MacBook Air M1 2020 with Apple M1 Chip

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rma835354 Author

Level 1

8 points

MacBook Air M1 2020 with Apple M1 Chip

Want to connect two monitors and was send confirmation by Apple Store that it would support.

They sent me this:-

Simultaneously supports full native resolution on the built-in display at millions of colors and:

One external 6K display with 6016-by-3384 resolution at 60Hz at millions of colors, or
One external 5K display with 5120-by-2880 resolution at 60Hz at millions of colors, or
Up to two external 4K displays with 4096-by-2304 resolution at 60Hz at millions of colors

Currently have on 32" connected via a SATECH unit so I was advised by Apple to purchase a second SATECH and connect to the second port on the Mac and HDMI cable between new SATECH and second monitor. Connected a type C cable to provide power as I did with the first Satech. Screen on second monitor shows no single.

Help!!! any ideas????

MacBook, macOS 10.14

Posted on May 4, 2024 5:00 PM

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Answer 1

May 4, 2024 7:37 PM in response to rma835354

Whoever at the Apple Store sent you that confirmation was clearly confused. I don't think they were looking at the Technical Specifications for any of the Apple Silicon MacBook Pros at all!

The 13" M1 MacBook Air only supports a single external monitor. It can have "up to 6K resolution at 60 Hz."

MacBook Pro (13-inch, M1, 2020) - Technical Specifications - Apple Support

14" and 16' MacBook Pros with M1 Pro chips can support up to two such monitors. 14" and 16" MacBook Pros with M1 Max chips can support up to three such monitors, plus an additional 4K one.

MacBook Pro (14-inch, 2021) - Technical Specifications - Apple Support

MacBook Pro (16-inch, 2021) - Technical Specifications - Apple Support

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Answer 2

May 4, 2024 7:53 PM in response to rma835354

As I suspected, the confirmation that the Apple Store sent you does match the Technical Specifications of a 2020 Intel-based MacBook Pro.

MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2020, Four Thunderbolt 3 ports) - Technical Specifications - Apple Support

The "two 4K or one 5K" specification is very typical of late-Intel-era Macs. A lot of Intel CPUs had integrated GPUs with three video outputs, none of which could support 5K or 6K resolution. So a Mac would grab two of the outputs when driving a 5K or 6K monitor – one output for each half of the 5K or 6K screen.

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Answer 3

rma835354 Author

Level 1

8 points

May 4, 2024 5:28 PM in response to rma835354

Displaylink Laptop Docking Station for MacBook M1/M2/Windows/Chrome OS, 13-in-1 Universal Docking Station 3 Monitors with 2 HDMI & 2 DisplayPort, 100W Charge, USB-C Data, Ethernet, Audio, 4 USB ports

Brand minisopuru

ColourSilver

Hardware interfaceUSB 3.0 Type A, DisplayPort, USB 3.0 Type C, Ethernet, HDMI, 3.5mm Audio, USB 2.0

Compatible devicesMacBook Pro,MacBook Air ,MacBook M1,MacBook M2

Total USB ports6

Number of ports13

Item weight521 Grams

Total HDMI ports2

Wattage100 watts

About this item

【Solve Limitation of MacBook M1/M2】:Minisopuru laptop docking stations by installing the DisplayLink driver, making your MacBook not limited by the M1/M2 chip and extending three displays with different content. The DisplayLink docking station is compatible with Windows, Chrome OS, Ubuntu, and Android.★Note: Linux/Unix is not supported. (Compatibility: Please refer to the DisplayLink website.)★Note: Must install the DisplayLink driver on your device to ensure proper media display functionality.
【What Ports Can be Extended】:The Minisopuru displaylink dock with 36W power adapter expand 12 ports for daily use:2*4K HDMI+ 2*4K displayport+2* 5Gbps USBA 3.2 Gen1 port(only data)+ 5Gbps USB C 3.2 Gen1 port(only data)+ 100W USB-C PD(Max)+ 2*USBA 2.0 ports(data & charge)+ Gigabit Ethernet+ 3.5 mm audio/Mic jack.★Note: The Minisopuru docking station must connect the 36W DC power adapter, otherwise it will not work.
【Super Speed Data Transfer & Fast Charging】: The two USB A 2.0 ports of the laptop docking station not only can connect the keyboard and mouse, but also provides 7.5W power to charge your phone or other devices.And the USB docking station has two 5Gbps USB-A 3.2 Gen1 ports and a 5Gbps USB-C 3.2 Gen1 port(USBA/C 3.2 Gen1 only supports data transfer), transferring 1GB of files in seconds. In addition, you can choose the USB-C PD port (Max 100W) of the laptop dock to charge your laptop.
【Laptop with USB C Port: 4K Triple Display Docking Station】:The 3 monitor docking station one-stop solution to the needs of 2 types of the laptop.When MacBook Pro docking station host port connects the laptop's thunderbolt 3/4,USB4 or USB-C full-featured port can realize three different displays: HDMI(Display 1)+DP(Display 2)+DP or HDMI(Display 3)will reach 4K@60HZ(Under DP1.4). ★ Note: HDMI and DP ports(display 3) of the Minisopuru USB C dock can only pick one of two.
【Laptop with USB A Port: 4K Docking Station Dual Monitor】: When the USB C docking station the host port connects to the USB A laptop, can realize dual different displays: DP(Display2), DP, or HDMI(Display3) will reach 4K@60HZ.★Please note: When the USB-C host port of the dual monitor docking station is connected to the USB A port of the laptop, HDMI (Display 1)and the USB-C PD are unable to work.

Any explanation in simple words that this will allow the use of 2 monitors on my MacBook M1 2020?????

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Answer 4

May 4, 2024 8:19 PM in response to rma835354

rma835354 wrote:

Any explanation in simple words that this will allow the use of 2 monitors on my MacBook M1 2020?????

It sounds like you have a 13" M1 MacBook Pro, whose M1 processor supports a maximum of two displays, total. That includes the built-in screen, which "consumes" a video output whether the lid is open or closed - leaving support for a maximum of one external display.

No dock, adapter, or piece of software that you can add to that MacBook can increase the number of first-class, hardware-supported external displays.

There are workarounds that can let you attach more screens. These may have some disadvantages compared to making a hardware-supported connection to a display. The disadvantages may include lags/artifacts (which may be more pronounced if you try to display rapidly changing content like videos and 3D games), and screens going blank when you try to view DRM-infested streaming video content (from movie services). But if you are trying to display fairly static content, it may work out for you.

One of the more common workaround technologies is DisplayLink, by Synaptics. That's the one which this hub appears to use.

It sounds like it will let you connect up to three 4K monitors, but without reading the description more closely, I can't tell whether

It connects one monitor in a first-class, hardware-supported way; and extra monitors using workarounds – or
It connects all monitors using workarounds (ignoring your Mac's native display support)

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Answer 5

May 4, 2024 8:30 PM in response to rma835354

Other examples of DisplayLink-based workaround products:

Other World Computing – OWC USB-C Dual HDMI 4K Display Adapter with DisplayLink

SonnetTech – DisplayLink Dual HDMI Adapter for M Series Macs

SonnetTech – DisplayLink Dual DisplayPort Adapter for M Series Macs

All three of these consume one USB-C port. The OWC one has a place to plug in your charger so you can power or charge your Mac over the same port you're using to run the displays. I'm guessing that all three of these drive both displays using the workaround method (ignoring your computer's native video support).

Here's the Synaptics site:

Synaptics – DisplayLink Graphics

DisplayLink Knowledge Base – Troubleshooting: macOS

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