Latest Monterey supports more HiDPI modes

[petterihiisila]

As a positive surprise, the latest macOS 12.4 (21F79) offers new HiDPI modes for two of my WQHD 24-inch (2560 × 1440) monitors, Lenovo P24q and P24h. I can now select 2048x1152 (HiDPI) and it looks great.

Have other people noticed their monitor getting more HiDPI options out of the box?

Curiously, Lenovo Q24h doesn't offer the same modes, just the regular old scaled modes. I was wondering if gurus like @joevt would know, if there's a way to find what the "configuration file" for P24q is... if there is such a thing in macOS ... and then override the default Q24h file with that. With the result of maybe getting the HiDPI modes selectable in System Preferences for Q24h as well. Is this doable? The monitors are very similar to each other, I'm surprised the same modes aren't available by default.

 

[Donkeyboy469]

Hey,

I noticed the same thing! Honestly it's such a game changer! I'm using the LG 35WN65C-B 35" UltraWide QHD Curved Monitor with a M1 MBP 13" with a USB C->DisplayPort cable and I had to resort to BetterDummy (great project, but I encountered some bugs) until recently to get a nice scaled resolution. The native resolution didn't support HiDPI so the text looked ugly. Two main problems I had with BetterDummy were that it was limited to 60Hz (the monitor itself supports 100Hz) and I had flickering issues after sleep which meant unplugging and replugging the USB C to DisplayPort cable from the back of the monitor. Those might have been my fault though for not applying settings correctly.

Now after updating to MacOS 12.4 I can select a load of different resolutions natively in Mac OS, and have native support for 100Hz with HiDPI. Been using at this scaled HiDPI resolution for a week or so now with no issues, it just works!

Really surprised that this was not announced as a cool new feature! Also yours seemed to be the only post on the internet which showed someone else noticing the same!

 

[Artiste212]

I just saw the same new resolutions available for my standard HD monitor - I can view the screen at 960 X 540 (of course, who'd want to?) with very clear resolution. It's something than makes me comfortable buying a higher resolution screen next time without worrying if everything appears too small. Great feature!

 

[jasoncarle]

I have been using SwitchResX to get different HiDPI resolutions and scale my LG 4K monitor to 2560x1440 with it, as seen below. What I want to know is why my Display window looks different from yours? I am on Monterey 12.4. Are you both using laptops?

 

[Donkeyboy469]

I have been using SwitchResX to get different HiDPI resolutions and scale my LG 4K monitor to 2560x1440 with it, as seen below. What I want to know is why my Display window looks different from yours? I am on Monterey 12.4. Are you both using laptops?

Hey Jason

This is a guess, but I think it probably looks different because there are nice easy GUI based way to scale a 4k monitor since 4k is expected out of the box for M1 Macs. OP and I have Ultrawide monitors which M1 didn’t play nicely with until recently.

I do use a laptop (m1 13” MBP) but in clamshell mode. Internal display is basically never used unless I’m on the move.

 

[jasoncarle]

Hey Jason

This is a guess, but I think it probably looks different because there are nice easy GUI based way to scale a 4k monitor since 4k is expected out of the box for M1 Macs. OP and I have Ultrawide monitors which M1 didn’t play nicely with until recently.

I do use a laptop (m1 13” MBP) but in clamshell mode. Internal display is basically never used unless I’m on the move.

That's a very likely reason.

 

[10001110101]

Hello macrumors community,

Notes: I am using a MacBook Air M2

I was hoping to expand on this topic as I am searching for a monitor with HiDPI possibility. I recently uncovered this new mode while connecting to a larger monitor during a business trip.

However, I realized that I could only use HiDPI at 1280 x 720, or at least that is the only option macOS provided me. While I thorougly enjoyed the extra clarity HiDPI mode provided, that resolution was not productive on the 43" monitor. Therefore, I have the following question(s):

Goal: Use HiDPI on 27" or bigger monitor for productivity work where I can ideally have two applications, or two windows of the same application side-by-side (i.e. two Word documents or Calendar and Reminders).

1. Would I be correct in understanding that if enabling HiDPI, by checking the box for "Show all resolutions," then I should expect the resolution to be divided by 2 for HiDPI options?
   1. For example, if I purchase 27" 4K monitor with default resolution at 3840 x 2160, then enable "Show all resolutions" in macOS that I can expect the resolution to change to 1920 x 1080 (HiDPI), therefore having a 27" monitor running in HiDPI at 1920 x 1080? Is this the correct understanding?
   2. Additionally, would there be other HiDPI resolutions available, and if so which ones; and which ones make sense based on monitor size?
2. I was looking at the BenQ PD2725U and was wanting to know if anyone would know if HiDPI would work on this monitor and which HiDPI resolution(s) would be made available to me by macOS, and which ones make sense for productivity work (i.e. Zoom, Word, Ulysses, etc.)?

Thank you for your assistance!

Mike

 

[10001110101]

An update from my side after further research this evening... see these two links for a practical explanation:

Mac external displays for designers and developers

If you’re considering an external display for your Mac, there’s a few important decisions to make. Apple doesn’t sell external displays any more, so you can’t just default to their wisdom. That’s an issue, because not all displays are well suited for Macs.

bjango.com

Enjoy,

Mike

 

[Donkeyboy469]

Hi Mike

I don't know exactly, but what I can say is that if you use the following tool:

You'll have a far greater selection than comes natively with Mac OS. It should include HiDPI at multiple resolutions, not just half of the native resolution of the monitor.

For example, I have a 3440x1440 LG monitor and have the following options available, amongst approx 30 other lower HiDPI options:

This works by creating a virtual 5k display and mirroring the output of an area of that display to MacOS, for example:

 

[pshufd]

I have been using SwitchResX to get different HiDPI resolutions and scale my LG 4K monitor to 2560x1440 with it, as seen below. What I want to know is why my Display window looks different from yours? I am on Monterey 12.4. Are you both using laptops?

I have the traditional display on my monitors but I have seen the new list format on virtual displays. I use EasyRes to specify my monitor resolutions. The supported resolutions for my two displays are different even though the monitors are quite similar.

 

[strawbale]

Hello macrumors community,

Notes: I am using a MacBook Air M2

I was hoping to expand on this topic as I am searching for a monitor with HiDPI possibility. I recently uncovered this new mode while connecting to a larger monitor during a business trip.

However, I realized that I could only use HiDPI at 1280 x 720, or at least that is the only option macOS provided me. While I thorougly enjoyed the extra clarity HiDPI mode provided, that resolution was not productive on the 43" monitor. Therefore, I have the following question(s):

Goal: Use HiDPI on 27" or bigger monitor for productivity work where I can ideally have two applications, or two windows of the same application side-by-side (i.e. two Word documents or Calendar and Reminders).

1. Would I be correct in understanding that if enabling HiDPI, by checking the box for "Show all resolutions," then I should expect the resolution to be divided by 2 for HiDPI options?
   1. For example, if I purchase 27" 4K monitor with default resolution at 3840 x 2160, then enable "Show all resolutions" in macOS that I can expect the resolution to change to 1920 x 1080 (HiDPI), therefore having a 27" monitor running in HiDPI at 1920 x 1080? Is this the correct understanding?
   2. Additionally, would there be other HiDPI resolutions available, and if so which ones; and which ones make sense based on monitor size?
2. I was looking at the BenQ PD2725U and was wanting to know if anyone would know if HiDPI would work on this monitor and which HiDPI resolution(s) would be made available to me by macOS, and which ones make sense for productivity work (i.e. Zoom, Word, Ulysses, etc.)?

Thank you for your assistance!

Mike

For my BenQ PD2700U (27" 4k) and a M1 Mac Mini running 11.6.8, through HDMI, I can choose 1152x648, 1504x846, 1920x1080, 2560x1440 and 3840x2160. Through USB-C there's the 3008x1692 option too.

For my eye-sight, 2560x1440 is fine, even 3008x1692 might be workable if you've got good eyesight.

 

[mrfresh]

Fantastic news. I was about to splash out on the 5K Ultrawide LG (34WK95U-W), but will prolly opt for the cheaper 35" QLD Ultrawide instead (35WN75C-B). Looks like I can now scale more resolutions natively in MacOS for sub 4K panels without having to use 3rd party apps which is appealing!!

 

[mrfresh]

So I've connected up a 34WK95U-W with M1 MBA and I only have the native res 3440x1440 and 3 HiDPI in macOS 12.4, they are 1720x720 and two even lower ones. Clearly BetterDummy/BetterDisplay is the only alternative here, it appears Apple have limited these HiDPI options to MacBook Pro M1's only, (not Air).

 

[kimhill]

I found these links extremely helpful on the Mac monitor resolution topic:

"Mac external displays for designers and developers"

Part 1: https://bjango.com/articles/macexternaldisplays/
Part 2: https://bjango.com/articles/macexternaldisplays2/