External display is blurry and choppy

I have recenty bought a Belkin mini display port to hdmi adapter for my mac book pro. When i plug it in it does not fill my entire tv screen and theh image is blurry and the colors are horrible. I set the resolution to 1080p which my tv can handle and the picture did not change. Please help!

This is the fault of the Mac mini, due to it's under powered VGA port. Getting a new monitor MAY help, and would be the only choice really.
If you do get a new CRT, make sure it has a "gain" circuit to boost the incoming signal incase it's weak, as the mini is weak. VGA is SUPPOSED to be .7mV, but the Mac mini only outputs .5mV. If you get DVI, check out theMagius's list, that shows DVI monitors that work and don't..

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External Display flashes on and off will not stay on.

When I turn on my Samsung external LCD display which is connected to the iMac, it flickers on and off and will not stay on. What could cause this problem. I tried different resolution settings to no effect. I had been using the display without problems until recently. I wonder if it was a system software update.

Are you using some sort of adapter to hook it to the Mac? I know on my iMac that I use an external monitor on I use a mini DVI to VGA connector. If you are using something like that it could be the adaptor.
I would think if it was software there would be more posts on it. Yours is the only one I have read on this subject.

My display is blurry and seems grayish/shadowy

I'm using a standard Dell crt 17" with my mac mini. The display is always blurred and grayish, and I've done everything like changing the colors and monitor settings but nothing changes. Is it like this because it is VGA? Is there any way to fix this short of purchasing a new moniter? Also, this moniter has a great picture when using it with my PC, so the moniter is fineother than when using it with my mini. Thanks!

This is the fault of the Mac mini, due to it's under powered VGA port. Getting a new monitor MAY help, and would be the only choice really.
If you do get a new CRT, make sure it has a "gain" circuit to boost the incoming signal incase it's weak, as the mini is weak. VGA is SUPPOSED to be .7mV, but the Mac mini only outputs .5mV. If you get DVI, check out theMagius's list, that shows DVI monitors that work and don't..

Laptop Built In Display and External Display not Working

Hi all, I have a HP Envy M6-1158ca, and recently my Built-in display stopped working. I plugged it into an external display via HDMI and it showed no input. It seems as though the laptop is not booting into Windows either, as usually whenever my laptop boots into windows, the fingerprint scanner blinks letting me know I can now sign in using it. I am extremly frustrated with this, and have an unbelieveable amount of stress because this was my only PC. Please respond as soon as possible, it would be much appreciated.
Thanks in advance.
This question was solved.
View Solution.

Yes.. i think thats what might have damaged it...Notebook should always be completely powered off with the battery out and ac adapter disconnected while replacing any internal hardware..
Shouldnt be a BIOS problem....but still you can check this link..
Restoring the BIOS
Note:
If you have HP Support Assistant installed on the computer(The Blue Question Mark) then open it ==> Complete all pending Updates & Tuneups==> Restart and Check. It may solve your problem
Although I am an HP employee, I am speaking for myself and not for HP.
**Click on “Kudos” Star if you think this reply helped** Or Mark it as "Solved" if issue got fixed.

Ongoing fatal crash and security bug related to connecting external display

The infrastructures in OS X to resume from sleep, to authenticate, and to change displays is fundamentally not working.
The security bug I have encountered has to do with connecting a cinema display exclusively to a MacBook Pro. This is a specific situation, but please note that I have experienced the same problem on no fewer than three independent laptop. Plus, the Genius in the Apple Retail Store was convinced of the general instability of this infrastructure. The security problem is that hot corners no longer function if I transition between two states in the same reboot. The first state is where I have the laptop powered on and using its own internal display exclusively (when I'm on the road). The second state is when I have the laptop displaying its output exclusively on an external display (when I'm at home). What happens is that an attempt to use hot corners fails. There is no response. I even added configuration on all four corners (whereas I originally had settings only for the rightmost corners), and even then, the hot corner action (of sleeping the display or entering locked screen saver mode) does not commence. This prevents the user from being able to secure the display on demand using standard methods that are supposed to work.
The instability level related to connecting the external display exclusively is high. Again, I've experienced this on no fewer than three independent laptops, and the Apple Genius at the Retail Store confirmed that this aspect of OS X did not work consistently. When I want to connect the cinema display to the laptop in such a way that the laptop's own display is not part of the active screen, the process I use succeeds about half the time. Supposing I have been on the road, where I am using the laptop display exclusively. I then put the laptop to sleep. When I return home with the lid open, I connect first the USB (power) from the cinema display to the laptop, and then I connect the Mini DisplayPort. When that step works, what happens is that the login screen shows on the cinema display despite the fact that my laptop lid is closed. This is good, and is what I want. At that point, I open the laptop lid and quickly log in.
With Apple being a mobile device company, I rely on the laptop for tasks that one traditionally may use a desktop for. This simply points to the versatility of the laptop. But I'd like the bugs resolved, so that I do not have to hesitate to make use of the inherent flexibility possible with the MacBook Pro.
Here's what happens when the process (of connecting the external display in a way that establishes itself as the only screen in use by OS X) fails. Firstly, when I connect the external display via Mini DisplayPort, the laptop doesn't even respond. Instead, it remains asleep. So to work around it I have to repeatedly disconnect and reconnect the Mini DisplayPort so that the asleep MacBook Pro will see that there is a display connected to it. Also, sometimes that isn't even enough and I have to open the laptop lid, and put it to sleep again so as to trigger whatever actions are necessary to recognise the external display (presumably by having the laptop recently awake). Around half the time, I have to play this game of disconnecting and reconnecting until it actually works. This high level of reproducibility (confirmed by the Apple Genius representative's confidence that this part of the system doesn't actually work) should make it easy for an engineer to look into the problem.
Fatally, and recently, OS X has completely crashed when I have attempted to connect the external display. The external display has gone completely blue, and after a half a minute, it blanked out and my entire laptop became unresponsive. I called Apple Support and was given a case number. I also took the laptop into the retail store to see if I could recover my current session without rebooting. There was no process suggested to make that happen and I was told to reboot the machine. I've had this happen before on other laptops, and it is frustrating that the kernel reaches such a state that it cannot be used. As I see it, this problem is not too unrelated to the way that I need to play a game in order to get the external display connected exclusively. Here are some workarounds that could be added:
Firstly, whenever I connect an external display, I'd like the laptop to see that this has happened, and to take action accordingly (such as resuming from sleep). Secondly, If I connect an external keyboard, and press a key on it, I'd like this to wake the laptop too (in the event that the first method fails for some unforeseen reason). I'd also like the connection of the cinema display's USB power not to cause the laptop to enter into a confused state between asleep and awake. Sometimes I need to disconnect and reconnect USB power in order to trigger the laptop into waking, but that's only because it's not doing it on its own properly. On the other hand, I also ensure that the laptop doesn't have the Mini DisplayPort connected without also having the cinema display USB power connected, because that also is an unsupported configuration.
I've also gotten the laptop to become confused about whether it is asleep or awake. When I open the lid, it seems to enter into sleep mode, but closing it seems to bring it into an active state.
Also, I've successfully logged on and authenticated with the screen showing exclusively on the external display. But just ten seconds after I start using the system, the laptop falls asleep--with the lid open! Whatever triggers that action doesn't seem to be on track. The laptop is open, there are incoming events such as mouse movements and key presses, and the external display is on and is in use. And then the laptop falls asleep! This has happened numerous times. Not only should this not happen; the instances where it does happen can cause further instability and put my system at risk of fatally crashing.
Also, the authentication system itself is highly buggy--far more than it should be. At times I have opened the laptop lid and caught a glimpse of a window before I have begun the login process. Also, an external authentication application that asks for Kerberos/AFS login credentials has been able to overlay itself on top of the primary authentication (whereas I should only see a single login dialog when I need to authenticate to the system). Also, I've had several of these authentication screens overlay on top of one another, although it's been months since I've experienced that one (so it may have been fixed). Also, around a third of the time, the window that authenticates me (on the black background) somehow transfers itself into the background (even though there's only one window!). What that means is what I begin to type my password, and now the laptop starts beeping at me and I need to manually click on the password field and begin entering my password again. This really shouldn't happen, and indicates too much complexity in this authentication process (such as, more OS X code is involved than is strictly necessary, which is likely to make the authentication system more difficult to test). Also, at times, I have been using too much CPU, such that the authentication screen takes too long to emerge. That also means that I'm not able to logon until I uncleanly shutdown the laptop. If the laptop has been asleep, and is revived in preparation for login, then that login screen should be given highest priority, even if there are other heavy CPU or I/O intensive tasks running in the background. And maybe the login dialog shouldn't disappear when the user is legitimately attempting to log in. So even if there is a possibility that the system is under heavy resource use (or there is a stall or minor deadlock), it shouldn't prevent the user from logging in altogether.
At the moment, the very fact that the system shut down uncleanly means that the full disk encryption suite that I used has entered into an undetermined state, suggesting I may lose access to all my data. It's my hope that I can rely on Apple's products to interoperate in a way that won't cause me to be fearful and restrictive in my use, so that I can freely connect an external display at times, and at other times carry the laptop on the road.

Ive got the same problem with Samsung UE225010 monitor too, its full hd but it looks terrible, could it be Displayport adapter issue, because couple month ago Ive tryed with some IPS display, and it looked same bad.

Upgraded to Yosemite and now external display is not detected

I just upgraded to Yosemite on my 2009 MacBook Pro and now it won't detect the external display. It worked perfectly before the upgrade. I have the display connected by USB. Is there anything that can be done about this? I really need that external display for work and am really regretting downloading Yosemite.

Exactly the same issue. My Eizo Coloredge was working fine after installation until (just now) I dared to do a restart...
I have tried various different displays and connections over the past 20 minutes and have restarted my mac (late 2013 MBP 15' Retina) and connected / disconnected multiple times. Neither my Coloredge via Thunderbolt or HDMI (no signal detected) is recognised, nor a Samsung LCD via HDMI.
SO frustrating that something this basic should now be 'broken' when it was fine under Mavericks (and earlier OS). Come on Apple, let's get a fix. Plenty of people rely on external monitors.
Sigh.

Lion and external display

Hi,
When I wake up my MacBoo Pro usingto work with external display, my laptop gets very hot and I with Snow Leo I was used to open the lid to cool it down.
It worked fine, because the laptop screen was black but with Lion I cannot do it because after opening the laptop lid I am getting immediately cloned desktop on my laptop.
Is it possible to come back to the previous behaviour or somehow to switch-off the laptop screen after opening the lid, still with keeping the external display as active and main one?

Hi tgr2007
According to Apple support, it is "expected behaviour" under Lion for the MBP's internal display to reactivate upon opening the lid. A new version of the clamshell mode-related knowledgebase article (replacing HT3131) is due shortly confirming this.
This is despite:
- the obvious temperature-related benefits that were previously achievable (under Snow Leopard) by opening your MBP lid whilst continuing to output solely to a 27" cinema display
- the complete and total waste of energy and graphics processing power in running two active screens if running your MBP in clamshell mode would otherwise make it too hot and/or noisy
- the negative longer-term impact on the battery and other components from running the MBP at any hotter a temperature than it needs to be.
If you would like to have the previous behaviour restored, please join us (ie the many customers who are being adversely affected by this change) in lobbying Apple to change how Lion handles clamshell mode.
Options available to Apple include changing Lion's expected behaviour or adding a user-selectable option within System Preferences.
Please submit your feedback here:
http://www.apple.com/feedback/macosx.html

Win 8.1, Retina MBP, external display, stupid scaling

I've got a Retina MacBook Pro (Late 2013) with a 2880x1800 display, also connected to an external 1920x1080 display, dual-booted into Windows 8.1 with the latest Boot Camp drivers and the most recent nVidia drivers.
In Windows, when I go into the Display control panel and make "Change the size of all items" a little larger, then things look fine on the external display - but the laptop's display shows a teensy tiny taskbar and teensy tiny icons on the desktop.
If I check "Let me choose one scaling level for all my displays", then things look fine on the laptop's display - but the external display's windows and icons are HUGE.
And either way, if I'm not running the laptop's display at Retina resolution - even if I'm running at exactly half resolution, 1440x900 - then the laptop's display is terribly blurry. Makes me want to go back to a pre-Retina laptop.
What are the best Windows settings to have reasonably-sized windows and icons on the Retina display as well as the external display under Windows 8.1?
(Yes, this is just another reminder that I shouldn't bother trying to run Windows on a Mac ... but I thought that handling multiple displays with different pixel densities was supposed to be Windows 8.1's strong suit?)

Good point, but then it's a shame that not only can I not take advantage of the Retina resolution, but then the lower resolution setting makes the Retina display look terribly fuzzy. Even set to exactly half the resolution (2880x1800 -> 1440x900), it looks like WIndows is trying to fuzz everything instead of simply pixel-doubling it.
I understand that's a shortcoming of the nVidia driver. I'll go find the nVidia board to complain...
(I'm extending the desktop, btw, not mirroring.)

MacBook Air can't connect to external display

2 months ago I bought a Thunderbolt to VGA adapter and its working normally, then after 2 weeks its stopped working. I plugged the adapter in and the VGA cable then the built-in display fades to black (nothing is happening on my external display at all) and it fades back to normal, so it knows that I'm connecting something. I've tried this with all my TVs in the house, no luck. And the screen always does that when I'm trying to connect it and disconnect it.
So today I bought an HDMI and a Thunderbolt to HDMI adapter, it doesn't work, it acts the same!
It fades to black when I connect the HDMI cable, then it fades back to normal! even when I disconnect the cable
I tried resetting SMC & NVRAM/PRAM, the mac is on, it isn't sleeping, i already tried pressing Detect displays in the Displays settings and it doesn't fix anything.
Running on OSX Yesomite 10.10.2
MacBook Air (13-inch, Early 2014 , 1440 x 900)
1.4 GHz Intel Core i5
4 GB 1600 MHz DDR3
Intel HD Graphics 5000 1536 MB

Hello lolthisnameisnttaken,
Based on your post it seems you're having an issue with an external display. The following article may help you find a solution:
Apple computers: Troubleshooting issues with video on internal or external displays - Apple Support
Thank you for contributing to Apple Support Communities.
Cheers,
Bobby_D

External display blinking on Macbook Pro Late 2008.

Hello,
Firstly, computer specs:
Macbook Pro, 15-inch, Late 2008
GPU: GeForce 9400M / 9600M GT
8 GB RAM
320 GB Hard Drive
On Mavericks v10.9.3
I want to connect my computer to my TV via a mini displayport to HDMI adapter, for gaming purposes. As such, I want to use the 9600M GT as my GPU. However, when I am in High Performance mode (which uses that GPU), the TV screen blinks on and off every couple of seconds. I have tried resetting my PRAM, which failed. I know it is not the adapter, because it functions when used on another laptop. I know it isn't my port because it works when in Battery Saving (using 9400M GPU). Can anyone help?
In short:
Late 2008 15-inch Macbook Pro, GeForce 9400M / 9600M GT
Mini displayport to HDMI functions when on Battery Saving (GPU = GeForce 9400M)
However, external display blinks on and off when on High Performance (GPU = GeForce 9600M GT)

Hi mjbecker2,
Welcome to Apple Support Communities!
The article linked below has some tips that may help you resolve the flickering issue that you are seeing on your TV.
Apple computers: Troubleshooting issues with video on internal or external displays
http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1573
No video or no signal, image distortion, "snow," or flickering
Check connections
When using an external display be sure to check the following:
If you're using an Apple notebook, confirm the AC power cable or adapter is securely connected to the computer and the cable providing power to the display is also secure. It is always good to have your notebook connected to AC power when an external display is in use.
Confirm display adapters are fully seated in their respective connections and that they are supported models and for the computer and display. Refer to these articles to assist you with adapter compatibility and further configuration information:
Monitor and Display Adapter Table
About Mini DisplayPort to HDMI adapters
Apple Mini DisplayPort adapters: Frequently asked questions (FAQ)
Thunderbolt ports and displays: Frequently asked questions (FAQ)
Remove all display cable extenders, KVM switches, or other like devices and retest to determine if the issue is resolved.
Try unplugging the video adapter or cable and then plug it back in.
If more than one video adapter is in use (or "daisy-chained"), troubleshoot by using only one adapter.
Example: A mini DisplayPort to DVI adapter connected to a DVI to HDMI adapter is an unsupported configuration because there is a series of adapters in use.
If available, try using a different display and or adapter (or use a different connector by using DVI instead of VGA, for instance).
Cheers!
-Jason

External display's brightness can no longer be controlled with external keyboard in 10.8.2

I can no longer control external display's brightness with external keyboard.
Until now my external keyboard controlled external display's brightness and MBPr's keyboard MBPr's brightness. Now the only way of changing external display's brightness is via Display preferences which is cumbersome
Is there any way of going to pre 10.8.2 settings?

I noticed that the keyboard and tablet were'nt working when plugged into a usb hub or monitor usb port. I had to plug in the keyboard and tablet into a mbp usb port where they worked. For some reason, after plugging them back into the usb hub they worked again. Could just be dumb luck though.

External Display Flickering/Blanking out on Windows 8.1 Boot Camp

OK, so I have a MBP 15" Mid-2012 model running the latest versions of Mavericks and all software and drivers on Windows are up-to-date. I am using my external display through an Active HDMI adapter for Mini DisplayPort/Thunderbolt (one that broadcasts audio as well as video).
So, this adapter and image seems to work perfectly fine on the Mac side, however, when I flip the switch to Windows 8.1, the external display goes haywire and goes blank and flickers with occasional lines and static across the screen. Image comes back every few seconds and then will suddenly lose signal.
I've been reading around the internet and I've seen that this could be a hardware issue in that Intel never put support for Thunderbolt/Mini DisplayPort on their chipsets for Windows, not a driver issue.
How screwed am I? If not so screwed, what steps do I need to take to attain functionality of the external display while running Windows 8.1 through Boot Camp?
Note: my Mac does not come with an HDMI port already installed like current Macs. This was the last high-end Macbook Pro to have an optical drive installed on it.

From Tech specs for your machine MacBook Pro (15-inch, Mid 2012) - Technical Specifications
Intel HD Graphics 4000
NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M with 512MB of GDDR5 memory (15-inch 2.3GHz configuration) or NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M with 1GB of GDDR5 memory (15-inch 2.6GHz configuration) and automatic graphics switching
Dual display and video mirroring: Simultaneously supports full native resolution on the built-in display and up to 2560 by 1600 pixels on an external display, both at millions of colors
From the Intel downloads, there is a new driver for HD4000...
https://downloadcenter.intel.com/SearchResult.aspx?lang=eng&ProdId=3712
It may be worth a test.
From Nvidia website...
http://www.nvidia.com/download/driverResults.aspx/77228/en-us
On a later rMBP, I can connect three displays via TB at full resolution.
One suggestion is to try a Display-miniDP cable, instead of a converted HDMI signal, if the monitor will accept a DP connection.
If it works correctly on the Mac side, it would be a driver issue, since the hardware supports it with one OS, but not the other. The effects you describe indicates that some pins on the HDMI are not getting correct signals to maintain image refresh rates or pixel sync. When you use the current connection, does the Control Panel -> Displays detect the model and name correctly? If not, the EDID detection is failing.

Satellite M500 - Closing LID turns off external display

I just bought a new M500 today. I use a 46" TV as external display. When I close the lid the external display goes off and the laptop hibernates.
How do I stop this as I use the external display 95% of the time?
Thanks in advance.

Hello
This is only an option that you have to change in Windows Power Management. Go to power options and select the power profile that you are using. Edit the plan and scroll down until Power buttons and lid => Lid close action. Change this option to do nothing. With Apply and OK you save this settings.
Now you can try it again. I must say for me it did work because I also work with external monitor. :)
Greets

Question on Using thunderbolt iMac as external display with a Macbook Air

If I connect my macbook air to new thunderbolt iMac - can I access peripherals attached to usb, firewire, ethernet like the thunderbolt 27"?
if so how can i do this?
thanks!
Derrick

Thunderbolt 10.6 Help: Using another Mac as an external display
Only video and in some scenarios audio is transmitted. Nothing else.
Stefan

External displays shifted

I am running multiple external displays at 1920x1080 and the image is shifted coming out of the thunderbolt ports on my imac. Using a 2 mini display to VGA have also tried a mini display to DVI and they all send a shifted image. Tv's that can shift the image make up for this, but I also have some tv's that run straight DVI inputs and the image coming into them is shifted so you can't adjust. Is there a way the the external screens can be shifted left from the MAC? There is a bar on the left of the screens...you see the other screen with image adjustment moving the image left becasue it is coming out of the imac thunderbolt ports that way. Tried mulitple fixes and called apple and they have said there is not a fix for this. Never had this issue until I upgraded to Maverics, now I can't seem to resolve and I am running images at 1400x1050 which isn't at all what I want to display, but for some odd reason it fills the screen for now. Anyone else figure out how to fix this without buying new tv's? If it was one it wouldn't be an issue but with 8 screens this is not an option.

You can find the resolution/scan frequency requirements in KB 88396, iBook video output cables/adapters and resolutions.

External display is blurry and choppy

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