JSAUX’s 16” FlipGo Pro Dual Portable Monitor is the sort of gadget that I expect most people will look at and either understand immediately or dismiss, which makes it the kind of hardware I love. I have a fascination with portable displays borne of too many hours sitting at a desk staring at the same screen. I love my desk setup, but an occasional change of scenery goes a long way toward improving my day. It clears the cobwebs, sparks creativity, and is just nice.
So when JSAUX offered to send me their 16” FlipGo Pro dual-screen portable display after CES, I took them up on it. I’ve tried other portable displays, a journey that began with the C-Force CF015 15.6” portable OLED display and more recently led me to try 15.6” 1080p and 17” touch-enabled 4K displays from espresso. Each has had its strengths and weaknesses, but all were roughly laptop-sized displays. There’s a place for that; however, I was intrigued by the idea of something that’s even bigger yet still portable.
That’s exactly what the FlipGo Pro is aiming for by taking two 16” IPS displays and joining them with a hinge. The result is a big, bright display that can adapt to a number of use cases. Yet, while the FlipGo Pro is portable, it’s still a lot of display that will make you think twice before throwing it in your bag. That isn’t a deal-breaker, but it’s a factor worth examining more closely, along with the display’s full specs and the situations where it works best.
There are multiple FlipGo models ranging from 13.5” to 16”, some of which are touch-enabled. The non-touchscreen FlipGo Pro I’ve been using stacks two 16” IPS displays on top of each other joined by a hinge mechanism that allows it to be closed like a book and tucked into a backpack or out of the way on a bookshelf.
It’s worth starting with the unavoidable fact that the FlipGo pushes the boundaries of what “portable” means. When it’s unfolded, the display is remarkably large for its weight. However, even folded, two 16” displays are still pretty big. Add the frame and hinge mechanism, and the entire package weighs about 3.5 pounds (1.59 kg). That’s roughly the same weight as a 14” MacBook Pro, which isn’t too bad by itself, but if you’re pairing the screen with that same MacBook Pro, you’re at around seven pounds before accounting for anything else in your bag. That said, the FlipGo Pro easily fits in my Tom Bihn Synapse 25 backpack along with my MacBook Pro. And while I wouldn’t want to carry that seven-pound combo on my back all day, it’s been fine for walks that are under a mile.
Fortunately, the FlipGo Pro’s utility extends beyond trips away from home. One of the reasons I have historically spent as much time at my desk as I do is that it’s hard to beat the Studio Display’s big, bright 27” screen for most tasks. The FlipGo Pro is 21.5” diagonally, which isn’t quite as large, but it’s taller and a big improvement over a 14” laptop screen, making it easier to edit audio and video or write in Obsidian with two documents open side by side. That makes the FlipGo Pro an excellent “portable at home” display, allowing you to set up shop in a variety of locations. For me, as the weather has begun to warm up in North Carolina, that’s been the balcony off my living room where I can connect the FlipGo Pro to my MacBook Pro or a Mac mini I’ve been testing.
The seam between the FlipGo’s dual displays blends in well when viewing two documents in Obsidian or dedicating windows of other apps to each screen.
The Mac mini and FlipGo Pro are a particularly good pair. The mini can power the FlipGo with a single USB 4.0 cable up to about 65% brightness. Push the brightness beyond that, and the screen will reboot. Plugging the FlipGo Pro into a power source with its included 65W power supply will allow you to crank the brightness all the way up, which is handy if you’re in a bright environment and want to take full advantage of the screen’s 500 nits. It’s also worth carrying the power supply if you’re using a laptop with the FlipGo Pro because it can reverse charge your laptop at 60W.
You can set up the FlipGo Pro in landscape or portrait orientation by connecting it to a variety of stand accessories, which I’ll cover below. For writing, I’ve enjoyed using the display in portrait mode as one big 16:10 screen. Splitting my Obsidian window in half with my writing on one side and notes on the other makes the vertical strip imposed by the FlipGo’s hinge less obtrusive. In practice, the seam between the screens hasn’t bothered me much in any setup I’ve used, which has been a pleasant surprise, but I wouldn’t want to use it to watch a video full-screen.
The FlipGo Pro’s sharp, matte screen and high contrast makes it readable in a variety of environments.
The FlipGo Pro’s resolution is 2560 × 1600. It refreshes at 60Hz and reproduces 100% of the sRGB spectrum with a 1200:1 contrast ratio. Those aren’t great gaming specs, but I’ve found that they’re excellent for everyday productivity tasks.
I also appreciate that the FlipGo Pro’s screens have a matte finish. The more I’ve used my MacBook Pro with its matte finish, the more I realize that I’ll never go back to a glossy screen. My Studio Display’s glossy screen doesn’t bother me most of the time, but when I set up the FlipGo Pro next to it, the matte finish alone makes it easier to read.
A look at the FlipGo’s origami-style Flex Folio. And, yes, the FlipGo is a fingerprint magnet as you can see here.
What you don’t get with the FlipGo Pro is a built-in way to prop it up. There’s no kickstand, but there are a few other options. My favorite for around the house is a pedestal-style Snap Stand with two magnets that attach to the back of the FlipGo Pro to elevate the screen. Other options include a VESA mount and a Flex Folio cover that folds origami-style. I don’t currently have a VESA-compatible arm on my desk, so I haven’t tried that option, but the Flex Folio is a good option for on-the-go.
I haven’t tried the VESA mount, but the FlipGo Pro has been handy as a second screen when recording podcasts at my desk.
In addition to using the FlipGo Pro in landscape or portrait orientation as a giant single display, you can also use it as two separate displays in a mode called DuoViews. I’m sure there are reasons someone would want to treat each half of the FlipGo as a separate screen, but I haven’t done so, except to confirm that it worked with my MacBook Pro (but not the Mac mini for software reasons that have been covered on Reddit here). Instead, I prefer treating the FlipGo Pro as one display and managing my windows across the two halves.
To run the two halves as separate displays connected to a Mac, you also need to run a menu bar app called DisplayLink Manager, which is due to a limitation of Macs. The FlipGo Pro’s single-display mode – known as UltraView – and DuoViews can be run with a single USB cable, but in my experience, you can’t turn either mode up to 100% brightness without the screen rebooting. To set the screen to the highest brightnesses when paired with either an M4 Mac mini or M4 Max MacBook Pro, you need to plug the screen into power using the supplied adapter.
You can switch between the UltraView and DuoViews modes using a button on the side of the FlipGo Pro. The same side of the screen includes a mini HDMI port too. Along the opposite edge are a power button and a menu button for adjusting the screen’s settings, as well as a USB-C and two USB-A ports, which are available to your connected Mac as a hub if the FlipGo Pro is connected to power.
Most of all, I appreciate that the FlipGo Pro lets me take a big screen setup outside on my porch on a warm evening.
Overall, I love the flexibility of the FlipGo Pro. I’ve used it as an extra display for notes when recording a podcast, video and audio editing, writing articles like this one, and research. I’ve paired the display with both my 14” MacBook Pro, creating more screen real estate than I’ve ever had when using a laptop, and the Mac mini while sitting on my balcony, a setup that’s fast and easy to assemble and tear down.
It’s been great for all of those tasks, but it’s worth keeping the limitations of the setup in mind. A single cable can run either of the FlipGo Pro’s display modes, but it can’t handle every feature. For maximum brightness, laptop charging, and the USB hub, you’ll need the 65W charger that came with the screen. You’ll also need to be okay with a black stripe running through the middle of your display; that was easy for me, but it won’t be for everyone. Additionally, the device’s body is a fingerprint magnet, which is a shame since there’s no way to avoid touching it all over as you transport and set up the screen. And the FlipGo Pro isn’t for minimalists, either. It’s small for what it is, but it’s not small in an absolute sense.
To me, though, those are minor quibbles. I love that I can tuck the FlipGo Pro away on a bookshelf in my living room with a Mac mini for those times I want to work at my kitchen table or on my balcony on a warm evening. It’s also a great choice for anyone whose work is made easier by a big screen. I’d argue that’s nearly everyone, which makes the FlipGo Pro exciting because so few portable displays offer so much space.
If the FlipGo Pro is your sort of thing, you probably know it by now. It isn’t something everyone needs, but for those who value flexibility and portability, it’s a fantastic option.
The FlipGo Pro is available directly from JSAUX for $549 during its current spring sale and from Amazon, where it’s also on sale.
