Dual monitors shared between Mac Mini and Windows laptop

I have

• a Mac Mini (2011) with HDMI and Thunderbolt


• a laptop with DisplayPort and VGA


• a DisplayPort To HDMI Cable

I want a setup where I am able to easily switch between Mac and Windows, both with dual monitors.

At work I use a DisplayPort to HDMI cable and a VGA cable for dual monitors on my PC.

On a side note, what does a HDMI splitter do? Is it possible to use the HDMI port and an HDMI splitter to get dual monitors with extended display?

Answer

You will need a Dual monitor KVM like this one. You will then need to normalize the connector types:

For HDMI to DVI, for Thunderbolt to DVI, for Display Port to DVI, for VGA to DVI, and then some KVM cables.

Plug it all in and you can now share your keyboard, mouse, speakers and two monitors between your Mac Mini and your Windows laptop.