March 29, 2026
Retina-gate goes 4K-ish
New Apple Silicon M4 and M5 HiDPI Limitation on 4K External Displays
4K looks fuzzier on new Macs, users cry foul and blame Apple favoritism
TLDR: New M4/M5 Macs won’t offer the sharpest “Retina” 4K mode on external 4K monitors, leaving some users seeing softer text compared to older models. Commenters split between conspiracy and pragmatism: some accuse Apple of protecting its own displays, others say it’s niche—while one suggests emailing Tim Cook to get it fixed.
Apple’s newest M4 and M5 Macs have quietly dropped the sharpest “Retina-style” 4K option for external monitors, and the community is having a full-on Retina-gate moment. Users say macOS now tops out at a softer-looking scaled mode (3360×1890) instead of the super-crisp 4K HiDPI older M2/M3 machines offered. The author ran a mini forensics lab—custom display files, monitor info hacks, the works—and found it’s likely a software choice, not a hardware limit. Even the BetterDisplay dev confirmed you can trick the system into higher modes on paper, but you can’t make a 4K panel magically accept an 8K signal.
That’s where the drama starts. Some, like skullone, swear their screens are suddenly fuzzier and suspect Apple’s making third‑party monitors look worse to nudge people toward Apple displays. Others clap back: wmf calls this an unusual power-user setup almost no one uses, suggesting Apple just doesn’t prioritize it. Meanwhile, practical voices ask if the standard 1080p-at-2x “Retina” option still exists (it does), hinting most folks won’t notice.
The memes rolled in fast: “my eyes are being gaslit,” “4K but make it blurry,” and “CSI: EDID” for the author’s sleuthing. One veteran move stole the show: nuker’s “email Tim Cook” fix—he says it worked for a past display bug. In short: a niche but vocal crowd feels abandoned, the skeptics say it’s a non-issue, and everyone’s watching to see if a macOS update restores the crispness. Until then, it’s sharp words about soft pixels.
Key Points
- •macOS on Apple Silicon M4/M5 no longer offers full-resolution 3840x2160 HiDPI on 4K displays; max HiDPI is 3360x1890.
- •Tests on identical macOS versions and the same LG 32UN880 show M2 Max supports 3840x2160 HiDPI while M5 Max does not.
- •DCP reports identical capabilities for both systems, and M5 Max supports 8K@60Hz per Apple, suggesting a software restriction.
- •Display override plists that enable 7680x4320-backed HiDPI on M2 have no effect on M5; WindowServer does not enumerate the mode.
- •Software EDID overrides can influence mode enumeration on M4, but practical fixes are limited for real 4K panels; no working workaround is provided.