IOGEAR 4-Port Dual-Link DVI KVMP Pro Switch, w/Full Set of Cables,(GCS1204G)

Note that this site combines reviews for multiple IOGEAR KVM models. My review is for the IOGEAR 4-Port Dual-Link DVI KVMP Pro Switch, GCS1204G that I purchased in 2015.When I upgraded the monitors on two of my systems, my old IOGEAR KVMs were unable to display resolution higher than 1920x1200, so I upgraded to this model. One KVM usually runs with four Windows PCs (Vista, Home Server 2011, 7 and 8) feeding a 2560x1440 monitor and wireless USB keyboard and mouse. The other KVM runs with three Windows 7 boxes and one Mac (Mavericks) with wired USB keyboard and wireless USB mouse. All the machines work as expected with nice stable displays at each machine’s maximum resolution.I have successfully run both monitors at their full resolution with a DisplayPort to dual-link DVI cable and from the Mac with a Thunderbolt (Mini DisplayPort) to DVI cable. I can switch video through the KVM with HDMI to DVI cables but no surprise that none of the machines will run higher than 1920x1200 through their standard HDMI ports.Cons:The flush pressure switches: the nearly identical previous generation IOGEAR KVM had nice switch buttons. One of my KVMs is on a low shelf out of direct view so it became suddenly challenging to locate the correct button. Yes, there are keyboard combinations to switch between machines but I prefer the buttons. I stuck little rubber foot pads on the switches.A weirdness that’s probably unique to my hardware setup: on the system with the 2560x1440 monitor there’s a problem that consistently occurs when switching from one PC running a streaming (Netflix) video full screen (in Chrome) to another PC doing typical routine desktop stuff and then back to the PC with the video. The monitor cannot lock into the video and will stay black. If I remember to change Chrome to a windowed view before switching away, it’s not a problem switching back. When the problem occurs, I can switch normally to any other active PC on the KVM. If I have a directly connected second monitor connected to the problem machine and have made it the primary monitor I can get at the controls, minimize Chrome, and recover from the blank screen.The included cables are nice in that the video, USB, and audio wires are bonded together, but I wish they were not so fat and inflexible. I have slimmer and more flexible dual-link DVI cables that seem to work fine.Yet another wall-wartNot a problem with the KVM but an advisory – when I initially set up one of the KVMs, I didn’t swap out a single-link DVI cable from one machine to the KVM and that prevented all the other connected machines from running at full resolution.

This is OTHERWISE a very good KVM switch; however, I started having a couple of problems with it about 3-4 months after I bought it.I work from a home office (I make my living as a software architect), and ports 1-4 are (1) Linux workstation, (2) Linux workstation, (3) win7 workstation, and (4) office win7 laptop, respectively. My monitor is a Samsung SyncMaster 2443, and it is handled nicely (BTW I bought this particular model because it supports a Dual Link: 2560 x 1600 display and I will be replacing my current monitor with one with that resolution some time this year).There were two immediate "gotchas" however.First, IF I connect the (vga-only) laptop to the system (using a DVD-I/vga stepdown adapter), then when I reboot either of the two Linux systems, the EDID of the monitor no longer gets through to the computer and I am automatically limited to a 1024x768 graphical environment. Not good. So I have the laptop permanently connected directly to the VGA port on the monitor, and the other 3 machines connect through the kvm switch. Then whenever I change to or from the laptop, I have to change the display manually using the button on the front of the monitor, and that isn't a major issue - just an annoyance.The second "gotcha" is that this kvm switch is supposed to be able to store the EDID of the monitor and retain if for that port until it is cleared.However, it does not do so (unlike my other IOGear KVM switches), and had it done so then the first problem (above) might never have occurred.Therefore this failure may be the more serious of the two "initial gotchas."Unfortunately there is third issue which began about 3 months after I started using this kvm switch. Initially ONLY on port 1, at random times the "mouse focus" on the display would freeze to one window on the screen, and it was not possible to get the mouse to focus anywhere else unless I rebooted the KVM switch. As this is a time-consuming task, after some experimentation I discovered that the problem was only on port 1, so I swapped connetions around so that port 1 was the windows workstation (different O/S, and the problem went away - or so I thought). This worked well for a couple of months... however over time the problem has slowly spread to all 4 ports, and now the problem happens regularly - but NOT consistently - on all 4 ports.Sometimes the switch will go for hours without showing this problem, but at other times it happens every time I click a mouse button, and it is both inconvenient and a HUGE waste of time. A problem that takes 5 minutes or more to solve and which occurs as often as every time I click a mouse button cannot be lived with. :-(I have RMA'ed the switch to IOGear, and will be using a different KVM switch temporarily until it is repaired and returned.And that is my other complaint here. I have used other IOGear KVM switches, and before now I have never had to RMA one for repairs. I was surprised that they have no means to cross-ship, even if I gave them a credit card to secure their doing so. I asked multiple times, and there was no way to get a replacement so that I would be unable to work normally while they had my switch. As a result I have had to buy another switch to use as a replacement, and about that I am NOT a happy camper.Finally to be completely accurate, while it worked, it was excellent. There was no video "bleedover" or "crosstalk" as has occurred with other KVM switches, the switching was completely accurate and clean, and - despite the warnings to the contrary - my Logitech wireless mouse works perfectly with it.Nevertheless, with 4-port switch costing as much as this one, this particular problem should never have occurred.So:IF you get one which works properly, then it will be fine.But if you get one with this particular problem you will definitely regret having bought it.Therefore I cannot recommend this switch to anyone.

lasted about a year then died