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Level 1

21 points

M1 Macbook Pro - External Monitor Blurry Text

I have recently bought an M1 macbook pro which says it supports 6K, however my monitor is 1920x1080 with IPS, the image quality on the external monitor is horrendous. When I connect my windows laptop, the text and images are very crisp. But whenever I connect my mac, the text is blurry and the image quality is low.

I have checked both the screen resolution on the system preferences. Its correct. My HDMI cable is brand new and I tested this on 2 different external monitors. I even bought another gaming monitor to see if the problem is on the external monitor. The result is the same.

It must be something to do with the software on the mac. How do I fix this issue?

Does the issue be fixed if I buy a 4K/2K monitor?

Or does apple have a list of specific external monitors that support the retine and projects the video as crisp as it should be?

MacBook Pro 13″, macOS 11.1

Posted on Dec 24, 2020 4:33 PM

Best reply

sfromgi

Level 1

94 points

Posted on Mar 3, 2021 3:59 AM

It turns out the problem is that M1 is incorrectly using YPbPR mode instead of RGB mode, making the monitors text blurred and colours off. There is no known solution, other than to go through a DVI or dual link DVI cable if your monitor has DVI. IF your monitor has HDMI or display port there is no fix for this issue, and workarounds which functioned on the intel macs dont work on M1 macs. See https://gist.github.com/adaugherity/7435890

I strongly recommend using the apple feedback app on your machine with the monitor attached. The more people who report this bug the more likely Apple are to fix it. Unless its a deliberate move to sell more apple displays of course.

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73 replies

May 7, 2021 7:28 AM in response to Jusched

Do you get the same blurry text is Safe Mode, which takes defaults for as many settings as possible?

HuyApple

Level 1

8 points

May 15, 2021 11:27 PM in response to cyclohexane

Thanks for the reply, will the issue be solved if i go for a Dell P2421D ( 23.8"/ 2K/ IPS/ 60Hz/ 5ms ) , i will try to scale the text on the current full hd monitor anyway.

May 16, 2021 1:37 AM in response to cyclohexane

Can the people experiencing this issue please confirm they are holding the option key while pressing “Scaled” in display options and attempting to force various resolutions?

May 16, 2021 5:02 AM in response to kirkster501

Don't waste your money buying expensive cables it has nothing to do with the type of cable you are using. THe problem is how MacOS does scaling on non-retina or 4K displays.

May 18, 2021 2:41 AM in response to jdelamett6163

You need to hold the option key while clicking on scaled in the display settings to reveal all resolutions.

May 20, 2021 11:14 AM in response to cyclohexane

This fixed my issue on my widescreen monitor. You want to set the font smoothing level to 0. Thanks Apple for removing this feature to turn it off in the settings.

HuyApple

Level 1

8 points

May 20, 2021 8:25 PM in response to jdelamett6163

Hi, is it via option key + scaled button click to reduce font smoothing?

May 21, 2021 1:05 PM in response to HuyApple

No its a Terminal command https://www.macrumors.com/how-to/disable-font-smoothing-in-macos-big-sur/.

May 21, 2021 4:43 PM in response to jdelamett6163

Grant Bennet-Alder Why did Apple do this?

Sorry, I have no idea. I am a User like you.

I get no compensation from Apple and I do not speak for Apple, Inc.

HuyApple

Level 1

8 points

May 23, 2021 2:43 AM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

Guys, if I am to purchase a ipad air 2020 and use it with sidecar from the MBA M1 will the display any good? Or it will get scaled with blurry texts like the full hd monitor?

Jun 1, 2021 1:16 PM in response to darrenfromwaterford

Thanks Darren - your fix totally solved the issue for me!

Jul 26, 2021 12:55 AM in response to Jusched

If you are using a Dell Monitor, make sure you follow these instructions here: https://www.dell.com/support/kbdoc/ro-ro/000131273/using-a-dell-ultrasharp-usb-c-monitor-with-a-mac#Monitors_With_USB-C

Aug 30, 2021 3:51 AM in response to Jusched

Mac just don't work well with external displays.

maybe they want you to purchase apple display?

P.S I am having the same problem now.

M1 Macbook Pro - External Monitor Blurry Text