Macbook Air M1: No 4K@60Hz possible on my 32" 4K BenQ EW3280U

Right now M1 do not support 4K 60Hz over DisplayPort Interface (which going through USB-C or Thunderbolt).

You need to use USB-C to HDMI Adapter like Belkin F2**038btBLK.

Works fine, support 4K, 60Hz, HDR in Netflix.

I had this issue today after getting an M1 Mac Mini. Highest res was 1080p. Apple support offered this.

display preferences. Click scaled. Hold option and while holding, click scaled again. Suddenly 3840x2160 and 4096x2160 appeared.

Caldigit minidock, indicated as compatible with Air M1, provides 4K 60hz. But, it should be forced adjusting manually in display preferences. Doing that the letters, images, etc.. are ridiculously small, instead of having a better definition with the right size. I believe that it is an issue in the OSX software. When you connect with the mentioned dock with a 4K monitor, in my case, the resolution by default is HD and not 4k

In reply to JWBigSur a few posts back,

Thought I'd buy this cable to try it out, and it works, 4k/60hz where macOS previously showed 5k(?)/30hz on other cables and hubs. One thing to keep in mind is that it didn't initially work and I had to switch between "default for display" and "scaled" to make it forget to old settings. Also check the model nr of the cable since stock seems to change, one I tested is: cable matters 201036-blk-1.8m-eu

Found a way to fix this for the time being. Connected the monitor via HDMI, click displays - instead of the scaled option click Default for display. This then refreshed the screen into 60hz, then go back into scaled and select which one suits best.

Really weird glitch but this works for the time being (if it resets just do this again) until they patch it.

Had the same problem at the beginning. Using this cable solved the issue for me: Cable Matters USB C-naar-DisplayPort-kabel (USB-C-naar-DisplayPort-kabel, USB C-naar-DP-kabel) ondersteunt 8K 60Hz, zwart, 1,8 m - Thunderbolt 3-poort compatibel met MacBook Pro, Dell XPS 13 en meer. https://www.amazon.nl/dp/B01LYD2Y19/ref=redir_mobile_desktop?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&ref_=ppx_yo_mob_b_track_package_o1_img

It is a Dutch website but I'm sure the cable can be ordered elsewhere as well.

I have a 2021 MBA M1, macOS 11.6, just bought a 4K 24inch LG. Hooked it up with the supplied HDMI and an old DELL USB-C/HDMI mini hub. Could only get 1080p. However, when I switched the DELL hub to a JUKU thunderbolt hub with HDMI, I got all the higher res options, including 4K. Holding down the option key whilst clicking scaled is a great trick also. Thanks to all the previous posters for pointing me towards the solution.

Did you select default for this display and then click scaled again?

I talked to Apple support for more than two hours with no solution. All my issues have been forwarded to the tech team. Apparently, Apple is aware of the issues. I was told they will be fixed with the next release of Big Sur. I am not entirely sure if these issues are Big Sur related or M1 chip. Perhaps a combination. At this point, there's nothing to be done other than waiting. Fingers crossed the update will come soon and address the issue.

I am also experiencing something new since my original post. Out of the blue, the screen saver kicks in even though it is disabled and I cannot turn it off. The only way to unstick is to restart the laptop.

After three updates since you posted, similar problems still not fixed by Apple :)))

My monitor is BenQ PD-2720U. I tired thunderbolt 3, td3 -> dp, hdmi with adapter and naive Apple adapter. And only hdmi with naive Apple adapter output with 4K 60hz. The rest of them only output 30hz. However some issues (for example, resizing weirdly, abnormal colour which is similar to someone posted after awakening laptop) when I used hdmi. When I tried to test on my iMac 2019, all worked with 4K 60hz.

I tried to use switchRes etc., doesn’t work.

I read some comments about using dp1.2 instead of dp 1.4, doesn’t work.

I contacted with Apple support. They asked me to reinstall system. Considering possible conflicts from my configuration, I even erased all data. Didn’t work...

M1 compatibility is such a nightmare for me. I can compromise of using single external monitor ( I have to use sidecar on iPad and link iPad to second monitor) but I can’t tolerate 30hz αt all. I have send upon issues to Apple team and hope they can solve ASAP...

Has this issue been resolved? I’ve been struggling with different docs to get 4K @60hz But today I tried the ivanky doc and at first i still got 30hz. Closed the lid on my MacBook Pro M1 and boom 4K @ 60hz.

Here’s the hub i tried: iVANKY https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08PP8HYR9/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_62ZD2XB0556H131M2HYC?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

Good luck.

I think a lot of people are struggling because they are using USB 3.0 (aka 3.1 Gen1, aka 3.2 Gen1x1) that is the most common hub under $50 when in reality there is simply not enough bandwidth to push a 4K display at 60Hz using the 5Gbps of the USB3.0 / 3.1...

for 60HZ you need either:

a dedicated cable (preferably Display Port instead of HDMI)

or a USB 3.1 Gen2 or Higher, Ideally Thunderbolt3 Hub which has a DisplayPort1.4 connection.

For most this should solve the problem, however, some displays might have different problems or like my display (Samsung U28E590D) has only the HDMI1 capable of 4K while HDMI2 is limited to 1080p only.

The USB naming is confusing, so I attach a screenshot:

You need at least 10Gbps to run a 4K at 60FPS screen

p.s. Thunderbolt3 is 40Gbps

I had issue with my BenQ EX2780Q but the issue was with the monitor and not the mac itself.

More info on BenQ's help center here: https://www.benq.com/en-us/knowledge-center/knowledge/how-do-i-connect-my-mac-m1-to-benq-monitor.html

And I also went through the process I explained here: https://www.reddit.com/r/BenQ/comments/lxk7rn/benq_replacing_my_ex2780q_for_better_refresh/gyxtpvl

I ran into this issue today when connecting a MBA M1 to an external HP z27 screen (capable of up to 4K@60Hz) over a USB-C to USB-C cable. Output defaulted to 4K@30Hz and the Display Settings UI didn't give me the option to change it to 60Hz.

After some Googling, I landed on this discussion and tried connecting my screen with a USB-C to DP cable. I was then able to choose the Refresh Rate between 30Hz or 60Hz. This is not an ideal setup for me since the laptop won't charge over USB-C to DP and I don't want to have to use different USB-C ports for connecting an external display and charging.

I then connected back the USB-C to USB-C and disconnected the USB-C to DP cable. To my surprise, the Display Settings UI then provided me the option to choose the Refresh Rate between 30Hz or 60Hz. I was able to choose 60Hz and it displays correctly. However, I tried disconnecting and then reconnecting back the USB-C to USB-C cable, and at one instance the Refresh Rate setting disappears from the UI and it went back to 30Hz. It stayed at 60Hz on another test. I guess this won't hold after I reboot, I'll keep testing.

HTH

I have the same problem. Macbook Pro M1, Benq EW3280. Tried to connect the laptop to the monitor via USB C cable (the one that came with the monitor), and laptop was being charged, and got image on the monitor, but at 4K resolution I had only 30hz, no option to switch to 60hz. When I switched to 1440p low res mode, I can switch to 30hz, but I didn't buy this monitor to use it at sub-4k. Connecting the laptop and the monitor via USB C-HDMI, I can use the monitor at 4k@60hz, but it's not ideal, because I have to use both USB if I want to charge the laptop while connected to the monitor. I really hope that this is a software issue and it will be fixed.