I'm thinking of buying a Macbook Pro Retina. I already have a 27" iMac (mid 2011). Will I be able to connect the Macbook Pro to the iMac to make use of the larger screen when working at home?
iMac (27-inch Mid 2011), Mac OS X (10.7.4)
Sadly No.
Thanks for the reply, but why is that?
Yes you should be able to, but only via a thunderbolt to thunderbolt cable.
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3924 describes how target display mode works on the first iMacs and gives you the general idea of how to enable it.
http://support.apple.com/kb/TS3775 describes how your machine will only work with a thunderbolt - thunderbolt connection and will not support a mini displayport connection to achieve this.
Because the iMac is its own computer and the MacBook Pro is its own computer. It would be like connecting a double 9 volt battery to a double A batery. You can get a thunder bolt display but you would then be looking at another 1,000 dollars.
Email me directly if you have any other questions.
<Email Edited by Host>
Sorry but that is wrong, the iMac has the ability to be used as an external display aswell. The process is called target display mode.
Wow! I did not know that. That is very cool. Its always cool to learn things that you didn't know. Thanks for fixing my answer.
Yes this works great!
I have the 15-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display, an Apple Thunderbolt cable, and a 27-inch iMac (Mid 2011) and it works perfect.
You just hit Command+F2 when the iMac is connected and it turns into Target Display Mode.
I have the 15-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display, an Apple Thunderbolt cable and a 27-inch iMac (2009) and it not work. 😟 Someone solution please?
I think that feature was introduced after your computer was produced.
Sadly, Apple support and genius bar continues to mistakenly recommend thunderbolt for this configuration. What you really need is a mini-dvi male to mini-dvi male cable. Way cheaper than a thunderbolt cable, and actually works--I'm typing this on the screen of my 2009 iMac connected to my 15" MBPr using a monoprice.com cable that cost less than $8 delivered.
Geoffrey--
Thanks for this. I am still a bit confused. I have an iMac (late 2009) with a mini-display port (no thunderbolt) input, and a 2013 MBPr, and I'd like to use the iMac as my target display. You recommend a male-male mini-DVI cable, but I can't find one on monoprice or anywhere else. Am I looking for the wrong thing?
many thanks,
Rob M.
Monopirce now lists them as "Mini Display Port to MiniDisplayPort Cables." HTH!
macntec wrote:
Because the iMac is its own computer and the MacBook Pro is its own computer. It would be like connecting a double 9 volt battery to a double A batery. You can get a thunder bolt display but you would then be looking at another 1,000 dollars.
Email me directly (removed) if you have any other questions.
That is entirely incorrect.
And posting your email in a public forum is a real bad idea (unless you are collecting spam). I'll ask for it to be removed.
Great, thanks!
Hi,
I have a Macbook pro Retina and a pre-thunderbolt iMac. I had read this post and got a mini-DVI to HDMI adapter and an HDMI cable and have connected it all. However, it doesn't recognize or show the iMac as a display. Is there a command I can use or some troubleshooting I can do?
How did that work for you rmickey68???
Can I connect a Macbook Pro Retina to an iMac (mid 2011) ?
