saf3tyboat
Level 1 (0 points)

Q: How to resize external monitor?

I have a 32in 1080p Samsung TV that I am using as a monitor for my macbook pro. I have it connected via HDMI because VGA input on the TV is not supported. I have an issue where everything on my monitor is zoomed. That is, under the Arrangement tab in the Display menu in System Preferences the secondary monitor appears to be almost as small as my macbook screen when it should be about four times the size. I have used the 'Detect Displays' option and the Samsung display and resolution (1080p) is detected alright, just the size of the screen is way off. Any advice would be much appreciated.

MacBook Pro with Retina display, iOS 9.2.1

Posted on Feb 12, 2016 7:41 AM

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saf3tyboat

Q: How to resize external monitor?

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  • by jeremy_v,

    jeremy_v jeremy_v Feb 13, 2016 4:48 PM in response to saf3tyboat
    Community Specialists
    Feb 13, 2016 4:48 PM in response to saf3tyboat

    Hi saf3tyboat,
     

    Thank you for participating in the Apple Support Communities.
     

    It seems like your 32" Samsung TV looks smaller than your MacBook Pro display when you view the Arrangement tab of System Preferences.
     

    Although your TV screen is physically larger than your MacBook Pro screen, the display resolution of the 1080p TV (1920 x 1080) is lower than the native (or maximum) resolution of a Retina MacBook Pro display. This might be give the appearance that the TV is smaller than it should be in System Preferences.
     

    You can more information about Retina display resolution in Using a Retina display. This article also has some useful information for configuring your TV and MacBook Pro resolutions for best use. For example, make sure you're using Extended Desktop mode to set the resolution individually for each display:
     

    Using an external display with your Retina display Mac
     

    If your MacBook, MacBook Pro, or iMac has a Retina display, it automatically optimizes the resolution for the internal Retina display and any external displays that you attach. You can adjust resolutions for displays by choosing System Preferences from the Apple menu and then clicking Displays.
     

    If you have Mirror Displays enabled (under the Arrangement tab in Displays System Preferences), you'll see an "Optimize for" pop-up menu in the Display tab on both internal and external displays. This allows you to optimize for the internal or external display, or even scale the content on both.
     

    If Mirror Displays isn't enabled, then you're using Extended Desktop mode. In this case, you can set resolutions individually for each display. Check the Display System Preferences window that has the description for the display you want to adjust on the top of the window (there will be a unique preferences window for each display). Adjust as necessary.

    Thunderbolt Display Prefs


    Let us know if this information helped and you were able to configure your displays using the steps above. 


    Best Regards. 

  • by Appleorchardman,

    Appleorchardman Appleorchardman Aug 3, 2016 4:45 PM in response to saf3tyboat
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Aug 3, 2016 4:45 PM in response to saf3tyboat

    One my display options there is an Underscan slider. I used that to resize the monitor.Screen Shot 2016-08-03 at 6.38.10 PM.png