Review: Espresso Display is the second ultraportable monitor for road warriors

After a successful Kickstarter campaign in 2019, the Espresso Display is back with Version 2 of its second USB-C-powered ultraportable monitor for people who like to get things done on the go. road. Darrell tried out a pre-production unit of the original Display a few years ago, concluding that "the Espresso Display manages to stand out", and it looks like the company took a winning formula and doubled down on it . I took a closer look at the screen's performance on a 32,000 km trip halfway around the world.

There are many ways to get the job done. Some people may use a laptop as their only tool for everything they do. Unfortunately, I'm completely spoiled with my home setup; two 27-inch 4K monitors mean I have near-infinite screen real estate, and god, I like to spread all those windows everywhere.

I'm writing this in Australia, 10,000 miles from my home, and you won't be surprised to hear that my usual gaming rig with all its accessories won't fit in my carry-on. What easily fitted, however, was Espresso's innovative setup. The company sent me a 15-inch touchscreen to review, along with an assortment of accessories. The $749 Display plus the $99 espressoStand, $69 espressoCase, and $119 espressoPen add up to a pretty hefty price tag of $1,036. This puts the screen within reach of an iPad Pro, which can also be used as a second screen for your computer, so you must really want to take your show on the road to spend that much money.

So, is it worth it? The Espresso screen is super thin, weighs next to nothing, and surprised me by fitting easily into my laptop bag with my MacBook Air M1. The display itself is USB-C powered, so you can power it from the laptop. Now, the MacBook Air's small battery means the display's 7W draw draws a lot of extra power. At first I suspected it might be a dealbreaker, but when I started using the setup a lot more I realized that it didn't matter: if you settle somewhere long enough to have the time and space to install a second screen, you're probably not far from a power source anyway. Connect the laptop to power and you're ready to go. Or, if you'll be leaving the second display installed for a while (say, on your hotel room desk), you can plug power directly into the display. It has two USB-C ports and can power the laptop; super smart, and means you only have to plug in a cable when you want to get some work done.

Espresso Display in vertical mode. Image Credit: Espresso

The curiously named display has a good story behind its name though: the name "espresso" is derived from the idea that an espresso coffee gives you the energy and productivity you need to get things done effectively. "We believe the display does the same thing - it's portable, compact, efficient and powerful so our users can work from anywhere with maximum concentration," a company spokesperson told me. A nice touch: each of the Espresso team members has their favorite coffee order as part of their email signature. Clumsy? Sure, but a fun detail nonetheless.

The Espresso display has a number of quirks that fall into the same category as the power consumption issue; at first glance it seems like a disaster, but when you use the screen, the objection disappears. Another example is screen resolution; both the $529 13-inch monitor, the $669 13-inch monitor with touchscreen capabilities, and the $749 high-end 15-inch monitor with touchscreen-only pack at 1920 x 1080 resolutions (approx. ..