Use external screen with MacBook pro when the machine's screen is broken?

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Use external screen with MacBook pro when the machine's screen is broken?

Hi, I have a MAcbook Pro,-4-5 years old. the screen has stopped working (only grey vertical stripes), but I have reason to believe that the machine itself is working. I thought I could connect it to an external screen via HDMI, but how? The "recipe" for how to do it, pre-supposes that I can see, select the apple-button in the set-up menu etc. I tried to switch off the machine and re-start it, hoping that the machine then would "detect" the external screen, but so far no luck. Is there a quick-key solution that can be used to order the machine to look for the external screen?

Posted on Aug 30, 2020 10:49 AM

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HWTech

Level 9

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Aug 30, 2020 11:21 AM in response to torbjoern65

It can sometimes be difficult getting an external display when the built-in display has problems. You can put the laptop into Clamshell mode by closing the lid of the laptop so it forces the video to go to the external display, but you will need to use an external keyboard & mouse (at least until you get it configured).

The other option is to try logging into your user account blindly. Give your laptop enough time to reach the login screen. Then type the first character of your user name and press the "Return" key. Then type your password followed by pressing the "Return" key again. You should now be able to configure your display settings. If you still cannot easily access the Display preferences, then once you are logged in press Command + F1 (or hold the "Fn" key followed by pressing Command + F1) to enable screen mirroring.

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Use external screen with MacBook pro when the machine's screen is broken?

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