The AURGA viewer is an HDMI and USB dongle with WiFi and Bluetooth connectivity that plugs into any system with HDMI output and can convert any smartphone, tablet, or laptop with a touchscreen display into a KVM solution by sending video data, as well as keyboard and mouse events wirelessly.
We’ve recently written about Openterface Mini-KVM KVM-over-USB device that allows users to use their laptop to control another device with HDMI output locally without any additional display, keyboard, and mouse. But I’ve just been informed the AURGA Viewer, launched in 2022 on Kickstarter, can do something similar wirelessly.
AURGA Viewer specifications and features:
- SoC – Allwinner S3 Cortex-A7 processor with 128MB DDR3
- HDMI input – Male HDMI port with Toshiba TC35874x HDMI to MIPI CSI-2 bridge internally (See comments section); Works with VGA, mini HDMI, micro HDMI, etc… using adapters
- Wireless – Broadcom BCM4345C5 SDIO 802.11AC WiFi 5 and Bluetooth 5 chip.
- USB – USB port for power and data
- Supported features
- Wireless video streaming (1920x1080p 60Hz/48K Audio)
- Mouse
- Keyboard
- Touch screen
- Digitizer pen on phone/tablet
- Stream wirelessly or through USB
- Compatible devices (basically anything hardware with video output and USB)
- Computer/Laptop
- SBCs such as Raspberry Pi, Jetson Nano, Orange Pi, Banana Pi, Rock Pi
- Gaming consoles such as PS3/PS4/PS5/Xbox Series/Wii U/Nintendo Switch
- Mini PCs
- Camera/DSLR
- TV boxes etc..
- Dimensions – 79.4 x 26 x 11mm
- Weight – 14.5 grams
The company provides software for the host device running on Windows 64-bit, iOS, macOS, and Linux 64-bit Arm/x86 which you’ll find on the Download page. Note that most versions were updated last month (April 2024), but the Linux version is older (July 2023) and may not work as well.
The product may have been introduced about two years ago, but the company does a poor job of explaining how it all works… But the way I understand it, the target device views the AURGA Viewer as an HDMI display and USB mouse and keyboard, while the host runs the software to receive video and HID events over WiFi (and maybe Bluetooth), so the touchscreen display of the device is used as a monitor, keyboard, and mouse. The best is to watch one of the videos such as the one embedded below with an x86 motherboard with the AURGA Viewer controlled wirelessly from an iPad to install Windows. No need for an extra display, a mouse, and a keyboard, since everything is handled on the iPad.
It can also fully work with a laptop (without touchscreen) taking into account the trackpad and keyboard instead of the the touchscreen of a smartphone or tablet.
The AURGA Viewer can be purchased for $79 on the company’s online store.
Thanks to Rogan for the tip.
Jean-Luc started CNX Software in 2010 as a part-time endeavor, before quitting his job as a software engineering manager, and starting to write daily news, and reviews full time later in 2011.
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In theory a nice little device. Without active (and/or opensource) linux development (or support) useless for me, though.
Sorry, but what kind of development you expect for a utilitarian device like this? It has one job and if does it – why bother? If it doesn’t – no matter how open source it is, nothing will help, if hardware is crap.
I did a quick teardown of the firmware, and can confirm that it is an Allwinner S3, with a Toshiba HDMI-CSI bridge, and a Broadcom SDIO 802.11ac WiFi chip.
I wrote it up here: https://www.reddit.com/r/Aurga/comments/1cr24gi/aurga_viewer_firmware_examination/
Thanks. I’ve updated the specs.
I purchased 2 when they first became available and they’re already in the junk box,
Slow, cumbersome and unreliable. Easier to just attach a monitor, keyboard ans mouse.
Happy to take them off your hands if you no longer want them? first AT last dot za.net
Grammar is confusing here…
What does it do different from a software solution like Super Display?
I don’t know Super Display, but I suppose it’s similar to VNC. This hardware solution will work quite faster, they can even play PC games on a smartphone. It will also work even the OS is not yet loaded, for example when accessing the BIOS.
Yeah, the main advantage is that this requires no software installed on the target computer, which means that it functions below the operating system, even when the OS is not running. It also means that it supports all sorts of hardware, it just needs to support an HDMI output, and USB keyboard/mouse input, and this should work. Examples given being a Nintendo Switch, but should work for practically anything.
On the other hand the longevity and quality of the software on the host computer might come under question!
Fair enough! That’s why I thought it instructive/useful to do a teardown of the firmware, to see how hackable it might be, and how amenable it might be to use with common/standard desktop apps like VNC, or RTSP, etc.
Receiver should be open source. I can help with that
Will keep you in mind if I get my hands on actual hardware.