Newer Macs Can Use Another Mac as an External Display on macOS Monterey

[MacRumors]

One of the key new features of macOS Monterey is the ability to AirPlay content to a Mac from other Apple devices, such as an iPhone, iPad, or another Mac. According to the macOS Monterey features page, AirPlay to Mac works works both wirelessly or wired using a USB cable, with Apple noting that a wired connection is useful when you want to ensure that there's no latency or don't have access to a Wi-Fi connection.

AirPlay to Mac also allows users to extend or mirror an Apple device's display to a Mac, and we've confirmed this works on a Mac-to-Mac basis. This makes it possible for supported Macs to use another Mac as an external display, and with AirPlay to Mac working both wirelessly or with a wired connection, Apple has come close to reviving Target Display Mode, which allowed 2009 to 2014 iMac models to serve as another Mac's external display.

It's worth noting that these new AirPlay features do not serve as a complete Target Display Mode replacement, as we've been told that AirPlay compresses video sent from one Mac to another, and at least some latency might still be possible.

Starting with macOS Monterey, a supported Mac can also function as an AirPlay 2 speaker source, allowing users to wirelessly stream music or podcasts from an Apple device to a Mac or use the computer as a secondary speaker for multi-room audio.

AirPlay to Mac works with a 2018 or later MacBook Pro or MacBook Air, a 2019 or later iMac or Mac Pro, an iMac Pro, and the 2020 Mac mini.

macOS Monterey is available now in beta for developers, with a public beta to follow in July. The software update will likely be publicly released for all compatible Macs at some point between late September and early November.

Article Link: Newer Macs Can Use Another Mac as an External Display on macOS Monterey

 

[casperes1996]

Yeah, no I would've loved Target Display mode for my 2020 iMac to connect a PlayStation or something to it. This is alright for some things, but frankly I don't see myself using it

 

[iBluetooth]

Excellent, now I can use both computers at the same time. 2 times the code area should make me more productive

 

[Isengardtom]

So this works with an iPad right? The M1 iMac can extend the iPad Pro display?

 

[JJL2026]

Just missed the cut… MacBook Air 2017 😐

 

[JippaLippa]

That's a very cool feature for people with desktop and a macbook on the side, for portable use.

 

[JJL2026]

So this works with an iPad right? The M1 iMac can extend the iPad Pro display?

That’s my understanding.

 

[iObama]

Ugh. Wish I could use my 2017 4K iMac as an external display for my M1 Pro. It’s a beautiful monitor that now just sits on my desk, while I use a 24” 1080p monitor with my M1. Boo.

 

[odedia]

Will it work in 90 degrees vertical rotation? Meaning if I have a Mac mini connected to a rotated display.
Can anyone confirm?

 

[JOLoughlin]

This, I guess is as close to a return of Target Display Mode as we’ll get. Maybe forget about the return of the Cinema Display too ???

 

[daanodinot]

For those getting a little too enthusiastic after reading the headline:

It's worth noting that these new AirPlay features do not serve as a complete Target Display Mode replacement, as we've been told that AirPlay compresses video sent from one Mac to another, and at least some latency might still be possible.

Plus, forget about connecting a PC, which you could do with non-Retina iMacs.

 

[ultrafiel80]

Here are the supported devices since it didn't seem to be included in the article:

"Available on MacBook Pro (2018 and later), MacBook Air (2018 and later), iMac (2019 and later), iMac Pro (2017), Mac mini (2020 and later), Mac Pro (2019), iPhone 7 and later, iPad Pro (2nd generation and later), iPad Air (3rd generation and later), iPad (6th generation and later), and iPad mini (5th generation and later). Older iPhone, iPad, and Mac models may share content at a lower resolution to supported Mac models when “Allow AirPlay for” is set to “Everyone” or “Anyone on the same network” in Sharing preferences." (https://www.apple.com/macos/monterey-preview/features/#footnote-6)

This is great for my use, as I have wanted to use my 2020 iMac as a display for my work MacBook Pro when I'm at home (which is most of the time now). I tried out Luna Display, but it has some issues that don't work for me. My hope this works well, and with a hardwired connection the latency is not too bad.

Formatting the list better:

• MacBook Pro (2018 and later)
• MacBook Air (2018 and later)
• iMac (2019 and later)
• iMac Pro (2017)
• Mac mini (2020 and later)
• Mac Pro (2019)
• iPhone 7 and later
• iPad Pro (2nd generation and later)
• iPad Air (3rd generation and later)
• iPad (6th generation and later)
• iPad mini (5th generation and later)

 

[ApostolisApo]

Even a tiny latency is a deal-breaker for professional use (coding)...

 

[Jacquesass]

[Starts looking on eBay for a 2019 5k iMac because Apple refuses to sell a 5k Thunderbolt display…]

 

[Think|Different]

People aren’t talking about these features enough. I gasped when they showed the three devices ‘magically’ working together with “no setup.”

 

[EugW]

I can still use my Target Display Mode 2010 iMac as a second display with any Mac, or even a Windows PC.

The main problem is that Apple has killed subpixel anti-aliasing, which makes any recent version of macOS look bad on non-Retina screens.

 

[RumorConsumer]

It says via WiFi or wired via usb cable. Presumably if your machines all had wired Ethernet internet connections it would still work? Could somebody try?

 

[antwormcity]

Its great for Airplay and watching movies or videos, running slide shows. There is compression and some latency.

'Likely' forget about doing some photo editing or writing code/documents, the mouse cursor/keystroke lag might just make it unusable in that scenario. Good feature though its probably just targeted at Media viewing, not as an external display replacement.

 

[turbineseaplane]

As others are mentioning..

The latency makes this a non starter as a true TDM replacement

 

[Apple_Robert]

Yeah, no I would've loved Target Display mode for my 2020 iMac to connect a PlayStation or something to it. This is alright for some things, but frankly I don't see myself using it

Says the person getting a computer degree. Get with the program already.

 

[MauiPa]

Even a tiny latency is a deal-breaker for professional use (coding)...

Article said you could use it wired to avoid latency

 

[dumoore]

This is what really frustrates me about Apple product features. Such a simple feature, that would make lives easier - let me use my older iMac as a second display. But Apple really knows how to delay, and then half deliver it because they know what's best for us.

 

[MauiPa]

As others are mentioning..

The latency makes this a non starter as a true TDM replacement

did I miss something in the article about latency when using it wired?

 

[jclardy]

That's a very cool feature for people with desktop and a macbook on the side, for portable use.

I mainly want this since I have a shared iMac (M1) and will eventually upgrade to M1X/M2X MBP...at that point I still want to use the incredible iMac display, but with the much improved performance of the future MBP.

Basically Apple displays are too good to "die off" with the computer they are permanently attached to, I'm still hoping a true target display mode successor is built.

 

[MauiPa]

I can still use my Target Display Mode 2010 iMac as a second display with any Mac, or even a Windows PC.

The main problem is that Apple has killed subpixel anti-aliasing, which makes any recent version of macOS look bad on non-Retina screens.

Even with the correct color profile? I have never had an issue. Well truthfully, once I did, the monitor somehow got a bad color profile, so I went into settings checked the profile, click all better, looks great, not "bad" and it was nowhere near A RETINA