When I do my office work on my MacBook Air, I have to open a lot of Browsers, Windows, applications and Tabs. Which looks very small and do not fit in my MacBook Air’s 13 inch screen, And I face a lot of trouble daily.
After being troubled for a long time in this problem, I thought of connecting an external monitor to it And I brought new monitor next day and connected it to my Macbook Air within 10 minutes.
If you also want to connect your MacBook Air to External monitor, but don’t know how to connect it, keep reading. I will guide you step by step.
Then what to wait for? Let’s connect external monitor!
What do you Need to Connect External Monitor to MacBook Air?
To connect your MacBook Air, first of all you will have to gather the necessary equipment, which are:
An external monitor and a cable, which will connect the monitor and MacBook Air.
But how to identify which cables do I need?
1. Check the Port on your MacBook
First of all, you have to check the port of your MacBook Air to see which type of video output cable will be inserted in it. Mostly MacBook Air laptops have 2 Thunderbolt/USB 4 ports, and my Mac also has Thunderbolt ports.
Now it is final that we will need Thunderbolt cable at the first end. Now let’s find out the 2nd end.
2. Check your Monitor
Now check your monitor to see what type of cable option it has. Most monitors have these options:
- HDMI port
- DisplayPort
- DVI port
- VGA port
- Thunderbolt cable
Now you have to ensure which port your monitor has, my monitor has HDMI port. This means that I will need a Thunderbolt to HDMI cable, similarly you will also have to get compatible cables.
Now let’s move towards step by step process!
How to Connect External monitor to MacBook Air?
Here is the step-by-step guide that I followed to connect external monitor to my MacBook Air:
1. Insert the Thunderbolt end to your MacBook Air.
2: Insert the HDMI end (or whatever port type your monitor has) to the monitor.
3. Plug In the Monitor and turn it on.
4. Turn on Your MacBook Air.
5. In your Mac, Click on the Apple logo from the top-left corner.
6. Click on System settings or preferences.
7. Click on Displays.
8. Now your MacBook Air will automatically detect the external monitor and now you will be able to see the display on the monitor.
But If it doesn’t detect your monitor then you will have to follow these steps:
1. Press and hold the Options button on your Mac’s keyboard
2. Click on Detect Display
3. Now your MacBook Air will detect the connected display and show the display in it.
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How to change External Monitor Display Arrangements?
Click on the Arrangement tab after connecting the monitor.
To display the MacBook Air’s duplicate/mirror screen in the Monitor, Click on the Mirror Displays button.
To change the main display, drag the white menu bar to the display you want to set as the main display.
To change brightness and resolution of the external monitor, Go to the “Display” section and adjust them.
What type of Monitors Can I Use with my MacBook Air?
You can connect any type of monitors to your MacBook Air which have HDMI ports, USB-C ports DVI ports and Thunderbolt ports etc with cable.
But if you want to connect your MacBook Air to the monitor wirelessly, then you can also choose a compatible Smart TV. You just have to Input a code displayed in your Smart TV to your laptop with AirPlay.
And you can also use iPad as an external screen which has iPadOS 13 or latest version, you can search the rest of the information about it online.
Can I connect my MacBook Air to a PC Monitor?
Yes, you can connect a PC Monitor to your MacBook Air laptop. You just have to get the correct cable which can connect both of them.
For Example: If your PC monitor have VGA port and your Mac have Thunderbolt port, you will need a VGA to Thunderbolt adapter.
To know how to connect them, you can follow the method provided above.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
How to connect more than one monitor to my MacBook Air?
It is not possible to connect more than one monitor in all MacBook Air models. If you want to check the compatibility of your Mac, you will have to follow these steps:
First of all, you have to Click on the Apple logo from the top left of the screen > About this Mac > Copy the serial number > Go to Apple Tech Specifications page > paste the serial number in the search bar and find details about maximum number of supported displays under Video Support section.
Does MacBook Air support 4K or Ultra HD monitors?
Yes, you can connect external 4K or Ultra HD monitor with your MacBook Air with resolutions up to 3840 x 2160 pixels at 30Hz.
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How to mirror/extend my MacBook Air display to the external monitor?
Click on the Apple logo > System Preferences > Displays and choose Mirror Display (to show the same screen on both screens) or Extend Display (to expand the desktop over 2 screens).
Conclusion
After connecting an external monitor to my MacBook Air, multitasking has become much easier for me and my work also gets completed earlier than before.
If you also want to connect your Mac to an external display, then you will just need the right cable which can connect both the devices. And to know the step by step process to connect them, you can follow the method provided bro.
If you face any problem in connecting Mac Air and external display, then you can tell me below. I will try to provide you the solution to your problem as soon as possible.
