Why external 4K Display will only display on 1920x1080?

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Level 1

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Why external 4K Display will only display on 1920x1080?

I got a 28' UHD 4K monitor today (Acer Nitro VG280K), the tech spec does claim max resolution 3840x2160. However, when I connect my old MacBook Pro (late 2012) with HDMI cable, it will only display FHD (1920x1080), which is very disappointing.

This old MacBook pro (late 2012) does have 2 MDP and 1 HDMI, I'm assuming the 2 MDP should be Thunderbolt 2
The VG280K have 2 HDMI 2.0 port and 1 full size DP (DP1.2) port, I'm using the HDMI cable coming with the monitor.
I tried to adjust the resolution by going to "System Preferences"->"Display". For the built in Retina display, when I choose "Scaled" instead of "Default for display", I can see there are 4 little squares. However, for VG280K, when I choose "Scaled", it only shows 4 options (refer to screenshot), none is UHD

Also this is the System Report->Graphic Display section, VG280K is marked as 1920x1080.

Really out of idea now. Do I need a better HDMI cable? Would a MDP->DP cable do the trick? Any advice is appreciated!

MacBook Pro 13″, macOS 10.15

Posted on Sep 1, 2020 8:02 PM

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Answer 1

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neuroanatomist

Level 9

50,029 points

Sep 1, 2020 8:23 PM in response to MacArthur2

You won’t get 4K regardless, your Mac doesn’t support it. Your Mac can support a single display up to 2560x1600 via Thunderbolt and a single display up to 1920x1200 via HDMI. A miniDP to DP or miniDP to HDMI cable would connect to to your TB2 port (same plug), and give you the max resolution of 2560x1600.

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Answer 2

MacArthur2 Author

Level 1

8 points

Sep 1, 2020 8:34 PM in response to BobTheFisherman

BobTheFisherman wrote:

HDMI is 1920x1080.

Use the DP to MDP connection.

but they do say that all HDMI can support UHD : https://www.cnet.com/news/4k-hdmi-cables-are-nonsense/

Or do you mean that HDMI output on my old mac can only go up to 1920x1080?

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Answer 3

MacArthur2 Author

Level 1

8 points

Sep 1, 2020 8:38 PM in response to neuroanatomist

I'll be as happy as a clam if it can display 2560x1600. Right now I'm staring at this fuzzy 1920x1080 screen for too long that when I look at my iPhone I was like "Gosh that's crisp clear"

Guess I need to get a miniDP to DP cable now. Will let you know how it goes.

Thanks guys!

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Answer 4

Sep 1, 2020 8:05 PM in response to MacArthur2

HDMI is 1920x1080.

Use the DP to MDP connection.

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Answer 5

Sep 1, 2020 8:42 PM in response to MacArthur2

The HDMI output port on your Mac supports only 1920x1080 (the HDMI standard does support 4K). The TB2 ports output the higher resolution of 2560x1600.

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Why external 4K Display will only display on 1920x1080?

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