External Monitor Fuzzy with Macbook Pro?

[blairh]

Hey guys,

I know I'm making a rookie mistake here, but when my external monitor is connected to my MBP, things clearly are not as sharp as the MBP itself (connected via DVI). When I go into clamshell mode, everything looks fine on the external.

I'm assuming this is a resolution issue. I have the monitors in mirror mode and judging that clamshell mode looks just fine, then the correct resolutions are set, etc. My external is running at 1920 x 1200.

I'd like to have the external running at it's max resolution of 1920 x 1200 while the MBP is on with its lid open connected to the external. This is possible, right? Am I forced to use the MBP in clamshell mode to get the monitor to run 1920 x 1200? If not, what am I doing wrong here?

Sorry for my ignorance on this one.

 

[blairh]

From my additional research, I believe the answer is that mirror mode will not allow the max resolution of my external monitor to be met if my MBP is connected and open at the same time. It appears I need to have my MBP in clamshell mode to reach the native resolution in mirror mode of the external.

I could work in extended desktop mode but that would require me to drag web pages up to the external monitor, etc. I really only plan on using extended desktop when I eventually get into video editing.

Any words confirming what I'm learning here would be appreciated.