual-screen display
- Screen size: 14.1″
- Connectivity: two USB-C ports
- Signal type: hybrid, DisplayPort Alt, and USB video signals can be used
- Compatibility: Windows, macOS, Nintendo Switch, Dex, select Android phones
- Colors: gunmetal grey, rio rouge, mallard green, set sail blue
- Warranty: one-year limited warranty
- Price: $279.99 on Amazon and Mobile Pixels website (monitor only).
Design and Unpacking
When you first take the Duex Max out of the box, you’ll first notice the sturdy plastic casing. It doesn’t feel flimsy but solid instead while also not being too much on the heavy side.
What’s in the Box
Here’s everything you’ll find when unboxing your Mobile Pixels Duex Max:
- 14.1″ Duex Max portable laptop monitor
- USB-C cable with a USB-A adapter
- Extra adhesives
- Alcohol pad for cleaning your laptop
- User manual
- Setup and attachment guide
- Magnets locations template
I had the monitor-only Duex Max version in a mallard green color. The monitor is a 14.1-inch matte panel with 1080p resolution and IPS technology capable of 300 nits. The aspect ratio is 16:9 with a 60 Hertz maximum refresh rate. For a device that turns your computer into a dual-screen laptop, the 1.8 lbs weight doesn’t seem like a lot.
However, if you own a smaller laptop like a 13″ MacBook Pro/Air, the Duex Max model will be too big and a wrong choice. The casing will extend outside your laptop’s main screen and will likely tilt your laptop’s back because of the weight. If you’re set on trying the Mobile Pixels monitor as a second screen, consider going for a different model. Both Mobile Pixels Duex Lite and Mobile Pixels Duex Plus portable monitors are smaller screens that will fit better.
Back to the Duex Max monitor that I had for testing. That 1.8 lbs weight is achieved by using lighter plastic materials in the construction instead of metal. It’s an absolute necessity, as your laptop’s hinges will need to support the extra weight of the added monitor.
Duex Max has a rectangular shape with curved edges on both sides of the screen, making it easier to grab on the sides and slide the display out. On the right side of the Duex Max, you’ll find two USB-C ports.
The back of the monitor also features an innovative magnetic mount and hinge system. Thanks to this system, you can attach this portable display to your laptop and carry the two devices together without bringing any additional equipment or extra laptop bags.
On the backside of the Duex Max, you’ll also find three buttons. You can use these to tweak the picture quality by adjusting backlight, contrast, saturation, color temperature, and more.
Setup Process
One of my favorite parts about the Duex Max is the setup process, or, more specifically, how simple it is.
The back of the monitor has a track-style mount system with four magnetic platforms. The four magnets attach to your laptop’s back using the 3M adhesives. Duex Max comes with a magnets locations template that you can use to effortlessly place the magnets on your laptops in the right positions.
Once the magnets are in place, simply attach the monitor to the back of your laptop, and it’ll slide out to align next to your laptop’s screen.
When the monitor’s fully extended, you can also move the panel to pivot for the best positioning. However, that’s all the adjustments you can make. You can’t tilt or swivel the monitor.
That’s it! Plug the monitor into your laptop using the USB-C cable and get your dual monitor to work. The display is compatible with Windows and macOS operating systems and requires no additional apps to work.
Duex Max monitor is plug-and-play if your laptop uses USB-C ports. If you have an older laptop with USB-A ports only, you’ll additionally need to install the Mobile Pixels proprietary driver. Since Duex Max uses a single cable for power and data, it’s a solely USB-powered screen with no HDMI port.
Different Modes
Duex Max pleasantly surprised me in terms of the different modes that you can use.
At first, I tested the Duex Max with a 15″ Lenovo Yoga laptop, and the monitor fits perfectly on the back of the computer. I immediately felt like I had more space to do my work and focus on different projects simultaneously.
However, my main laptop is a 13″ MacBook Air, and in order to get the Duex Max to work with it, I started exploring other monitor modes. If your laptop is too small for the magnets setup, or if you simply don’t like sticking anything on the back of your laptop, you can always use the Duex Max as a separate portable monitor. You can use any kickstand you have at home to put the monitor next to your laptop. Thanks to the auto-rotation feature, you can place it on either side of the laptop, and the screen will automatically flip.
The mode I enjoyed most was probably the portrait mode. You can use the Duex Max casing to prompt the monitor next to your laptop in a vertical position. The auto-rotation won’t help you there, but you can manually switch the Duex Max screen on your laptop and put it into portrait mode.
According to Mobile Pixels, Duex Max works with almost any laptop or device, including select Android phones, as long as you can pair the monitor with them via USB-C or USB-A connection. However, I tried to pair Duex Max with multiple Android smartphones and an Android tablet and failed. All I got was the No Signal error message. The Duex Max went into power-saving mode soon after.
Performance & Features
The Duex Max LCD screen has a 1080p resolution, 60Hz refresh rate, and 16:9 aspect ratio. It provides decent screen quality and brightness for a portable monitor. When you put it next to a modern laptop, the difference is apparent, like some colors will be washed out, and brightness isn’t quite on the same level even at 100, but it’s nothing extreme.
If you’re wondering whether you can use Duex Max as a gaming monitor, the answer is negative. With the 60Hz cap for the refresh rate, this screen won’t be great for gaming. The same could be said for heavy photo and video editing. Besides that, the Duex Max is a perfectly suitable monitor for all types of computer work.
Regarding the features, Duex Max has a few that pleasantly surprised me. When you press the center button on the back of the monitor’s case, it brings up the menu you can use to tweak the picture settings. Besides the usual settings, Mobile Pixels included two interesting options: EyeCareMode and G-Sensor.
The EyeCareMode is in charge of the temperature of the screen. When enabled, it automatically makes the temperature warmer, which in turn reduces the blue light that can affect your eyes negatively.
Should You Buy the 14.1″ Duex Max Portable Monitor by Mobile Pixels?
The Mobile Pixels Duex Max is a good choice if you want to experiment with a second screen and don’t mind sticking a bunch of magnets on your laptop. You can even one up and get a Mobile Pixels Trio Max if you want to have not two but three screens in front of you.
However, if you’re looking for a second monitor with a specific goal in mind (i.e., gaming or video editing), there are other choices on the market to consider, many of them more budget-friendly than the Duex Max.
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Anya is a freelance technology writer. Originally from Russia, she is currently a full-time Remote Worker and Digital Nomad. With a background in Journalism, Language Studies, and Technical Translation, Anya couldn’t imagine her life and work without using modern technology on a daily basis. Always looking out for new ways to make her life and location-independent lifestyle easier, she hopes to share her experiences as a tech- and internet-addict through her writing. Read Anya’s Full Bio
3D printer manufacturer, Anycubic, recently released two new printers—the Anycubic Kobra and its bigger, badder uncle, the Anycubic Kobra Max. We were interested in testing both products in our hunt for the best entry-level 3D printers. We’re looking for ease-of-use and affordability, as well as build and print quality.
We’ve published a number of 3D printer reviews from Anycubic—for both FDM printers like the Anycubic Vyper that print with spools of filament and SLA resin 3D printers like the Anycubic Photon Mono X 6K that use a liquid resin as its raw material—and we can say that the Kobra Max has quickly become one of our favorites.
Features of the Anycubic Kobra Max 3D Printer
The most obvious feature of this printer is its size. It is absolutely massive. That means you can print huge items in a single piece. Think of a full helmet or an entire ukulele—these are things you couldn’t print in one piece on a normal-sized 3D printer. Truly, the word “Max” doesn’t sufficiently capture just how big this printer is. Good luck fitting the packaging into your trash or recycling bins!
We were skeptical that a Cartesian printer of this size (which relies on a moveable print bed) would perform well since it has a lot of weight to move around. Admittedly, it’s not the speediest printer out there because of those design tradeoffs, but it works great.
The Kobra Max has an impressive list of technical specifications:
- Leveling: Automatic, 25 points leveling using the Anycubic Leviq technology
- Panel area: 7.95 in² / 51.3 cm²
- Filament run-out detection: support
- Printing material: PLA / ABS / PETG & TPU
- Nozzle size: ø 0.4 mm (replaceable)
- Nozzle temperature: ≤ 500 °F / 260 °C
- Hot bed temperature: ≤ 194 °F / 90 °C
- Average speed: 3.1 – 3.9 in./s (80mm/s – 100m/s)
- Control panel: 4.3 inch LCD touch screen
- Z-axis: double threaded rod
- Print size: 17.7 x 15.7 x 15.7 in. / 45 x 40 x 40 cm (HWD)
- Build volume: 19.02 gal. / 72.0 L
- Machine dimensions: 72 x 71.5 x 66.5cm
As far as we can tell, the extruder is identical to the extruder and print head on the Anycubic Vyper. Furthermore, the Kobra Max has the same automatic bed-leveling system as the Vyper. The system uses a pressure sensor instead of an inductive sensor.
The bed-leveling sensor is right on the nozzle itself, ensuring that it can probe every printable part of the bed. And since the sensor is pressure-based, you could replace the glass bed with any other material and the bed-leveling system will still work. (Inductive sensors require metal to work, so you won’t find them on printers with glass beds.)
Since the Kobra Max’s printing platform is a rigid glass sheet, you can’t remove and flex it to pop your prints off. We prefer removable spring steel build plates, but glass is still a nice printing surface. If your printer doesn’t have a removable bed, glass is ideal because you can use metal scrapers to remove your prints without worrying about scratching the surface.
The LCD touchscreen is identical to the screens used on many other Anycubic printers. As usual, it’s responsive and easy to use.
A note about filament types: the Kobra Max will print with PLA, PETG, TPU, and ABS. However, if you really want to print with ABS and get the best possible results, the printer should be inside an enclosure. Given its size, it may be challenging to build a suitable enclosure for the Kobra Max.
Assembling the Kobra Max 3D Printer
When assembling the new Kobra Max, make sure you have sufficient working space. Since the bed moves forward and backward, you need more space than you’d think. We put it on a 30” folding table, and when it’s printing, it needs about 36 inches, front to back.
Assembly of the Kobra Max is no more difficult than assembling the Kobra or Vyper. The only additional items are the diagonal braces which add stiffness to the frame, reducing mechanical vibration.
It took two people about 15 minutes to assemble. Double-check that you’ve cut all the zip ties used to stabilize the printer during shipping. There are a lot of them.
Calibration
The auto-bed-leveling system is easy to use. Anycubic recommends that you check the x- and the y-axes to make sure they don’t wobble. If they do, you can adjust the eccentric nuts until the wobbling stops. There was no wobble on our printer, so we didn’t have to do anything.
Additionally, the x- and y-axes have belt tensioners. We needed to slightly tighten the x-axis on ours. The tensioners are easy to use and are features a lot of other printers lack. Who wants to take apart the extruder assembly just to tighten the belts? Not us, and probably not you.
Build Quality of the Kobra Max
Due to the addition of the diagonal braces, the frame is really stiff. The dual z-axis screws are an improvement over the smaller Kobra. They virtually eliminated sagging of the x-axis assembly.
The spool holder sits on the base of the printer, reducing wobbling when printing tall items. It’s better than having the spool on the top like on the Kobra.
This printer is built with aluminum extrusions with aesthetically-pleasing plastic covers for the hotend and the tenionsers. It’s got an optical z endstop. The x and y endstops are mechanical. The whole thing feels solid.
First Print
For the first print, we used the test file provided by Anycubic. Appropriately, the owl is about twice the print volume of the owl test print that comes with the smaller Kobra. Given the bowden setup (which makes sense for a printer this size), we were surprised that the ears on the owl turned out so well.
The ears look better than they did on the owl printed on the Kobra which has a direct drive extruder system. We suspect that’s due to the slower print speed. Many times, retractions on bowden extruders will create artifacts, but we didn’t notice any blobs or stringing. It approaches the quality you’d expect from a direct-drive.
Next, we printed a vase with a large, flat base with a 0.2mm layer height. Removing prints from the glass bed is certainly not as easy as removing prints from smaller, flexible beds, but it’s not a deal-breaker either. We didn’t have any adhesion problems. The prints didn’t release when the glass bed cooled, which is what we expected and hoped for.
Curious what the power requirements would be for a printer this size, we were worried we wouldn’t be able to run multiple printers on the same circuit. We measured the power usage while the Kobra Max was printing, and, as expected, power usage is highest while the printer is warming up. Ours topped out at 473 watts. While printing, it was a more manageable 200-300 watts. We thought it would be more than that. You could probably run three of these printers on a 20 amp circuit.
Cut to the Chase
To drive home just how big the Kobra Max is, we put the Kobra on the bed of the Kobra Max. Insane. (We do not recommend you try this.)
A small printer is limiting, so if you find yourself printing large objects in small pieces and assembling them, consider buying a Kobra Max. If you’re new to 3D printing, keep in mind that it takes a long time to print big objects—potentially days and days. Typically, we’d recommend a smaller printer to beginners, but at the price point of $569.00 if you purchase on the Anycubic site, it’s worth considering as an entry-level printer.
One downside is that smaller prints will take a little longer than they would on a smaller, faster printer. That’s just physics. Bigger printers have more inertia to overcome and take longer to move. For example, the print time for our vase was thirteen hours. On our Prusa MK 2.5 with similar settings, it would have taken about twelve hours—not a huge difference.
*Special thanks to FormerLurker for help in reviewing AnyCubic’s Kobra Max 3D printer.
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Maggie Marystone is a freelance technology writer, human rights worker, and storyteller based in Chicago. Read Maggie’s Full Bio
In this 3D printer review, we’ll let you know what you get when you buy an Anycubic Kobra, what it’s like to build it, and our first impressions about its quality and usability.
Features of the Kobra by Anycubic
The Kobra by Anycubic is an FDM 3D printer. FDM stands for fused deposition modeling . The print material for FDM printers is plastic filament. If you’re considering buying your first 3D printer, you could also consider a resin printer like the Anycubic Photon Mono X , the larger Photon Mono X 6K , or the Photon M3.
The Kobra’s features include:
- Build volume of 9.8 x 8.7 x 8.7 in. (250 x 220 x 220 mm)
- Machine dimensions of 19.1 x 19.1 x 16.9 in. (486 x 486 x 430 mm)
- Uses 1.75mm PLA, ABS / PETG & TPU filaments
- Ø 0.4 mm replaceable nozzle
- A heated, textured, removable, and flexible build platform made of PEI spring steel
- Ports for USB and microSD card
- 4.3″ color touchscreen LCD
- 25-point auto bed leveling with an inductive sensor using Anycubic’s LeviQ technology
The Kobra has a direct-drive extruder, which is relatively uncommon among printers at this price point. In general, filament printers have either a direct-drive extruder or a bowden extruder. Bowden extruders push the filament into the nozzle from a distance, guided through a teflon tube, whereas direct drive extruders are mounted right above the hot end, greatly reducing the slack inside the tube because it’s so much closer to the nozzle.
The Kobra has an inductive probing sensor for automatic bed leveling. It’s a proximity sensor that can detect nearby metals. It’s not quite as accurate as something like the BL Touch but it’s dramatically cheaper and can give you excellent results. Prusa uses these on printers that are twice as expensive, like the Prusa MK3.
The heated bed has a spring steel sheet that attaches to a magnetic top on the bed, making it incredibly easy to remove your prints. Just remove the spring steel sheet and crack it like an ice tray. In our test print, the print even released itself from the bed as it cooled. Moreover, the bed leaves a nice texture on the underside of the print.
The LCD touchscreen is quite similar to the screens on some of Anycubic’s other printers, like the Anycubic Vyper . It’s intuitive, responsive, and easy to read.
The print volume is quite similar to the Vyper’s, as well, and the print beds are identical. Lastly, the Kobra has optional filament run-out detection. You can turn that feature on or off via the touchscreen panel.
Assembling the Anycubic Kobra 3D Printer
The Kobra comes partially assembled—another reason it’s a good option for beginners to 3D printing. You’ll learn how the printer’s mechanics work as you assemble it, and it won’t take very long since many of the parts are already put together for you.
It took us about fifteen minutes to assemble the Kobra. The instructions were fairly clear, although the photos in the assembly manual could have been larger. There’s not a whole lot to mess up. The cable management is where you want to be the most careful.
The stepper motors are already mounted. They just needed to be plugged in using the provided wiring.
Calibration
Anycubic recommends checking the tension of the belts and ensuring the build plate and x-axis don’t wobble. We didn’t need to make any adjustments to the eccentric nuts which control how tightly the rollers grip on the aluminum extrusions. You don’t want them too tight, and you definitely don’t want them too loose. If you do need to adjust them, it’s fairly simple. You just turn the eccentric nut until the wobbling stops—and no tighter.
If you do need to adjust the belt tension, it’s straightforward. There’s a screw tensioner for each belt. A couple turns of those screws, and you’re done.
After performing the automatic bed-leveling, we calibrated the z offset. To do that, you put a piece of paper under the nozzle and adjust the offset until it ever-so-slightly grips the paper. You’ll need to fine-tune this as the first layer is being printed. We had to raise the z offset 0.1mm. Your results will vary.
Build Quality of the Anycubic Kobra
The only thing we didn’t like about the build quality is that the z-axis only has one lead screw. Despite that, the x-axis seemed pretty stable. We didn’t notice any sagging.
The cooling fan is a bit noisy, but we probably wouldn’t have noticed if the printer weren’t so quiet.
The filament spool is positioned at the top of the printer. We would have preferred it at the bottom since any extra weight at the top of the direct-drive extruder could make the printer shake. On the other hand, there was no evidence of that happening during our prints.
First Print
For our first test print, we used the test file included on the SD card and printed with Anycubic PLA filament. We didn’t try printing with ABS filament because, in our experience, that requires an enclosure to have any hope of getting the quality you expect from PLA.
We had no problems with bed adhesion on our first print. The print partially released when the bed cooled, which was nice.
As you can see, we got a good print on our first attempt. There was minimal stringing (really, almost none at all). The only large defect was caused by a piece of plastic we failed to remove from the nozzle. We were particularly impressed by the print quality of the ears at the top of the owl—printers often struggle with thin parts that are at a steep angle and are separated, requiring the nozzle to lift and move.
Anycubic says the Kobra’s printing speed is 167% faster than competitors. While the print speed isn’t the fastest we’ve ever seen, we expected that. It’s a trade-off for having a direct-drive extruder instead of a bowden. In our opinion, the responsiveness of a direct-drive extruder is an acceptable tradeoff for the slightly slower print speeds.
Cut to the Chase
Virtually every entry-level 3D printer gets compared to the Ender 3. In this case, the Kobra out-performs the Ender 3 in these areas:
- Less stringing because of the direct-drive extruder
- Comes with a magnetic bed for easy print removal
- No x-axis sagging
- Vastly superior touchscreen
With the Kobra, you’ll get high-quality prints for under $300. If you’re interested in a similar printer with a much larger build volume, keep an eye out for our upcoming review of the Anycubic Kobra Max, a monster FDM 3D printer we simply loved.
*Special thanks to FormerLurker for help in reviewing Anycubic’s Kobra 3D printer.
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Maggie Marystone is a freelance technology writer, human rights worker, and storyteller based in Chicago. Read Maggie’s Full Bio
