Lenovo Yoga 2 Pro Micro-HDMI not working? Easy fix.
Sponsored By
This blog post is likely not for you, unless it totally is. Which is why I'm posting it.
My Dad's Lenovo Yoga 2 Pro was driving him batty for months. It was bugging me even more, as I am the assigned IT manager for my family. I'm sure you are also, as you're reading this blog, right?
Anyway, I talk this computer up for months, he gets the computer, and it has this tiny Micro-HDMI connector.
Let me just say that Micro-HDMI is the most evil of all display connectors. I mean, it literally does everything wrong.
Micro-HDMI sucks because:
- Micro-HDMI looks like Micro USB and I can't explain to my Dad that they are different.
- Micro-HDMI is the most fragile of all ports. If you blow on it you'll lose signal.
- It's like the tiny shorty soda pop can of Tab. It's not Diet Coke. It's not enough. It's useless.
Which brings me to the point. His didn't work. Never worked. I tried new drivers, flashing BIOS, new cables, jiggling the connector, everything.
Except the obvious - cutting up the cable.
It turns out that many cables (especially cheap ones from Amazon) don't expose enough metal to make a decent connection.
Take a razor blade and cut a good millimeter around the cable's rubber housing to expose more metal.
Boom. It works immediately. Dad's thrilled. I'm a good son again and Micro-HDMI continues to suck as a display connector.
Full-sized HDMI or Mini-DP (Display Port) from now on, my friends.
Please, regale me in the comments with tales of why YOU too hate Micro-HDMI, Dear Reader.
About Scott
Scott Hanselman is a former professor, former Chief Architect in finance, now speaker, consultant, father, diabetic, and Microsoft employee. He is a failed stand-up comic, a cornrower, and a book author.
About Newsletter
Hosting By
June 23, 2015 5:21
Cool fix but what made you finally realize what to do?
Taki
I don't like how "loose" the connector feels when it is pushed in all the way. Like you say, it feels very fragile.
I had the same problem with my Lenovo Yoga 2 Pro. Love the computer, but the HDMI port was useless. I sent it to Lenovo for repair. They tried but it was still flaky when I got it back. So they completely replaced my laptop (with a Core i5 -> i7 upgrade while they were at it). Kudos to them for doing their best to solve the problem for me. I wish I'd known about your trick a few months ago, though. I have no idea how you guessed that solution...
I have a Yoga 2 Pro (best laptop ever!) and had to cut my Micro-HDMI adaptor to fit.
The problem is that I'm on my second cable as the first one, someone picked up the laptop with it plugged in and the Micro-HDMI metal connector just broke off under the weight of the cable, be warned... :(
The problem is that I'm on my second cable as the first one, someone picked up the laptop with it plugged in and the Micro-HDMI metal connector just broke off under the weight of the cable, be warned... :(
I also bought a Yoga 2 Pro and I am considering using it as a desktop PC replacement.
Only, there does not seem to be a decent docking station for it, right?
Any experiences or tips? I'll appreciate it.
Only, there does not seem to be a decent docking station for it, right?
Any experiences or tips? I'll appreciate it.
I hate Micro-HDMI, not sure what I think of Micro-HTMI: which is to say you have typo at the end.
Hopefully dispalyport over usb-c will be adopted, vesa have approved it using usb-c alternate mode the same as thunderbolt has been. I just hope that doesnt cause confusion with different usb-c port supporting different technologies.
I hate HDMI. My 55 inch^H^H^H^Hcm Sony Trinitron display doesn't support it. What's wrong with composite or SCART anyways ;-)
I bought a Yoga 2 Pro for a friend and also a nice Mini-DP to DVI/HDMI/VGA adapter I also use on my ThinkPad T430s and Surface Pro, because I did not check and just assumed a "Pro" Device would have Mini-DP nowadays - how suprised I was when she told me the adapter does not fit..........
The Surface RT (remember those?) had the same problem, but worse. The port was mounted straight, but the case edge was at an angle, so you needed get rid of quite a lot of plastic from one side of the plug housing if you used a standard cable.
I say "get rid of" instead of "cut" because I discovered this whilst on holiday when I wanted to connect my Surface to a TV to let the kids watch a film. I didn't have a knife so I ended up outside our hotel room rubbing the cable against a kerb to try and make it fit. It wasn't pretty, but it worked!
(Thanks for the tip, BTW. I just recently bought a Yoga 2 Pro myself.)
I say "get rid of" instead of "cut" because I discovered this whilst on holiday when I wanted to connect my Surface to a TV to let the kids watch a film. I didn't have a knife so I ended up outside our hotel room rubbing the cable against a kerb to try and make it fit. It wasn't pretty, but it worked!
(Thanks for the tip, BTW. I just recently bought a Yoga 2 Pro myself.)
VGA should have never died! :)
I've had DVI pins bend, I've had HDMI connectors literally snap off in a TV, Mini-HDMI, DisplayPort, etc, etc - you name it all these digital video connectors are poorly designed for the harsh world we live in.
Ever have a VGA cable go bad - not me. Nice strain relief, solid screws to hold it into a case or adapter card.
Engineers need to rethink connectors for ruggedness.
I've had DVI pins bend, I've had HDMI connectors literally snap off in a TV, Mini-HDMI, DisplayPort, etc, etc - you name it all these digital video connectors are poorly designed for the harsh world we live in.
Ever have a VGA cable go bad - not me. Nice strain relief, solid screws to hold it into a case or adapter card.
Engineers need to rethink connectors for ruggedness.
I've done the exact same hack to make a micro-HDMI cable work with my Surface RT. (Sure, I could have spent extra on the "official" cable that was pre-beveled, but the official cable wasn't the right length for my needs.)
While I was surprised that they changed the video port when I upgraded to the Surface Pro 2, I can now appreciate why they made the change.
While I was surprised that they changed the video port when I upgraded to the Surface Pro 2, I can now appreciate why they made the change.
@Zachary Burns
I've had bent pins on VGA, I've had the cable go bad, I've had cables that were poor quality and ghost no matter what, I've had the little screws come out while trying to unscrew the connector, I've had welded screws that couldn't be removed in the way of the cable.
VGA was NOT a panacea in my experience. I've never had a single problem with HDMI except a bad cable, which I replaced with a quality cable my wife found at the local 99 Cents Only store (which I am still using).
I'm glad that I haven't had these problems with the micro-HDMI on my Zenbook.
I've had bent pins on VGA, I've had the cable go bad, I've had cables that were poor quality and ghost no matter what, I've had the little screws come out while trying to unscrew the connector, I've had welded screws that couldn't be removed in the way of the cable.
VGA was NOT a panacea in my experience. I've never had a single problem with HDMI except a bad cable, which I replaced with a quality cable my wife found at the local 99 Cents Only store (which I am still using).
I'm glad that I haven't had these problems with the micro-HDMI on my Zenbook.
The only way the solution could have been better if you had 3D-printed it.
I hate Micro-HDMI because this one time at a conference, this developer, whose name I cannot remember (Scott something-man), made fun of my computer...True story.
As an aside, good hack to know if I ever try to connect that thing to my monitors/projector.
As an aside, good hack to know if I ever try to connect that thing to my monitors/projector.
I had this problem with my Yoga 2 pro as well and ended up ordering another cable from amazon that had that "extra long" tip. Worked like a charm after that.
Something else I experienced on this laptop that was astounding:
I picked it up one day and a screw fell out from the bottom. Turns out all 11 torx screws on the bottom were loose. A quickly-fixed problem, but one that I definitely did not expect to have on a machine I spent $1500 on. This was after about 1 year of moderate use.
So. Close. To. Perfect.
Something else I experienced on this laptop that was astounding:
I picked it up one day and a screw fell out from the bottom. Turns out all 11 torx screws on the bottom were loose. A quickly-fixed problem, but one that I definitely did not expect to have on a machine I spent $1500 on. This was after about 1 year of moderate use.
So. Close. To. Perfect.
Even more aggravating is that Lenovo made the same mistake on ThinkPad Yoga. It is a freaking business model and it has Micro-HDMI. WHY??? At least you can use a dock with full HDMI or DVI. As you said Mini-DP only please.
I'm quite happy with my Yoga Pro 2, although I'm also wary of the HDMI connection, especially since I have to plug/unplug it multiple times a day.
I was also frustrated by the lack of USB ports and Ethernet adpaters. In an office setting, or as a desktop replacement, these become cumbersome to work around.
@Wolfgang Ziegler
As luck has it, I received today the Plugable UD3900 USB3.0 docking station I ordered on Amazon. It had good reviews and I must say I'm very impressed, it works flawlessly, dual video, Ethernet, 4x USB2.0 ports+2xUSB3.0 ports, audio in/out.
Just perfect for the cramped Yoga.
I was also frustrated by the lack of USB ports and Ethernet adpaters. In an office setting, or as a desktop replacement, these become cumbersome to work around.
@Wolfgang Ziegler
As luck has it, I received today the Plugable UD3900 USB3.0 docking station I ordered on Amazon. It had good reviews and I must say I'm very impressed, it works flawlessly, dual video, Ethernet, 4x USB2.0 ports+2xUSB3.0 ports, audio in/out.
Just perfect for the cramped Yoga.
Well I kinda like Micro HDMI.
I have never had any problems, from over 18 months using Micro HDMI, connected into my Nokia Lumia 2520 Tablet, to my TV Screen, via a quality cable. Works every time, from the start. Very reliable, never seemed fragile to my mind.
Love my Lumia 2520 Tablet.[ Also has Miracast and so.... ]
But wireless Miracast ! - Don't get me started on that heap of pooh !
I have never had any problems, from over 18 months using Micro HDMI, connected into my Nokia Lumia 2520 Tablet, to my TV Screen, via a quality cable. Works every time, from the start. Very reliable, never seemed fragile to my mind.
Love my Lumia 2520 Tablet.[ Also has Miracast and so.... ]
But wireless Miracast ! - Don't get me started on that heap of pooh !
Lol! Where is the "don't try this at home kids!" Or "don't sue me if you chop your face off". Dodgy but Funny post!
I broke my Yoga 2 Pro mini hdmi port the first time I used it. Totally my fault because I was using it with the laptop in my lap and when I reclined the chair I was sitting in the cable got yanked by the foot rest. Now my picture always has a purple haze which makes it essentially useless.
Combine the fragile mini-hdmi with the free copy of Superfish I got with my Yoga 2, I am a little disappointed with an otherwise excellent computer.
Combine the fragile mini-hdmi with the free copy of Superfish I got with my Yoga 2, I am a little disappointed with an otherwise excellent computer.
Very helpful! I didn’t know about any of this but now that I do know I feel very happy to be well informed. Thanks for sharing your advice!
I've had the same problem with my Yoga 2 Pro, and finally gave up and use a Startech USB 3.0 to HDMI adapter for presentations. Works EVERY time, doesn't get loose, and my confidence level is back, though it was a bit more than an HDMI cable alone.
You saved me!
Thank you very much!
I bought a Yoga 2 Pro 13 yesterday and one of the first things to do is to connect it with my TV.
I used an existing HDMI cable which was working fine. I just put an HDMI to mini-HDMI adapter to use it with Yoga and wasn't able to detect TV neither on Windows 8.1 nor on linux.
I cut the rubber on the mini-HDMI adapter as you proposed and worked immediately!!
Thanks again!
Thank you very much!
I bought a Yoga 2 Pro 13 yesterday and one of the first things to do is to connect it with my TV.
I used an existing HDMI cable which was working fine. I just put an HDMI to mini-HDMI adapter to use it with Yoga and wasn't able to detect TV neither on Windows 8.1 nor on linux.
I cut the rubber on the mini-HDMI adapter as you proposed and worked immediately!!
Thanks again!
Guess my many small device manufacturer choose to implement the larger mini hdmi instead of micro?
Yes, the lousy physical connector is exactly the reason (they are saying this themselves).
Unfortunately, the manufacturers that implement micro hdmi doesn't have a clue.
Yes, the lousy physical connector is exactly the reason (they are saying this themselves).
Unfortunately, the manufacturers that implement micro hdmi doesn't have a clue.
Comments are closed.