You can then find all of the tech specs for your machine, including port information, by searching for your model here.īut since you’ll eventually have to deal with the ports, it might save time and effort just to inspect them right away. It will tell you the computer’s year of release and model specifics. You can determine your MacBook’s year and model by selecting “About This Mac” from your laptop’s Apple menu, located at the top left of the screen. Others may just want to take a look at the machine’s ports and go from there.
For many people, the easiest way to do that is find out the year and model of your laptop and look up its specifications. What does this all mean? Simply put, in order to use HDMI cables with your MacBook you have to determine the type of ports on your machine. Either Thunderbolt 2 or 3 is commonly used by most of today’s MacBook models. Thunderbolt cables and ports are usually identified with tiny lightning bolts, so be sure to look for them. Standard USB-C connections are different than Thunderbolt 3 ones, even though their ports look the same. It can be confusing to look at the ports on the side of a Mac, though. Thunderbolt 2 and Thunderbolt 3 followed, with the latter utilizing USB-C ports to transfer data. It was reintroduced as Thunderbolt on 2011 MacBooks, and it used a special port (which looked the same as a Mini DisplayPort) to connect the laptop to other devices. Meanwhile, Apple was working with Intel to improve and rebrand Firewire. When DisplayPort debuted shortly after the MacBook did, Apple created its own version known as Mini DisplayPort and began adding it to MacBooks in 2009. When the MacBook was first introduced in 2006, most models used DVI and/or old Apple Firewire technology to interface with outside components, and updated Firewire ports are still found on a few MacBook Pros even today. (One other supposed justification for refusing to adopt HDMI has been that the ports take up more space than the alternatives.)
#Usb to hdmi cable for macbook air install
Instead, Apple has chosen other options, refusing to pay the royalty required to install HDMI sockets and leaving a generation of MacBook users frustrated.
#Usb to hdmi cable for macbook air pro
Even though HDMI has become a nearly-universal technology, very few Apple products have ever had HDMI ports (two exceptions have been the Mac Mini and MacBook Pro Retina). What has always confounded many MacBook owners, however, are the machines’ external connection ports. On-board processors, memory, controllers, screen size, graphics cards and display resolutions have all been repeatedly improved (as have the machines’ aesthetics), as new models have been introduced. The MacBook has changed quite a bit since it was introduced well over ten years ago. Unfortunately, the answer is one of those aggravating responses everyone hates to hear: it depends. How on earth do you connect a MacBook to a flat-screen monitor or other device that relies on HDMI connectivity? There is one compatibility issue that often does rear its head, though. The MacBook’s operating system is updated frequently, crashes are rare, there are no end-of-life support issues, and compatibility problems are virtually non-existent because Macs primarily interface with other Apple software. Some users simply love the look of the MacBook, while others got accustomed to using Macs and Apple products while still in school. There are many reasons why MacBooks remain extremely popular despite their high prices. Back to Learning center Using HDMI Cables With MacBooks
To connect a display with mini DisplayPort, you need one like the USB-C to Mini DisplayPort adapter ( $34 on Amazon £25 on Amazon UK). Amazon sells the Cable Matters USB-C to DisplayPort Adapter cable for $18, or £30 on Amazon UK, and it supports 4K video at 60Hz. To connect to a DisplayPort display, you need a USB-C to DisplayPort cable or adapter. So there probably will be no fix coming from Apple. Apple declared these displays as “Vintage” in July 2021, which means that the company will not supply parts for repairs, nor do they promise to provide OS support. The display is still usable, but the flashing pixels are a distraction.Īpple has not addressed the issue, which seems like it could be a compatibility problem with the M1’s GPU. As detailed by Macworld, these displays show a line of flashing pixels at the top right of the screen. However, people online have reported problems with using the Thunderbolt Display or Apple’s LED Cinema Display with Apple’s M1 Macs.