Using 2015 Retina 27" iMac as monitor for 2019 Retina iMac possible?

[kingnimrod]

I have a 2015 5k 27" Retina iMac, and have a 2019 5k 27" retina iMac coming today.

Is it possible for me to use the 2015 as a second monitor for the 2019? Apple support says "no" but I want to believe there's some way to make it happen, as I'd love to keep both machines on the desk here and use the 2015 as a render node for my AE work.

 

[CoastalOR]

None of the retina iMacs support Target Display Mode.

Use your iMac as a display with target display mode - Apple Support

Target display mode is a feature available with certain older Mac models.

support.apple.com

 

[kingnimrod]

None of the retina iMacs support Target Display Mode.

Use your iMac as a display with target display mode - Apple Support

Target display mode is a feature available with certain older Mac models.

support.apple.com

I know this - I am looking dor an alternate method

 

[ondert]

I just saw this but you have to ruin your 2015;

 

[Fishrrman]

If you want "a second display", then BUY a SECOND display.

The 2015 iMac ain't gonna do it.

 

[kingnimrod]

I have a second display, but I'd prefer to have 2 imacs sitting here working together.

This forum disappoints.

 

[nicho]

Why not connect them via a Thunderbolt 2 cable with a Thunderbolt 2 to 3 adapter. You get a link between the two that exceeds the speed of SSDs, ie it won't be a bottleneck.

As to controlling, logitech make mice and keyboards that can connect to both and switch between them easily.

You're not going to get them to function as one seamlessly like a 2nd display would be an extension of the first, but it sounds like you'd like to offload tasks to it to free up the main machine, which can be done.

 

[kingnimrod]

it's just a matter of desk space. I don't really have the room to have 3 27" displays on my desktop.

 

[ScreenSavers]

You could look into Luna display.

(I actually purchased it and found it to be somewhat laggy, but it is probably the only option)

 

[Ledgem]

Yes, you can. About ten years ago I had three monitors - one was connected properly to the graphics card, and the other was a computer where the display was being used through a VNC connection. The software that I used was called ScreenRecycler, although that website now leads here and may not be available anymore. In other words, the computer hosting the monitor runs a remote desktop that your main computer connects to and extends the desktop over, treating it as a monitor. There's latency compared with a properly connected monitor but I'd imagine that if you could run it over Thunderbolt instead of ethernet or Wifi you could do pretty well... Luna Display probably works similarly.

It works very well if you're using your other display for something like reading text documents or webpages. If you're trying to watch videos or play games I'm not sure that you'll be quite as happy, but as I said, I haven't tried it with a faster connection.

Good luck.