Oh. i'm a little disappinted. What am I looking for?
Macs and dpi issues
- Thread starter 233
- Start date
Caporegime
Fuzziness on the edge of texts mostly.
Is it a problem with a particular kind of panel? I currently have an IPS 4k display, but I'm thinking about switching out for an OLED.
Caporegime
Optimal pixel density for external display
Apple’s interface design in macOS is set up so it is comfortable for most people at a density of about 110 pixels per inch for non-Retina, and about 220 pixels per inch for Retina — text is readable and button targets are easy to hit at a normal viewing distance. Using a display that isn’t close...
forums.macrumors.com
4K resolution to me means 3840 x 2160 and on both my Windows and MacOS machines everything is far to small to be readable at that setting. So I have my Mac set to 3008 x 1692 which is a HiDPI setting and my Windows PC set to 3840 x 2160 at 150% scaling.
The Windows PC is actually 2560 x 1440 because of the 150% scaling. Apart from that I have no other issues or scaling problems.
My text do be tiny, but my eyesight actually finds it easier to read on this setting.
It's depressing how poor MacOS can look on some displays compared to Windows. For example I have a 34" Ultrawide (3440x1440) which looks perfect in Windows for test/font/UI rendering. However if I connect my Mac to it the display looks like pixelated garbage even at the native resolution. I've tried betterdisplay and various scaling apps but nothing seems to improve things.
From what I've read the best option on MacOS is to get a 27" 4K display and either run it slightly too large at 200% scaled perfectly to 1080p. Or run it at "looks like 1440p" and rely on the 4K pixel density to hide the aliasing scaling artifacts. Bizzarely I've heard many Apple users comment that at 4K display scaled to 1440p is actually sharper/clearer than a 1440p monitor running at native resolution. I can see why Macbooks and Apple displays have such weird resolutions as outside of that just seems to cause issues!
It's why I'm after a 27" 4k display as my next monitor so it can properly support MacOS and Windows!
From what I've read the best option on MacOS is to get a 27" 4K display and either run it slightly too large at 200% scaled perfectly to 1080p. Or run it at "looks like 1440p" and rely on the 4K pixel density to hide the aliasing scaling artifacts. Bizzarely I've heard many Apple users comment that at 4K display scaled to 1440p is actually sharper/clearer than a 1440p monitor running at native resolution. I can see why Macbooks and Apple displays have such weird resolutions as outside of that just seems to cause issues!
It's why I'm after a 27" 4k display as my next monitor so it can properly support MacOS and Windows!
Last edited:
https://www.lg.com/uk/monitors/gaming/32gr93u-b/ is what I currently have if you're minded to find one. it's...140ppi, and look sbeautiful in terms of text and colours. the only reason I'm changing mine is because it has dead pixels.
If my current 34" Ultrawide monitor broke I'd definitely buy a 32" 4K OLED monitor but I have my eye on one of the upcoming 27" 4K OLED displays which are being announced at CES next month!
27" at 4K would fit better on my desk and the higher pixel density should make fonts look even cleaner on MacOS.
Last edited:
This is what I have got…
https://www.dell.com/en-uk/shop/alienware-32-4k-qd-oled-gaming-monitor-aw3225qf
Might be a bit pricey but it will look good on a Mac at 3008 x 1692 120 Hz and on a Windows PC at 3840 x 2160 150% scaling 240 Hz which is actually 2560 x 1440 because of the scaling. The scaling setting is recommended by Windows.
https://www.dell.com/en-uk/shop/alienware-32-4k-qd-oled-gaming-monitor-aw3225qf
Might be a bit pricey but it will look good on a Mac at 3008 x 1692 120 Hz and on a Windows PC at 3840 x 2160 150% scaling 240 Hz which is actually 2560 x 1440 because of the scaling. The scaling setting is recommended by Windows.
i don't imagine it would be the monitor unless it was a really cheap effort?
Soldato
Nope it won’t depend on the monitor - it’s the resolution. No amount of “specs” can make up for that.
I use BetterDisplay on MacOS to make sure everything is set correctly, specifically HiDPI mode, which may resolve your issue.
It's crazy how many tools you need to install to get basic things right on MacOS.
I’m not looking for a MacOS vs Windows debate but it’s disappointing how poor my 1440p display looks in MacOS compared to windows?
I literally never had any complaints with it until I plugged my MacBook into it! I just assumed at native resolution it would appear the same as windows but it really doesn’t look anywhere near as clear in terms of how fonts /text look
It seems you really need to be mindful what kind of display you use on MacOS.
Last edited:
I would say it's definitely the case as i look more into it - I guess i'm just lucky in the sense that I was mindfull of looking for an IPS with a decent PPII’m not looking for a MacOS vs Windows debate but it’s disappointing how poor my 1440p display looks in MacOS compared to windows?
I literally never had any complaints with it until I plugged my MacBook into it! I just assumed at native resolution it would appear the same as windows but it really doesn’t look anywhere near as clear in terms of how fonts /text look
It seems you really need to be mindful what kind of display you use on MacOS.
@233
THIS+1 based on my experience.
You can connect a 1440p display but even at native resolution it’ll look noticeably worse than windows.
Get a 4k monitor if you want to use both windows and MacOS. Smaller (32” or 27”) ones are generally better as they’ll look sharper due to the greater pixel density.
Last edited: