It's a passive device. You'd do well to get a good quality shielded VGA cable for the best image. Look for EMI/RFI shielding. They'll have a cylindrical lump (ferrite disks) at each end just before the connector. Keep the adapter if you need to adapt something later.
My new laptop has a VGA port and I'd like to connect it to a new Dell or Samsung 22" monitor that has both VGA and DVI connections. Would there be any difference between a direct VGA connection or a VGA to DVI adaptor connection? Does the DVI adaptor improve the signal at all? Thanks.

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