Has anyone deployed Samsung Dex into a corporate environment to replace users laptops.

if so how has it gone, are you still on Dex today, any regrets or broken functionality?

This is a comprehensive list of every attempt to turn Smartphones into Laptops. It started back when smartphones barely had 1GB of RAM in 2011. The mobile-only vision didn’t begin with Samsung or Google, it started with Motorola.

2011

• Motorola Atrix Lapdock / original Motorola Lapdock — died 2012
• Motorola Lapdock 100 — died 2012
• Motorola Lapdock 500 Pro — died 2012

2012

• ClamBook by ClamCase — failed / unreleased
• Korea Telecom Spider Laptop shell — prototype / unreleased

2013

• Acer Extend — prototype / unreleased
• Casetop by Livi Design — failed crowdfunding

2014

• Alcatel OneTouch Smartbook / Alcatel Smartbook — prototype / unreleased

2016

• NexDock original / NexDock 1 — shipped, then discontinued
• HP Elite x3 LapDock / Mobile Extender — discontinued
• Superbook by Andromium / Sentio — partial failure / discontinued

2017

• Miraxess MiraBook — shipped / discontinued in 2024

2018

• Razer Project Linda — concept / unreleased
• Colorii LapDock 14.1 / 11.6 — unreleased (Stolen from MiraBook)

2019

• NexDock 2 — shipped, then discontinued

2020

• NexDock Touch — shipped, then discontinued
• Smartisan TNT Go — shipped, now discontinued / unreleased
• Anyware PhoneBook — shipped to some users, now discontinued
• UPERFECT X / UDock X 13.3 — shipped (Stolen from NexDock) / discontinued

2021

• EVICIV LapDock / PhoneBook-style lapdock — ODM / unreleased
• NexDock 360 — shipped / replaced
• HONGO lapdock — ODM / unreleased

2022

• Omiodo Portable Lapdock — ODM / unreleased

2023

• NexDock Wireless — shipped, now legacy / replaced
• UPERFECT X 14 Pro Wireless / UDock X 14 Pro — shipped / discontinued

2024

• NexDock XL — shipped, now legacy / replaced
• UPERFECT UDock X 15.6 Pro Wireless — shipped / discontinued
• Dopesplay Portable Lapdock Monitor — still alive
• Elecrow CrowView Note — still alive

2025

• Logic Instrument Fieldbook LD140 — still alive (Stolen Project )

2026

• NexDock 2026 — still alive
• Khadas Mind xPlay — still alive

As I always say,

Success is often built on a graveyard of failures.

Technologies rarely arrive fully formed. They stumble, they disappoint, they disappear, and then they return stronger. Every industry follows the same pattern. It mocks the first generation, doubts the second, copies the third, and by the fourth, pretends the outcome was inevitable all along.

Mobile-Only belongs to that story.

It is not a sudden disruption. It is the continuation of a long and natural evolution. And this time, the world is finally close to catching up.

Been using Word on my Samsung tablet in DeX mode but the increasing push toward a Microsoft 365 subscription for basic functionality has gotten old. Paying a recurring fee for word processing I've essentially already paid for multiple times over the years doesn't sit right.

WPS Office keeps coming up as the most sensible alternative and from what I've read it works well on both Android tablets and in DeX mode which is the specific combination I need. The ability to open, edit, and save Word documents without subscription friction is the core requirement.

Has anyone here actually used WPS Office in Samsung DeX mode? Does the interface adapt properly to the desktop environment or does it feel like a mobile app running in a window? And is it reliable enough for everyday document work without the kinds of compatibility surprises that make you regret leaving Word?

What are people actually using for Word style editing on a tablet in DeX without paying for Microsoft 365?

That is it.

I need to use it as a desktop pc. It does not feel right to use it as just a phone anymore.

Thank you. <3

I bought a Dell dock today (K21A) alongside a second dock from a local e-waste store for steam deck and Dex use, and for whatever reason the K21A will not play nice with any android devices I own. The other dock works with Dex fine, and I plugged my steam deck into the K21A, which also worked fine. Everything checks out except Dex specifically on the K21A.

I tried my current backup phone (S24 FE), my main phone (Note20 Ultra) and my tablet (S9+) but none of them would play nice with the dock. It isn't a disaster if it just won't work with Dex ever, since I can return it and get a duplicate of the one that does work, but the wireless charging is really handy so if there's an easy fix for this issue I would appreciate knowing it.

I used DeX on One UI 8.0 before, but I was disappointed because in One UI 8.0, DeX could no longer remember the app window positions and window sizes after the apps were closed. I ended up downgrading back to One UI 7.0. What about One UI 8.5? Has there been any improvement in Samsung DeX, or is it still just the same?

My S10e got run over by a bunch of cars last summer when I dropped it out of my car window. Couldn't find it for 4 hours. The screen does not work at all, totally black.

I know it was "working" the next day and for several more because my alarms would go off.

Finally let the battery die after I got a new phone, and I'm just now trying to get some pictures from the S10e downloaded to alternative storage. I know it has functioning power (it did that tiny vibration when connected to another device) - and my spouse's laptop can "see" the phone (unsure if this means the S10e is powered on or not) when connected directly, but the laptop cannot access any data on the S10e (likely because usb tethering was not enabled on the S10e prior to the incident).

The issue: I cannot get it to mirror the screen to a tv using an hdmi/usb hub with a mouse & keyboard. I've tried Win+W, space bar, drawing a pattern with a mouse, no luck with anything.

(Obviously, Smart Switch doesn't work because I cannot accept the connection on the S10e.)

Help, please!

as always, not pro journalists, but we're attempting to be fair, accurate and come at products with mobile computing and DeX specifically in mind.

I reached out to Khadas to see if they'd be interested in providing us with a review unit, and they were quite enthusiastic about the opportunity. As always, no money has changed hands, Khadas has had no input on the review, they'll see it at the same time as everyone else.

Let's begin

The Khadas Mind xPlay

https://preview.redd.it/idbrs2i21y1h1.png?width=2114&format=png&auto=webp&s=c8d57e2467bfca04ec11325a8358d2fc38411527

I stumbled across this interesting lapdock a month ago or so, and was immediately intrigued by the Surface Pro form factor. My main pc and home, as well as my main work PC have been Surface pro's for the last decade or so. I absolutely love the ability to have a full laptop, or tablet, or dock it to make a full desktop, without really giving up any abilities, in all 3 formats.

Alldocube really briefly made a lapdock in this style (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-XFeRWr17Vc) but it's really never caught on, for whatever reason

Khadas to the rescue!

I just want to start out by saying that Khadas isn't truly marketing this device as a true Lapdock for DeX/android desktop, but as rather a laptop shell for the line of miniPC's, called Mind

It's very very similar to what Nex is doing, but they've gone with a miniPC format, rather than a phone.

The xPlay however does have 2x USB-C ports on the left side of the chassis.

https://preview.redd.it/40ca0grt1y1h1.jpg?width=3000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=bdf616871c5ba2dfd3faefeb0b2dd5b59647a3dc

The top port is the video in port, while the bottom is used for power in.

The ports have other usage when a MIND is connected, but it's irrelevant to our review

The Screen

The Tablet-esque screen is a 13" 2880x1920 LCD (IPS I believe) screen (3:2 screen ratio). It covers 100% of the sRGB gamut, with 500 nits of brightness, and a 60hz refresh rate. This initial version is NOT a touchscreen however.

Like the surface pro, it has a kickstand at the back, with a very firm hinge, allowing you to set the screen at whatever angle works for you (0-120 degrees)

Up top, there's a power button on the top left, and volume buttons on the top right. Volume buttons interact with the host device.

Size wise, it's pretty identical to a surface pro, 290mm x 200mm x 9.5mm, weighing roughly 820g

On initial boot, the screen will display the current battery level. You'll have to pay attention, as thats unfortunately the only way you can see power level of the lapdock. This is due to it being intended to be integrated with the MIND. There's also no kind of OSD, or any way to adjust the display. Luckily, the screen is beautiful out of the box, and I didn't feel the need to make any changes to it, at all.

https://preview.redd.it/ngp40wsu2y1h1.jpg?width=4000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d807f1f371f29bbb7f30785192801c3a6cd987a1

Like the surface pro line, the keyboard is a magnetic attachment, with connection made via pogo pins in the bottom. Folding the keyboard up also magnets shut, and puts the lapdock to sleep/off.

The monitor/tablet has 2x 2w speakers built in, and they're legitimately the best lapdock speakers out there. They sound VERY similar to my surface pro. You absolutely do not NEED headphones with this unit!

It does have a 2mp webcam built in, but DeX will not use it. I was pleasantly surprised that my Surface (win11) was happy to use it, labeling it as USB Camera.

Like the surface, a white LED pops on to let you know the camera is active. The image isn't going to blow your socks off, but it's just fine for Teams or whatever.

Battery

While you can't easily see battery levels from DeX/Steam/external device, it does contain a 4150 mAh (11.5v) battery. This equates to an almost 50Wh battery, very very similar to nexdock and uperfect offerings (bigger battery actually)

Khadas claims 3+ hours of demanding multitasking sessions, but this is with their miniPC MIND connected. I've gotten much closer to 6 hours with DeX usage, and not run it dead yet.

One of the main drawbacks of this not being a true lapdock, it doesn't do any kind of PD, or reverse charging. I've generally always turned off that feature on all my lapdocks, but there's been times where I was using everything plugged in, and wanted to keep my more power hungry steam deck mostly charged...

Sadly that's not currently an option with initial version (again, this was never really intended to be used aside from the MIND)

s21 ultra with xPlay

Here's my s21 ultra connected to the xPlay. Boots up right away, and everything mostly works. Resolution wise, DeX does NOT support 3:2 (ADB can solve that) but it did grab 2560x1600 (16:10) and actually looks pretty good. I did use LADB on the s21u to force the proper resolution, but because I use so many different lapdocks/monitors, I just reverted to the basics.

DeX doesn't do 3:2, but 16:10 looks good

The Khadas xPlay also does not have any artificial restrictions on the number of apps you can open either

https://preview.redd.it/1ti22tz37y1h1.jpg?width=4000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ca305feab04e84d615d79ce631e5040ad28a9a95

That's 7 open, and I'd wager I could get the full 20 np

I tested several other portable devices as well:

steam deck pairs nicely

Steam Deck was happy to do 2880x1920 in gaming mode, as well as desktop mode.

https://preview.redd.it/ldop42ae7y1h1.jpg?width=4000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=6aaa383380b81d9a8848a994adb965e7dafa7a1f

https://preview.redd.it/dqxl8urf7y1h1.jpg?width=4000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ca46be85d26c6e0774640ef57aed046bb48eed82

My new Lenovo Legion y700 (in the legion g9 controller case) running android 15, was happy to do Projection mode (they're version of DeX). Like DeX you get a complete 2nd desktop, which was happy to negotiate 2880x1920 (it can actually do 144hz external)

https://preview.redd.it/lbtfhhnn7y1h1.jpg?width=4000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=8e90ac82c2191995c0e829d5484b6d37645b5c90

And then the obvious pairing:

https://preview.redd.it/u9py3kxs7y1h1.jpg?width=4000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=58f9d8a31291e4c20e07cfc64f18d1b9750285b7

Surface Pro 8

https://preview.redd.it/5z9tu5sv7y1h1.jpg?width=4000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=dd0a5304ffb83623fd434fa2c614985f11f700ad

The elephant in the room here, it won't talk to my s25.

Samsung was able to confirm to me earlier in the week, that with the SoC change from the SD8 to SD8 Elite, they're enforcing more strict DP Alt Mode, and PD protocols. And because the Khadas xPlay was never really intended to be used this way, it's fallen victim to the change. Is it possible a firmware update could fix it? Not sure. I suspect there's some hardware pathway stuff that would prevent a simple patch update, but we will have discussions going forward

The Keyboard

Keyboard is fairly similar to the Surface Pro, as it's a magnetic attachment, and folds up flat against the screen to act like a shut off, and screen protector when carrying. It lies flat on the desk tho, it doesn't have the 2nd bend to give it a bit of angle like the surface keyboard.

That being said, it's still a very decent keyboard. The keys have smooth travel, if a bit shallow, but good tactile response. The function row defaults to media keys however, and there doesn't seem to be a way Fn Lock. Bit of a downer for excel warriors.

There's also no backlight to the keyboard. It is what I'd call a full size 79 key keyboard, no numpad. Very standard/familiar layout, and I had no issues maintaining my ~60wpm typing on it.

Let's talk about the integrated trackpad

holy shit, it's great. video to demonstrate true palm rejection

true palm rejection on windows

and it seems to work on android too!

android palm rejection

so yeah, the trackpad is great. 2 and 3 finger gestures seem to work. Using 2 finger swipe to do back/forward was great

Overall Conclusion

I love the Surface Pro form factor, so this really scores big points with me. It worked very well with every device I own, except for the s25.... And that's a bit of a problem going forward. I suspect every 8Elite bearing device is going to have issues, not just Samsung devices....

This devices is 100% intended to be used with a MIND miniPC, but it does function 95% with most other usb-c video out devices

I am really a big fan of this device, but time will tell which lapdock ends up my go to. It's starting to show it's age a bit, but the nexdock 360w still continues to be my most used lapdock, followed closely by the XL and uperfect 15.6 (i can almost not tell them apart)

Its currently available from Khadas.com for $399 usd

I discovered that on accident and it was unusable at the time as if it was a blueprint or a pre-alpha for the current dex (it did not behave how dex did normally at that time and was ahh plus it showed its new dex ) so I ignored it.

The way I remember making it was by turning "force desktop mode on secondary display " on and some additional settings the taskbar launcher (which was a whacky way to have a dex-like desktop mode) without the launcher itself as a (what if i do this?)

The phone i used is a galaxy a 54

Sorry for the long title

My phone display is broken, so I need to use Samsung Dex to restore my phone and turn on maintinence mode, but it's broken! What to do?

the s25 enforces stricter rules for DeX activation:

it requires full DisplayPort Alt Mode negotiation (newer than s24 series)

demands a higher Power Delibery (PD) profile before allowing video output. (he says some devices only provide basic profile, which now prevents DeX from starting)

startup process is tied to Knox, meaning if the dock doesn't present proper USB descriptors, Dex will not initialize

reading between the lines, I assume this is related to moving to the 8 Elite SoC

the solution, at this point, seems to be to get the lapdock/monitor manufacturors to make the changes... jeje?

he made some minor noise about perhaps Samsung can find a way to fix the "issue" but I am absolutely not going to hold my breath on this one

it definitely explains why we've seen a rise in people suddenly having issues with new phones not working with previously established working setups (asus monitors, i'm looking at you)

I have a spare flip 5 I wanted to our to good use. Only issue is that the circuit breaks sometimes when the phone is flipped open. But can I bypass the screen and place it in a custom case instead?

Hi everyone,
I’m using a Samsung Galaxy S22, currently on Android 13 / One UI 5. I heard that Samsung DeX previously supported high refresh rate output, but that feature was later removed in an update.

Does anyone know:

• Which One UI / Android version still had high refresh rate support in DeX?
• Is it possible to roll back to that version on the S22?

I mainly want smoother refresh rate support while using DeX with an external monitor.

Thanks!

Has anyone figured out how to scroll in Samsung DEX without a mouse wheel or trackpad?

When I use keyboard direction keys or page up/down, it doesn't work consistently across apps. For example, I can't scroll in reddit with keyboard keys.

The keyboard keys navigate elements, not the page.

---

Now that it is so easy to vibe code something, I am wondering if there is some way to allow the KeyMapper app to send a "scroll up/down" signal to the active window in DEX.