Mac OS accessibility and third-party monitors

[bear_in_mind]

Greetings:

I have a late-2015 27" iMac 5K which meets my needs except it's now reached Mac OS end-of-life (running Monterey OS 12.7.6) and the internal SSD is probably nearing it's end of life as well.

My issue: I am a low-vision user. With Mac OS Accessibility, I can instantaneously zoom the screen with a double-tap on the Apple Magic Mouse and loses virtually none of the text sharpness. This is a *huge* feature for me = prevents severe eye strain and migraines.

However, Apple now only sells a 24" iMac, and seems there's few choices of 27" monitors which run Apple OS at native resolution (i.e. Apple Studio Display and LG Ultrafine 5K). And it appears there are NO monitors larger than 27" (other than Apple's 32" Pro Display XDR) that run Apple OS at native resolution.

And I've gone to Apple's Genius Bar several times and they could not recommend ANY third-party monitors that would retain that accessibility functioning.

I'm fine with upgrading to an M4 machine, probably a MacBook Pro w/ Pro CPU, to help 'future proof' my investment. I wish I could run a new Apple M4 CPU using my 27" iMac 5K as a monitor, but I don't think that's practicable.

Would love input on options and monitor ideas.

Thank you!

 

[theluggage]

And I've gone to Apple's Genius Bar several times and they could not recommend ANY third-party monitors that would retain that accessibility functioning.

That's not very genius-y of them - I see no reason why this feature wouldn't work on any display.

I have a third party 4k display, and I've just tried enabling the Zoom feature in the Accessibility settings - works fine (I don't have a Magic Mouse but enabling 3-finger double-tap on a Magic Trackpad works, as does Ctrl key + scroll wheel on my mouse).

My display is a Huawei Mateview 28" - which isn't very helpful since they're hard to get now - but there are plenty of 4k 27" and larger displays around.

There are various threads on 4k vs. 5k displays here - IMO while 5k is visibly better, as it should be, 4k is a reasonable compromise given the price difference, and while there are issues with 4k they are often highly overstated.

I can't make judgements about your eyesight but I somehow doubt that the slight "softness" and artefacts around 1-pixel details are going to bother you... and going for 4k screens much larger than 27" means people with 20:20 vision will be able to make out individual pixels. The horror.

Also, all of those issues are around the scaled "looks like 2560x1440" 4k mode that people choose to get the same physical UI size (menus, icons, system fonts) as the default on a 5k display which - quite frankly - is a bit small for my eyes. Running in "looks like 1920x1080" mode will give you pixel-perfect 4k images with the downside of a slightly chunky (but not IMO unusably so on a 27" screen) UI - which you might actually prefer.

 

[FreakinEurekan]

I agree with @theluggage, virtually any display should work fine for you. Depending on the nature of your vision issues I'd even look at a 27" WQHD (2560x1440) as it should scale EXACTLY like your 5k iMac... text enlarged on that should be quite clear, and if your eyes aren't picking out the details of the Retina display I doubt you'd be able to tell the difference.

 

[Fishrrman]

I'd suggest either a 27" 4k display
or
A 32" 4k display.

I'm wondering if a 32" 4k display, running at "looks like 1080p" (which is "HiDPI mode" on the Mac), would produce an image sufficiently large that you wouldn't need to "zoom it in".

Granted, nearly everyone would otherwise say that a 32" 4k display @ looks like 1080p would display text (at normal font sizes) that was "too large".

Hmmm....
Got to ask:
If you're a "low-vision user", how do you comfortably view ANY MacBook Pro out there...?

 

[bear_in_mind]

That's not very genius-y of them - I see no reason why this feature wouldn't work on any display.

I have a third party 4k display, and I've just tried enabling the Zoom feature in the Accessibility settings - works fine (I don't have a Magic Mouse but enabling 3-finger double-tap on a Magic Trackpad works, as does Ctrl key + scroll wheel on my mouse).

My display is a Huawei Mateview 28" - which isn't very helpful since they're hard to get now - but there are plenty of 4k 27" and larger displays around.

There are various threads on 4k vs. 5k displays here - IMO while 5k is visibly better, as it should be, 4k is a reasonable compromise given the price difference, and while there are issues with 4k they are often highly overstated.

I can't make judgements about your eyesight but I somehow doubt that the slight "softness" and artefacts around 1-pixel details are going to bother you... and going for 4k screens much larger than 27" means people with 20:20 vision will be able to make out individual pixels. The horror.

Also, all of those issues are around the scaled "looks like 2560x1440" 4k mode that people choose to get the same physical UI size (menus, icons, system fonts) as the default on a 5k display which - quite frankly - is a bit small for my eyes. Running in "looks like 1920x1080" mode will give you pixel-perfect 4k images with the downside of a slightly chunky (but not IMO unusably so on a 27" screen) UI - which you might actually prefer.

Thanks for the feedback and insights! I agree re: the Genius staff, but I suspect they've been coached not to endorse third-party products.

I had been using a Windows PC at work and it was miserable. I know, Apples and lemons, but when my vision changed, I realized just how grossly disparate their PPI were -- and how limited the solutions were on their side of the tech landscape because it starts with the OS.

I will see if I can arrange some testing on my own w/ third-party 4K monitors before plunking down the money, but really appreciate you testing out the Zoom function on your Huawei for me as a proof of concept.

 

[bear_in_mind]

I'd suggest either a 27" 4k display
or
A 32" 4k display.

I'm wondering if a 32" 4k display, running at "looks like 1080p" (which is "HiDPI mode" on the Mac), would produce an image sufficiently large that you wouldn't need to "zoom it in".

Granted, nearly everyone would otherwise say that a 32" 4k display @ looks like 1080p would display text (at normal font sizes) that was "too large".

Hmmm....
Got to ask:
If you're a "low-vision user", how do you comfortably view ANY MacBook Pro out there...?

I would prefer a 32" display, for sure, but not sure how well they'd render. The pixelization and lack of sharpness is where I've run into trouble.

I've done some informal testing with third-party monitors and it hasn't been great, but the only way to find out is likely to get the M4 CPU and then put some monitors through their paces.

As for being low-vision, it sorta sucks, but you make-do. I use an iPhone, but it's usually 2" from my face. I've tried using the Accessibility features on it (w/ training via Lighthouse for the Blind) and I may eventually get to the point where that's my only option, but for now, it's still much more efficient to use what vision I have available.

So yeah, a MBP wouldn't be optimal, but it's all a matter of degrees. It's a larger portable screen than iPhone for mobility/travel, can drive larger future monitors, and enough CPU/GPU 'oomph' to hopefully last close to a decade (like my '15 iMac; and it's predecessor, an '07 MBP, which still works, but Apple EOL'd it's functionality as well).

 

[chown33]

I suggest going back to the Apple Store and asking to try out the Accessibility settings on one of their display Mac minis. You might need their help in getting to the actual settings.

First, though, I suggest writing down all your current accessibility Zoom settings, along with the Mouse or Trackpad gestures, so you can just walk down that list in the Apple Store while setting things up. Be sure to write down the name of each setting, because then you can use that in the Search field of Settings to find it. Individual settings and options have moved around in the past, so it's best to be prepared to search by name or keyword.

One thing to definitely try at the store is the screen resolution setting. If the display they have is better than the one you might purchase, you should still be able to find out what the upper bound of screen quality would be. It might also show the real-world differences between 4K and 5K, or whether you even notice a difference.

 

[MacCheetah3]

I have low-vision, ~20/200 - 20/400. I utilize Zoom (Control + scroll) and Hover Text on macOS. I also use Zoom on iDevices. I tried Hover Text on tvOS, but it seemed too glitchy.

I’m not sure how well this will demonstrate the display quality, although, I’m happy with it.

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