Screen res issues with Mac Mini - the glaucoma option

[Deschodt]

I just got a 2.6 Ghz 2014 Mac mini with a Fusion drive. Middle of the road thing...(not the fastest, not the 1.4, fusion drive).

[For info, it's not THAT much faster than the 2010 imac it is replacing (Macgeek score : single core 1950->2880, multicore: 4150->5985]

I was hoping to use it with an existing 27" TV/LED monitor that does 1080p HDMI... I cannot complain too much, it works...'ish... Apparently, the same resolution that looked surprisingly good on the old Imac (1920x1024 I think) looks ass-tastic on this because this is a little bigger (not that much, they lie on size while apple is spot on) but surprisingly less clear?

It's grainy. It's the exact opposite of the reaction you get when you see a Retina screen. Call it "glaucoma". Not pretty...

Yosemite is not exactly forthcoming on res either: I can choose "Best for your ****** display" or "scaled" -> all those scaled options are even lesser.

I think I know the answer but I gotta ask: it's the monitor right? Using a DVI adapter (no longer supplied with the mini) won't change a thing, right ?

It's a friggin' TV and it's maxed out at 1080P, correct? I'm annoyed because before my move I gave away a nice 24" dell monitor which I betcha the mini could have driven to a much higher res. I kept the TV instead based on its bigger size but it's doing me no good... So my options if I still hate it tomorrow morning would be a 4K monitor ($$$) and a thunderbolt cable, right ? Or can I find a decent 24" real monitor for cheap (sub $200) that'll give me more resolution options?

 

[Sun Baked]

First try the simple solution first, like make sure the tv is expecting a computer on the HDMI port you are using.

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1466634/

then check things out on the tv setting so you don't have to mess with overscan, or underscan.

 

[Neodym]

surprisingly less clear? It's grainy.

Not really surprising. The bigger the screen for a given resolution, the bigger the individual dots become, thus looking grainy.

I think I know the answer but I gotta ask: it's the monitor right? Using a DVI adapter (no longer supplied with the mini) won't change a thing, right ?

Probably. Can't say for sure without exact name/model of monitor.

It's a friggin' TV and it's maxed out at 1080P, correct?

As it seems to have been marketed as TV/monitor combo, probability is high that it indeed features only a 1080p panel, thus it looks grainy for monitor use.

So my options if I still hate it tomorrow morning would be a 4K monitor ($$$) and a thunderbolt cable, right ?

AFAIK even the 2014 mini does not properly support 4k natively (only 30/24Hz), so you'd have to tinker to get a halfway decent result. At least you could use the HDMI port for it with a 2014 mini. (Mind you - you would need a suitable HDMI cable for it. An old, el-cheapo HDMI 1.1 cable won't work).

Or can I find a decent 24" real monitor for cheap (sub $200) that'll give me more resolution options?

Cheap 24" monitors offer only 1920x1080 or max. 1920x1200.

 

[Crosscreek]

It's a friggin' TV and it's maxed out at 1080P, correct? I'm annoyed because before my move I gave away a nice 24" dell monitor which I betcha the mini could have driven to a much higher res. I kept the TV instead based on its bigger size but it's doing me no good... So my options if I still hate it tomorrow morning would be a 4K monitor ($$$) and a thunderbolt cable, right ? Or can I find a decent 24" real monitor for cheap (sub $200) that'll give me more resolution options?

Check out the Dell web site. They are having a big sale on IPS monitors. Also Newegg and TigerDirect are running a lot of Black Friday sales. Use Thunder bolt to DVI for your best viewing.

 

[Deschodt]

I went to the local best buy (close than apple store) and yeah, you are right, even decent 24" monitors are 1920x1080 only - as I understand they will look a tad crisper than the TV but not $200 crisper... so that won't do...

Right next to it was a Mac Mini (a 2.8 but essentially same video as mine) driving a Thunderbolt display, the apple 27 at 2550x1600 something.... Yowza !!! Now that's is the level of clarity I want ! Maybe not that big necessarily, but it was crisp, so at least I know the mini "can". I couldn't justify the $900 monitor however.

I'm getting used to the mediocrity, after some more tuning with brightness and contrast... Apparently monitors capable of 25xx by 16xx don't come under $450 (benQ) or $550 for more reputable brands. Oh well...