External GPU for MacBook Pro 2023 with two Pro XDR Displays

What is the best compatible external GPU for use with my MacBook Pro 2023 and two Apple Pro XDR monitors?

MacBook Pro 13″, macOS 13.4

Posted on Oct 28, 2023 12:14 PM

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4 replies

Oct 28, 2023 12:18 PM in response to Ngilmet

You did not buy enough computer to run two displays like those two. External GPUs are not supported.


Apple-Silicon 2020 M1 13-in MacBook Pro and Air and 2022 Apple-Silicon M2 13-in MacBook Pro and Air and the 2023 MacBook Air 15-in model are extremely-capable entry-level computers. They can support the internal display AND an External display up to the previously unheard of size of the Apple 6K display at billions of colors. But only ONE in addition to the internal display.


This may not match the way older computers forced you to work, since older computers were not able to support a really large external display. But it is NOT a defect. The spec was available long before you could purchase the computer.


The Apple standard for its built-in hardware-accelerated displays, makes them suitable for full-motion video for production/display of cinema-quality video with NO dropped frames, and NO dropouts or partial-blank scan lines due to memory under-runs or other issues. This requires a hardware rasterizer/display-generator for each fully-accelerated display.


If you need more hardware-accelerated displays than the built-in and ONE external display, and an un-accelerated iPad if desired, you probably need a more capable computer.


If you are only doing program listings, spreadsheets, stock quotes and other slow to change data, there are some other solutions, but they require you to make some strong compromises.


Executive summary: More than ONE additional Hardware-accelerated display can NOT be added to the entry-level 13-in or 15-in M1 or M2 systems.

Oct 28, 2023 12:33 PM in response to Ngilmet

M2 Max is perfectly ready willing and able to do rotations, and they should snap into position, PROVIDED you are not running resource-hogging stuff in the background. Additional GPU power will not measurably improve performance.


By far the easiest way to cause poor performance, instability, overheating and crashing is to install ANY third-party speeder-uppers, Cleaners, Optimizers, or Virus scanners. or a VPN that you installed yourself.


The idea that a third party, with no special knowledge of the inner workings of MacOS, can somehow find a simple way to protect your computer — that is not already being done by MacOS itself — suggests that the MacOS developers are somehow "holding out on you". That is absurd.


You should remove any and all (other than Apple built-in) virus scanners, speeder uppers, optimizers, cleaners, App deleters or VPN packages you installed yourself, or anything of that ilk.


Third-party file Sync-ers such as DropBox, BackBlaze, OneDrive, or GoogleDrive can ruin performance, but are not inherently dangerous.


Effective defenses against malware and ot… - Apple Community







External GPU for MacBook Pro 2023 with two Pro XDR Displays

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