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External Screen for 12" Macbook?

irock101

irock101

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jul 26, 2011
362
59
Hey,

I would prefer to use one of those old 20" 23" Apple Cinema Displays on the 12" Macbook.
Is it possible? What kind of adapters do I need?

Do you recommend another screen in the same size / design? I don't have a huge desk for a big screen and actually love working on the 12" Macbook but sometimes I'd prefer to have a little bit more space.

Thanks in advance.
 
This is my home and work setup: i use a cinema displays 23 (old aluminium ones, around 2008, one at home one at work). It works perfectly. You need the USB-C digital adaptor, the one with an HDMI output, and a HDMI to DVI adaptor that you can find on Ebay or at the store. You get 2 USB ports on the back of the screen, and the laptop will control brightness too. But no FaceTime camera if in clamshell mode obviously...

i like the setup much because there is only one cable to the screen and the rest can be hidden away. Most people here will tell you that you can get a much better screen than those ones as they are outdated (not even LED backlighted), but i like them.

One more thing to bear in mind, they will not play DRM protected video from Itunes.
 
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irock101 said:
Hey,

I would prefer to use one of those old 20" 23" Apple Cinema Displays on the 12" Macbook.
Is it possible? What kind of adapters do I need?

Do you recommend another screen in the same size / design? I don't have a huge desk for a big screen and actually love working on the 12" Macbook but sometimes I'd prefer to have a little bit more space.

Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...

You'll need the 79$ dongle to get HDMI output then get a HDMI To DVI cable for the 23" Apple Cinema display. That should probably work.
 
FuNGi said:
Or you could add a little more 'retina' real estate using Duet and an ipad.
Click to expand...

Thanks thats actually a great idea! Duet for the iPad is $9.99 - wasn't there a free alternative?
 
I don't know any free alternatives, but Duet works well. I had it running on a 2.4 Ghz Quad Core i7 Macbook Pro 15" from 2011 with an iPad 3rd Generation (the first one with the retina display and 30 pin connector). It had some lag, but not too bad.

I just recently traded in my iPad 3rd Gen. for a iPad Mini 2, and there is absolutely no lag now. Good stuff for $10 if you ask me. I was skeptical at first, but it actually works well.
 
Thanks I bought it too now and its flawless so far. Very happy with it. If I buy an iPad Pro i almost got 2 identical screen sizes
 
Has anyone used this on their rMB? I know the rMB doesn't have the best graphics capability and the mobile CPU is not made for intense work, but is it good enough to use Duet with an Air 2 with "zero lag"?
 
zamboni52 said:
Has anyone used this on their rMB? I know the rMB doesn't have the best graphics capability and the mobile CPU is not made for intense work, but is it good enough to use Duet with an Air 2 with "zero lag"?
Click to expand...

I use it on the rMB with the iPad AIR. There is zero lag but before I went to bed I turned on the screensaver and noticed there isn't an option to change the screensaver on the iPad. There will be some weird text flying around.
When I woke up Duel was turned off, so I had to fire it up again on my Retina-Macbook. Maybe it's just a setting I am overlooking but besides having to manually turn on Duel every morning and the epileptic screensaver on the Ipad it works perfectly.
 
zamboni52 said:
Has anyone used this on their rMB? I know the rMB doesn't have the best graphics capability and the mobile CPU is not made for intense work, but is it good enough to use Duet with an Air 2 with "zero lag"?
Click to expand...
I posted this in another thread with my 1.2/512: It works fine for an additional screen. I am using the same machine with an iPad Air and notice some occasionaly lag but I only have it on the 30 Ghz refresh rate to save processing power. Best for a document, calendar, email, presenter view in powerpoint or keynote, etc. Well worth the $9.99 for the app.
I'll work it harder at 60 Ghz refresh and report back.
 
Did you guys figure out how to charge the iPad and the rMB at the same time?
 
FuNGi said:
It charges when plugged into the apple multi-port adaptor along with the rMB charging cable.
Click to expand...

Sadly not. That's why I am looking for a solution.
I am using the Apple Adapter with the USB/HDMI/UBS-C out. Charger goes into USB-C,charges rMB just fine but no dice with the iPad. iPhone charges fine with the same combination but not dice on the iPad AIR, Mini or iPad PRO.

Btw, I noticed the same with external USB drives. If they don't have their own power supply they simply won't work.
 
irock101 said:
Sadly not. That's why I am looking for a solution.
I am using the Apple Adapter with the USB/HDMI/UBS-C out. Charger goes into USB-C,charges rMB just fine but no dice with the iPad. iPhone charges fine with the same combination but not dice on the iPad AIR, Mini or iPad PRO.

Btw, I noticed the same with external USB drives. If they don't have their own power supply they simply won't work.
Click to expand...
Mine says it's charging. I suspect its much slower than if the iPad were plugged in directly, but enough to slow the decline.
 
lo100469 said:
This is my home and work setup: i use a cinema displays 23 (old aluminium ones, around 2008, one at home one at work). It works perfectly. You need the USB-C digital adaptor, the one with an HDMI output, and a HDMI to DVI adaptor that you can find on Ebay or at the store. You get 2 USB ports on the back of the screen, and the laptop will control brightness too. But no FaceTime camera if in clamshell mode obviously...

i like the setup much because there is only one cable to the screen and the rest can be hidden away. Most people here will tell you that you can get a much better screen than those ones as they are outdated (not even LED backlighted), but i like them.

One more thing to bear in mind, they will not play DRM protected video from Itunes.
Click to expand...


Can you confirm what adapter you are using to connect the rMB to your 23" cinema display? I've tried the OWC dock with an Apple HDMI->DVI connector as well as a Monoprice USB-C->DVI and both setups result in severe lag and flickering screen. Did you have to do anything special with the resolution/refresh rate?

My ideal setup is one cord coming to my rMB to supply, video, power, USB, and ethernet. I had been considering replacing the Cinema Display, but was hoping to hold out for a USB-C monitor that included ethernet.
 
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