Fuzzy display on Acer H233 external monitor

Wondering if anyone else has encountered this problem :
I connected an Acer H233 monitor to use as an extended display with my MB using a monoprice HDMI connector and find the picture quality very poor (fuzzy unstable text) when I set the resolution to 1920 x 1080 (desired resolution of the acer). Text is actually clearer when I set the display to lower resolution settings and i operate in mirror mode. Folks at the Apple Store claimed the MB won't support a higher resolution (even when its not in mirror mode) unless the MB screen is not used (clamshell mode?). That doesn't make sense to me since i can clearly select the higher resolution setting, but I can't seem to find anyone else with this issue searching the web. I've read plenty accounts of people having poor quality from erroneously having the mirror mode on or from using inferior VGA cables but none similar to mine. Any input would be much appreciated.

macbook, Mac OS X (10.5.8)

Posted on Dec 31, 2009 4:19 PM

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2 replies

Jan 2, 2010 3:47 AM in response to msu13

With both the Acer running and the MB's internal screen, do you know how to make the Acer the primary display, meaning the one with the menu bar across the top? (Hint: This is done under the Arrangement tab in Displays preferences by moving the little, symbolic menu bar between the two blue rectangles that symbolize the displays).

If you put the menu bar on the Acer and make it primary, can you tell if it is overscanning, meaning the menu bar is off the top of the screen on the Acer? It sounds like overscan might be the culprit, meaning there isn't one-for-one pixel mapping going on.

Jan 2, 2010 3:13 PM in response to BSteely

Thank you for the advice. The problem seemed to resolve itself after i shut down and restarted the MB. Its been a long time since i shut it down so i don't know if software upgrades were installed then that made it work, but after restarting, the DISPLAY options were different and the resolution is no longer listed as 1080 interlaced, just 1080. Everything works great now. Go figure.

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Fuzzy display on Acer H233 external monitor

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