Software Dummy Display Adapter for Apple Silicon Macs to Have Custom HiDPI Resolutions.

Istvan T.

Last update: Jan 9, 2023

Related tags

Utility mac resolution custom display screen virtual dummy hdmi mini m1 hidpi 4k qhd

Overview

BetterDummy

Dummy Display for Apple Silicon Macs to achieve custom resolutions.

About

M1 macs tend to have issues with custom resolutions. Notoriously they don't allow sub 4K resolution displays to have HiDPI ("Retina") resolutions even though a 22" - 24" QHD display would greatly benefit from having an 1920x1080 HiDPI mode.

To fix this issue, many resort to buying a 4K HDMI dummy dongle to fool macOS into thinking that a 4K display is connected and then mirror the contents of this dummy display to the physical lower-res display in order to have HDMI resolution. This approach has obvious drawbacks (you need to buy a dummy, you render your HDMI port useless etc.)

To alleviate this problem, DummyDisplay creates a virtual dummy display for you which you can then utilize as a mirror main.

Advantages of BetterDummy over a physical 4K HDMI dummy plug:

Your HDMI port will remain usable for an other display.
Does not suffer from issues that prevalent with the physical dummy route (like jittery mouse cursor).
Offers a much wideer variety of HiDPI and standard resolutions.
Works with all aspect ratios, does not depend on what resoluations are recorded in the dummy's EDID/firmware.
Does not utilize graphics hardware in vain so it is somewhat faster.
Available instantly + totally free. :)

Usage

Start the app
In the app menu choose Connect Dummy and select your desired aspect ratio

In System Preferences -> Displays you'll see the new screen (for example Dummy 16:9)
Activate mirroring with main display being the Dummy display
Set the dummy display as Optimize for
Set Resolution as Scaled
Click Show all resolutions

You'll see a long list of available resolutions - select the desired resolution.

NOTES:

HiDPI resolutions are followed by non-HiDPI resolutions so don't forget to scroll down, it's a long list!
You might have to fight with the Displays tab in Preferences sometimes as (at least on Monterey) the Optimize for setting tends to reset at random times to the physical display for unknown reasons while changing the settings (the Displays tab appears to be rather buggy in general).

The app saves the dummy display configuratio and automatically restore it upon next restart.

Compatibility

The app and instructions were tested on an M1 MBA and mini running Monterey but according to reports works on Big Sur as well.

Build and Installation

You'll need to build the app in XCode:

Clone the app
Open the project in XCode
Change signing settings to suit your configuration
Build & Run

An unsigned beta release is also provided.

Don't forget to check out

If you like this app, you'll like MonitorControl even more! Control the brightness, volume of your external display like it would be a native Apple display!

Special Thanks

The basic idea and some of the code was adapted from FluffyDisplay. Thanks to @tml1024!

How to help

You can contribute to the code. If you want to donate or buy me a lunch, please let me know! :)

Comments

Dummy mirroring method for HiDPI scaling (native smooth scaling not affected) - Colors flicker or shade/tone changes after sleep when dummies are mirrored

When I use the option "Disconnect and reconnect on sleep" or "Disconnect and reconnect on lock" (which by the way are very useful), my screen starts flickering after a reconnection is triggered by those events.

The flickering is like a small variation on brightness only every time I move the mouse pointer by 1px, very strange! The flickering is not visible when doing screen recordings, so I manually recorded a video with my camera, however the effect is more noticeable in person than what the camera shows:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a5oewKMhYew (flickering from 0:30 onwards)

The only way to stop the flickering is quit BetterDummy or manually disconnect and reconnect the dummy.

Any idea of why this bizarre issue happens?
information known issue

opened by cprcrack 179
Option to disconnect/reconnect dummies after sleep to further fix sleep issues

Hi, I'm using MBA M1 on my 34uc88 (2k) monitor and I really like the app. The only issue that I have is that is does not display any picture on the external device once MBA is waking from sleep. I have to kill the app and re-launch it, which is daunting. Is there any way to fix this?
enhancement done released

opened by wookash 33
Dummy mirroring method for HiDPI scaling (native smooth scaling not affected) - High refresh displays (refresh rates above 60Hz) are not supported

Issue description

Creating high refresh rate dummies in order to mirror them to high refresh rate displays is not possible.

Root cause

This is an inherent limitation of the macOS CGVirtualDisplay API used by the app therefore cannot be fixed at this time.

Resolution

The situation might change once Apple introduces ProMotion for AirPlay or Sidecar.
information known issue

opened by waydabber 31
Mouse cursor showing up with some delay after typing when dummy mirroring is applied in macOS 12.5 or Ventura beta4/5 (macOS bug)

Hi! I'm currently using BetterDisplay with a Dell S3220DGF, and had this curious problem where the mouse cursor doesn't show up immediately after mouse movement after it normally disappears during typing.

Illustration here: https://youtu.be/-mJYMJAfsEo. I immediately started moving the mouse after typing a few letters but the cursor only shows up after a small delay, meaning I couldn't find the cursor for a brief moment.

However, when I try to do screen recording using shift+command+5, the recording did not pick up this issue and the cursor appeared immediately, despite the fact that I'm seeing the delay on the screen.

Comparing to directly connecting without using BetterDisplay, the mouse cursor appears immediately when I move the mouse: https://youtu.be/pnAjhbmxhF0
known issue

opened by GaryHanchengLiQB 29
Max. HiDPI resolution for Pro Display XDR?

Hi there,

u write:

NEW! Convert your internal and natively connected external displays to smoothly-scaled HiDPI displays on Apple Silicon - now even without mirroring a dummy (displays with notch, HDR, HDCP, high refresh rate fully supported)! *

But it does not, iam added 4k without Dummy in BetterDisplay to my Pro Display XDR in a MB16 M1 MAX but it does not show up in HiDPI also after reboot :/
awaiting response from issue reporter investigating

opened by Zorast 23
Random flickering starting after a while of use

Hey,

so my setup has been working well for a while. I have an M1 Macbook air and one external monitor. I use a Dummy which I then mirror to my external screen and use the internal monitor as an extended screen. Now, this setup has been stable, even through sleep. I've checked all the optional sleep options. However, since yesterday I am running into this weird issue where towards the afternoon my external monitor will start to flicker a lot. The only way to fix it is to quit better dummy or, surprisingly, to just wait. After an hour or so the flickering gets less and less noticeable until it seems to disappear. At the start of the flickering, there also seems to be some kind of burn-in or leftover pixels in my screen from whatever window I had open at the start of the flickering, those fade with time too. Also, there are some noticeable vertical lines on the screen at the start of the flickering which also fade away over time. The problem persists through MacBook restarts, better dummy reinstalls, and the creation of new dummies. Really weird issue and seems unrelated to sleep, do you have any idea what might be causing it/how to fix it? I am also running f.lux and Monitorcontrol with the gamma value table turned off, quitting those apps doesn't fix the issue though
duplicate

opened by M0mentoMemes 21
Black bar/border, or wrong resolution on some configurations when doing mirroring

Issue description

Mirroring a dummy on some Intel Macs might result in lack of HiDPI resolutions or black bar/border around the screen in some configurations.

Root cause

The problem is related to how virtual displays and mirroring is handled on Intel Macs as opposed to Apple Silicon Macs.

Resolution

For the affected Intel Macs other tools are available to create custom resolutions which might be more practical to use. BetterDummy is still suitable to create virtual displays on headless Intel Macs.
enhancement done known issue released

opened by waydabber 21
Bug: after waking up a mirrored display is dim and BetterDummy is not responding until force quit and start again

Quite often after a long sleep and waking up the external display is dim and BetterDummy is not responding. Scaling etc works though. After I force to quit it in the Process manager and start again everything returns to normal. I have this issue for quite long time already with different versions. Can't say when I found it the first time.

BetterDummy Pro v1.2.7 build 8076 MacOS 12.4 MacBook Pro M1 Max 14" Xiaomi Curved Gaming Monitor 34" connected through Satechi Thunderbolt 4 dock and GRWIBEOU USB-C -> DisplayPort 8K cable
can't reproduce workaround available

opened by vheathen 20
About the color of the screen

First of all, thank you very much for enabling me to open hidpi.However, I found a problem. After turning on hidpi, the display on the screen became gray. Trying to adjust the display and the description file could not be significantly alleviated.I don't know what happened, can you help me?My external monitor is DELL U2520DR.Thank you!
bug done

opened by tangruilover 20
App incorrectly sets default DDC contrast (and for v1.3.x R/G/B black level) upon changing brightness after starting the app the first time

The DDC setting for Contrast, Red Gain, Red Black Gain, Blue Gain, Blue Black Gain, Green Gain, Green Black Gain completely broke the contrast settings on LG external monitors, making them appearing as extremely high contrast. The display contrast is broken immediately after changing brightness using the hotkey while on the beta. Lowering the contrast to 0 turns make the screen black, while turning it to 100 make it high contrast again. No value between 0 - 100 for any setting can restore the display to the original contrast profile. This issue has been seen on a LG 32GK650F and LG Gram+ View (portable monitor). On the LG 32GK650F, the only way to fix this is by going to the monitor settings and choosing "Picture Reset". Afterwards, BetterDisplay works normally and no longer breaks the contrast profile. On the LG Gram+ View, since there is no OSD to change the settings, the monitor contrast profile is completely broken. I've tried fine-tuning all the DDC settings, but nothing seems to restore it to the original settings. It's either clipping out all the highlights or just too dark.

Any help on this issue is greatly appreciated!
bug done released DDC

opened by alohaquando 17
Add option to limit native smooth scaling min. and max. resolution

Hi,

As described in title setting resolution over 3000 pixels (for example 3076) cause crash of Monterey (12.5 - latest stable) and restarts whole system.

In fact that high resolution is useless, so maybe you can add possibility of setting minimum and maximum resolution on slider (to avoid ultra low and ultra high resolutions)?

Best regards
enhancement done released

opened by dmkpoznan 16
Add brightness and volume sliders to relevant submenus if disabled in main menu

Similar to how the contrast slider works, if these sliders are disabled in the main menu, they should still be added to the relecant submenus (Image Adjustments, DDC Control)
enhancement done unreleased

opened by waydabber 1
Option to turn off panel backlight when combined brightness is set to zero

For compatible displays the panel backlight could be turned off when the screen is dimmed to 0% and then turned back on again.

Most displays won't work with this but some do so this should be disabled by default.

Related to #1177
enhancement done unreleased DDC

opened by waydabber 1
Option to turn off panel backlight on screensaver (for compatible displays when they are used as secondary display)

For multi-monitor setups it would be great if the panel backlight could be turned off upon screensaver start and turned back on upon logging back.

Since the login screen is displayed while the screensaver is still in operation, this feature should be enabled for compatible secondary displays only (not the main display).

Related to #1177
enhancement done unreleased DDC

opened by waydabber 2
Better support for XDR display presets
Support should be improved for non-default Apple XDR display presets (some users might be using these).

Recognize reference modes that has hardware brightness control disabled (switch to software brightness control)

Recognize switch from XDR mode to and from non-XDR mode and disable/enable upscaling accordingly

Adapt to Reference HDR mode properly

enhancement done unreleased
opened by waydabber 0

Releases(v1.3.9)

v1.3.9(Dec 8, 2022)
About this version

This release contains improvements and bug fixes.

Enhancements

Added EDID override feature (Intel only) - #1204

Option to leave native mute key under OS control (for displays with problematic mute control) - #1220

Added options to select various DDC muting/unmuting methods - #1020

Added underscan slider for supported displays - #1207

Made EDID export folder selectable with a proper save dialog - #1239

Fixed

Config Protection - Protect Main Status toggle does not work - #1231

If mute is marked as not supported, the app does not switch to mute via zero volume - #1225

Last line is missing in under Show display information - #1209

Typo in General settings - #1221

Change log of v1.3.x versions

Changes in v1.3.8

Enhancements

Add feature to customize DDC inputs for a display - #1128

Add Undo/Skip possibility for display configuration editing - #1174

Add EDID export support for Intel Macs - #1155

Autodetect EDID size for direct I2C read by getting extension block numbers - #1191

Fixed: Start at login issue on Ventura until app added manually at least once - #1180

Fixed: When configured, DDC read is happening on startup despite safe mode activated - #1187

Fixed: Intel Macs - Mirroring briefly works and then the mirror breaks (previous state returns) - #1192

Fixed: Intel Macs - Resolution increase/decrease keyboard shortcuts did not work as expected - #1190

Fixed: Intel Macs - HiDPI toggle does not seem to work properly (unable to switch to LoDPI with the toggle) - #1189

Fixed: Intel Macs - some valid resolutions show up as Invalid - #1188

Fixed: Intel Macs - Reading DDC values on start does not work - #1186

Fixed: Intel Macs - DDC control seems a bit less smooth than optimal, timings should be adjusted - #1185

Fixed: Intel Macs - HDR upscaling should be disabled on Intel (only causes weird colors) - #1184

Fixed: Intel Macs - HDR checkbox value does not change after toggling HDR on an external display - #1183

Fixed: Intel Macs - Refresh rate value is not visible under Set Resolution for built-in display - #1182

Fixed: Intel Macs - Contrast and gain color adjustments cause artifacts - #1181

Removed: Display control compatibility setting is now removed from Settings/General as it is not relevant anymore - #1179

Changes in v1.3.7

Added rotation toggle keyboard shortcut option + ignore built-in screen option - #1169

FIXED: Legacy auto-start is broken/crashes in v1.3.5/v1.3.6 - #1175

Changes in v1.3.6

Add keyboard shortcut for DDC inputs - #1129

Add alternate formats for copyable EDID data - #1156

Separate DDC support and EDID and I/O Registry parsing toggle (Apple Silicon) - #1154

Support for DDC scale skew (curve) setting - #1153

Toggle for automatic brightness adjustment (Apple native) - #1171

Minor UI tweak - delegate some less used settings to an expandable block under Settings/keyboards - #1162

FIXED: Startup DDC mute read works in reverse - #1166 opened 2 days ago by waydabber

FIXED: DDC reads do not adhere to min and max DDC value overrides - #1167

FIXED: XDR upscaling is not always not enabled after launching the app the first time - have to open twice. - #1158

FIXED: Combined brightness slider does not reflect properly externally induced Apple display brightness changes - #1170

Changes in v1.3.5

DDC Display Input control - #604

Retrieve and export EDID data from display (Apple Silicon only) - #1112

Show detailed display info under Settings/Displays (Apple Silicon only ) - #1144

Ability to customize factory reset and input select DDC control codes - #1136

Added option to customize display name and menu icon - #1137

Use new API (SMAppService) for automatic login (macOS Ventura only) - #1125

Updated Paddle SDK to new v4.4 version - #1139

Fixed: The expand icon (wide chevron) at the bottom of menu blocks is light gray and not obvious enough - #1111

Fixed: Unfoldable advanced settings font not rendered as small in Settings/App Menu - #1143

Fixed: Settings/Displays block look bad in some scenarios when a display is collapsed - #1145

Fixed: Accessibility setting menu icon not hidden when menu icons are generally disabled - #1146

Changes in v1.3.4

Option to display percentage as scaling factor - #1076

Fixed: Refresh Rate menu item should be hidden when a display is mirror target - #1075

Fixed: Some items are missing from the Tools menu - #1079

Changes in v1.3.3

Customizable menubar icon - #722

Show both resolution slider and resolution menu - #1042

Option to hide disconnected dummy from menu - #1068

A more prominent and by default visible way to connect/disconnect dummies - #1067

Refactor/rewrite menu generation - #1066

Fixed: When a display is collapsed and remains the sole display, without its fully hidden from the menu when header for a single display is disabled - #1072

Fixed: When both menu item and header icons are disabled, texts do not line up properly - #1071

Fixed: Some menu items have icons even when icons are disabled - #1070

Fixed: DDC menu appears with a factory reset option for non-DDC compliant displays - #1069

Fixed: The Set Resolution menu is erroneously available for the mirror target display - #1059

Removed: option to have a tri-state collapsible header in menu instead of the more options menu expander - #1048

Changes in v1.3.2-beta

Higher luminance with HDR brightness upscaling calibration - #1053

Recalibrated percentages for brightness upscaling on Apple XDR displays - #1053

Smoother XDR brightness upscaling experience for Apple XDR displays (also avoid overshoot effect) - #1051

Add DDC factory reset to DDC menu

Option to have a tri-state collapsible header in menu instead of the more options menu expander - #1048

Improved native smooth scaling compatibility with some Intel macs - #1041

Fixed: App incorrectly sets default DDC contrast (and for v1.3.x R/G/B black level) upon changing brightness after starting the app the first time - #1046

Fixed: Apple brightness smooth transition toggle has no effect - #1050

Fixed: Sidecar display name appears in random foreign language - #1047

Changes in v1.3.1-beta

Display configuration protection (also: protection for/against VRR) - #995

Keyboard shortcut to start/stop PIP window - #1026

Add display rotation keyboard shortcut - #1014

DDC R/G/B Gain and Black Level adjustments - #1019

Option to enable/disable support for specific DDC controls for a display - #1002

Custom Video Control Codes or multiple codes for DDC control - #1005

Support for on/off value override for the DDC mute command - #1009

Support for inverted control values for DDC - #1004

Support for different scale than the usual 0-100 for DDC - #1003

Options to adjust DDC communication timings - #1008

Add option to customize audio device name associated with the display for DDC volume control - #638

Change More Options... submenu into an expandable area - #1034, #1033

Dismiss button for the blue reboot banner under Settings/Displays - #1011

Option to hide Check for Updates form the Tools menu when it is set to be closable - #1037

All menu block header should be clickable to show/hide block - #1032

Disconnected dummies should be listed under Settings/Displays - #1031

Improve the design of Settings expandable subsections - #989

Fixed: 270 degree PIP and Full Screen Streaming rotation does not work properly - #1028

Changes in v1.3.0-beta

Add option to circumvent the lack of macOS support for the HiDPI variant for native pixel resolution - #965

Support reading DDC values upon startup - #633

Make restoring DDC values optional - #983

Add option to prohibit keyboard control for a display - #967

Add hardware DDC contrast control with keyboard shortcuts - #635

Add option to hide volume OSD for a display - #966

Add option to adjust/disable control smoothing - #634

Improve mirroring submenu usability - #927

Add option to hide a display from the app menu - #984

Collapsible headers for displays under Settings/Displays - #981

Increase the size of Settings a bit - #964

Put the accessibility permissions warning triangle to a more appropriate location - #963

Clarify wording of native smooth scaling manually defined limits - #916

Fixed: In fully headless the default headless virtual display should have a proper name - #986

Fixed: Restoring saved DDC values on startup on Apple Silicon macs - #982

Fixed: Slider percentage does not always exactly match DDC value - #974

Fixed: Upon mirror configuration the menu icon is not updated properly - #943

Fixed: Slider right side text wiggle issue when only sliders are present in the Menu and Tools block is closed - #917

Source code(tar.gz)
Source code(zip)
BetterDisplay-v1.3.9.dmg(5.26 MB)
v1.3.8(Nov 28, 2022)
About this version

This release contains improvements and bug fixes. The release mostly focuses on improving compatibility with Intel Macs (long overdue!) and has some useful new features as well.

The following change log lists all improvements compared to the previous stable v1.3.7 version.

Enhancements

Add feature to customize DDC inputs for a display - #1128

Add Undo/Skip possibility for display configuration editing - #1174

Add EDID export support for Intel Macs - #1155

Autodetect EDID size for direct I2C read by getting extension block numbers - #1191

Fixed

Start at login issue on Ventura until app added manually at least once - #1180

When configured, DDC read is happening on startup despite safe mode activated - #1187

Intel Macs - Mirroring briefly works and then the mirror breaks (previous state returns) - #1192

Intel Macs - Resolution increase/decrease keyboard shortcuts did not work as expected - #1190

Intel Macs - HiDPI toggle does not seem to work properly (unable to switch to LoDPI with the toggle) - #1189

Intel Macs - some valid resolutions show up as Invalid - #1188

Intel Macs - Reading DDC values on start does not work - #1186

Intel Macs - DDC control seems a bit less smooth than optimal, timings should be adjusted - #1185

Intel Macs - HDR upscaling should be disabled on Intel (only causes weird colors) - #1184

Intel Macs - HDR checkbox value does not change after toggling HDR on an external display - #1183

Intel Macs - Refresh rate value is not visible under Set Resolution for built-in display - #1182

Intel Macs - Contrast and gain color adjustments cause artifacts - #1181

Removed

Display control compatibility setting is now removed from Settings/General as it is not relevant anymore - #1179

Change log of v1.3.x versions

Changes in v1.3.7

Added rotation toggle keyboard shortcut option + ignore built-in screen option - #1169

FIXED: Legacy auto-start is broken/crashes in v1.3.5/v1.3.6 - #1175

Changes in v1.3.6

Add keyboard shortcut for DDC inputs - #1129

Add alternate formats for copyable EDID data - #1156

Separate DDC support and EDID and I/O Registry parsing toggle (Apple Silicon) - #1154

Support for DDC scale skew (curve) setting - #1153

Toggle for automatic brightness adjustment (Apple native) - #1171

Minor UI tweak - delegate some less used settings to an expandable block under Settings/keyboards - #1162

FIXED: Startup DDC mute read works in reverse - #1166 opened 2 days ago by waydabber

FIXED: DDC reads do not adhere to min and max DDC value overrides - #1167

FIXED: XDR upscaling is not always not enabled after launching the app the first time - have to open twice. - #1158

FIXED: Combined brightness slider does not reflect properly externally induced Apple display brightness changes - #1170

Changes in v1.3.5

DDC Display Input control - #604

Retrieve and export EDID data from display (Apple Silicon only) - #1112

Show detailed display info under Settings/Displays (Apple Silicon only ) - #1144

Ability to customize factory reset and input select DDC control codes - #1136

Added option to customize display name and menu icon - #1137

Use new API (SMAppService) for automatic login (macOS Ventura only) - #1125

Updated Paddle SDK to new v4.4 version - #1139

Fixed: The expand icon (wide chevron) at the bottom of menu blocks is light gray and not obvious enough - #1111

Fixed: Unfoldable advanced settings font not rendered as small in Settings/App Menu - #1143

Fixed: Settings/Displays block look bad in some scenarios when a display is collapsed - #1145

Fixed: Accessibility setting menu icon not hidden when menu icons are generally disabled - #1146

Changes in v1.3.4

Option to display percentage as scaling factor - #1076

Fixed: Refresh Rate menu item should be hidden when a display is mirror target - #1075

Fixed: Some items are missing from the Tools menu - #1079

Changes in v1.3.3

Customizable menubar icon - #722

Show both resolution slider and resolution menu - #1042

Option to hide disconnected dummy from menu - #1068

A more prominent and by default visible way to connect/disconnect dummies - #1067

Refactor/rewrite menu generation - #1066

Fixed: When a display is collapsed and remains the sole display, without its fully hidden from the menu when header for a single display is disabled - #1072

Fixed: When both menu item and header icons are disabled, texts do not line up properly - #1071

Fixed: Some menu items have icons even when icons are disabled - #1070

Fixed: DDC menu appears with a factory reset option for non-DDC compliant displays - #1069

Fixed: The Set Resolution menu is erroneously available for the mirror target display - #1059

Removed: option to have a tri-state collapsible header in menu instead of the more options menu expander - #1048

Changes in v1.3.2-beta

Higher luminance with HDR brightness upscaling calibration - #1053

Recalibrated percentages for brightness upscaling on Apple XDR displays - #1053

Smoother XDR brightness upscaling experience for Apple XDR displays (also avoid overshoot effect) - #1051

Add DDC factory reset to DDC menu

Option to have a tri-state collapsible header in menu instead of the more options menu expander - #1048

Improved native smooth scaling compatibility with some Intel macs - #1041

Fixed: App incorrectly sets default DDC contrast (and for v1.3.x R/G/B black level) upon changing brightness after starting the app the first time - #1046

Fixed: Apple brightness smooth transition toggle has no effect - #1050

Fixed: Sidecar display name appears in random foreign language - #1047

Changes in v1.3.1-beta

Display configuration protection (also: protection for/against VRR) - #995

Keyboard shortcut to start/stop PIP window - #1026

Add display rotation keyboard shortcut - #1014

DDC R/G/B Gain and Black Level adjustments - #1019

Option to enable/disable support for specific DDC controls for a display - #1002

Custom Video Control Codes or multiple codes for DDC control - #1005

Support for on/off value override for the DDC mute command - #1009

Support for inverted control values for DDC - #1004

Support for different scale than the usual 0-100 for DDC - #1003

Options to adjust DDC communication timings - #1008

Add option to customize audio device name associated with the display for DDC volume control - #638

Change More Options... submenu into an expandable area - #1034, #1033

Dismiss button for the blue reboot banner under Settings/Displays - #1011

Option to hide Check for Updates form the Tools menu when it is set to be closable - #1037

All menu block header should be clickable to show/hide block - #1032

Disconnected dummies should be listed under Settings/Displays - #1031

Improve the design of Settings expandable subsections - #989

Fixed: 270 degree PIP and Full Screen Streaming rotation does not work properly - #1028

Changes in v1.3.0-beta

Add option to circumvent the lack of macOS support for the HiDPI variant for native pixel resolution - #965

Support reading DDC values upon startup - #633

Make restoring DDC values optional - #983

Add option to prohibit keyboard control for a display - #967

Add hardware DDC contrast control with keyboard shortcuts - #635

Add option to hide volume OSD for a display - #966

Add option to adjust/disable control smoothing - #634

Improve mirroring submenu usability - #927

Add option to hide a display from the app menu - #984

Collapsible headers for displays under Settings/Displays - #981

Increase the size of Settings a bit - #964

Put the accessibility permissions warning triangle to a more appropriate location - #963

Clarify wording of native smooth scaling manually defined limits - #916

Fixed: In fully headless the default headless virtual display should have a proper name - #986

Fixed: Restoring saved DDC values on startup on Apple Silicon macs - #982

Fixed: Slider percentage does not always exactly match DDC value - #974

Fixed: Upon mirror configuration the menu icon is not updated properly - #943

Fixed: Slider right side text wiggle issue when only sliders are present in the Menu and Tools block is closed - #917

Source code(tar.gz)
Source code(zip)
BetterDisplay-v1.3.8.dmg(5.24 MB)
v1.3.7(Nov 21, 2022)
About this version

This stable release contains improvements and bug fixes.

The following change log lists all improvements compared to the previous stable v1.3.4 version.

Enhancements

Added rotation toggle keyboard shortcut option + ignore built-in screen option - #1169

DDC Display Input control - #604

Added keyboard shortcut for DDC inputs - #1129

Support for DDC scale skew (curve) setting - #1153

Retrieve and export EDID data from display (Apple Silicon only) - #1112

Added alternate formats for copyable EDID data - #1156

Show detailed display info under Settings/Displays (Apple Silicon only ) - #1144

Ability to customize factory reset and input select DDC control codes - #1136

Added option to customize display name and menu icon - #1137

Use new API (SMAppService) for automatic login (macOS Ventura only) - #1125

Updated Paddle SDK to new v4.4 version - #1139

Separate DDC support and EDID and I/O Registry parsing toggle (Apple Silicon) - #1154

Toggle for automatic brightness adjustment (Apple native) - #1171

Minor UI tweak - delegate some less used settings to an expandable block under Settings/keyboards - #1162

Fixed

Legacy auto-start is broken/crashes in v1.3.5/v1.3.6 - #1175

Startup DDC mute read works in reverse - #1166 opened 2 days ago by waydabber

DDC reads do not adhere to min and max DDC value overrides - #1167

XDR upscaling is not always not enabled after launching the app the first time - have to open twice. - #1158

Combined brightness slider does not reflect properly externally induced Apple display brightness changes - #1170

The expand icon (wide chevron) at the bottom of menu blocks is light gray and not obvious enough - #1111

Unfoldable advanced settings font not rendered as small in Settings/App Menu - #1143

Settings/Displays block look bad in some scenarios when a display is collapsed - #1145

Accessibility setting menu icon not hidden when menu icons are generally disabled - #1146

Change log of v1.3.x versions

Changes in v1.3.7

Added rotation toggle keyboard shortcut option + ignore built-in screen option - #1169

FIXED: Legacy auto-start is broken/crashes in v1.3.5/v1.3.6 - #1175

Changes in v1.3.6

Add keyboard shortcut for DDC inputs - #1129

Add alternate formats for copyable EDID data - #1156

Separate DDC support and EDID and I/O Registry parsing toggle (Apple Silicon) - #1154

Support for DDC scale skew (curve) setting - #1153

Toggle for automatic brightness adjustment (Apple native) - #1171

Minor UI tweak - delegate some less used settings to an expandable block under Settings/keyboards - #1162

FIXED: Startup DDC mute read works in reverse - #1166 opened 2 days ago by waydabber

FIXED: DDC reads do not adhere to min and max DDC value overrides - #1167

FIXED: XDR upscaling is not always not enabled after launching the app the first time - have to open twice. - #1158

FIXED: Combined brightness slider does not reflect properly externally induced Apple display brightness changes - #1170

Changes in v1.3.5

DDC Display Input control - #604

Retrieve and export EDID data from display (Apple Silicon only) - #1112

Show detailed display info under Settings/Displays (Apple Silicon only ) - #1144

Ability to customize factory reset and input select DDC control codes - #1136

Added option to customize display name and menu icon - #1137

Use new API (SMAppService) for automatic login (macOS Ventura only) - #1125

Updated Paddle SDK to new v4.4 version - #1139

Fixed: The expand icon (wide chevron) at the bottom of menu blocks is light gray and not obvious enough - #1111

Fixed: Unfoldable advanced settings font not rendered as small in Settings/App Menu - #1143

Fixed: Settings/Displays block look bad in some scenarios when a display is collapsed - #1145

Fixed: Accessibility setting menu icon not hidden when menu icons are generally disabled - #1146

Changes in v1.3.4

Option to display percentage as scaling factor - #1076

Fixed: Refresh Rate menu item should be hidden when a display is mirror target - #1075

Fixed: Some items are missing from the Tools menu - #1079

Changes in v1.3.3

Customizable menubar icon - #722

Show both resolution slider and resolution menu - #1042

Option to hide disconnected dummy from menu - #1068

A more prominent and by default visible way to connect/disconnect dummies - #1067

Refactor/rewrite menu generation - #1066

Fixed: When a display is collapsed and remains the sole display, without its fully hidden from the menu when header for a single display is disabled - #1072

Fixed: When both menu item and header icons are disabled, texts do not line up properly - #1071

Fixed: Some menu items have icons even when icons are disabled - #1070

Fixed: DDC menu appears with a factory reset option for non-DDC compliant displays - #1069

Fixed: The Set Resolution menu is erroneously available for the mirror target display - #1059

Removed: option to have a tri-state collapsible header in menu instead of the more options menu expander - #1048

Changes in v1.3.2-beta

Higher luminance with HDR brightness upscaling calibration - #1053

Recalibrated percentages for brightness upscaling on Apple XDR displays - #1053

Smoother XDR brightness upscaling experience for Apple XDR displays (also avoid overshoot effect) - #1051

Add DDC factory reset to DDC menu

Option to have a tri-state collapsible header in menu instead of the more options menu expander - #1048

Improved native smooth scaling compatibility with some Intel macs - #1041

Fixed: App incorrectly sets default DDC contrast (and for v1.3.x R/G/B black level) upon changing brightness after starting the app the first time - #1046

Fixed: Apple brightness smooth transition toggle has no effect - #1050

Fixed: Sidecar display name appears in random foreign language - #1047

Changes in v1.3.1-beta

Display configuration protection (also: protection for/against VRR) - #995

Keyboard shortcut to start/stop PIP window - #1026

Add display rotation keyboard shortcut - #1014

DDC R/G/B Gain and Black Level adjustments - #1019

Option to enable/disable support for specific DDC controls for a display - #1002

Custom Video Control Codes or multiple codes for DDC control - #1005

Support for on/off value override for the DDC mute command - #1009

Support for inverted control values for DDC - #1004

Support for different scale than the usual 0-100 for DDC - #1003

Options to adjust DDC communication timings - #1008

Add option to customize audio device name associated with the display for DDC volume control - #638

Change More Options... submenu into an expandable area - #1034, #1033

Dismiss button for the blue reboot banner under Settings/Displays - #1011

Option to hide Check for Updates form the Tools menu when it is set to be closable - #1037

All menu block header should be clickable to show/hide block - #1032

Disconnected dummies should be listed under Settings/Displays - #1031

Improve the design of Settings expandable subsections - #989

Fixed: 270 degree PIP and Full Screen Streaming rotation does not work properly - #1028

Changes in v1.3.0-beta

Add option to circumvent the lack of macOS support for the HiDPI variant for native pixel resolution - #965

Support reading DDC values upon startup - #633

Make restoring DDC values optional - #983

Add option to prohibit keyboard control for a display - #967

Add hardware DDC contrast control with keyboard shortcuts - #635

Add option to hide volume OSD for a display - #966

Add option to adjust/disable control smoothing - #634

Improve mirroring submenu usability - #927

Add option to hide a display from the app menu - #984

Collapsible headers for displays under Settings/Displays - #981

Increase the size of Settings a bit - #964

Put the accessibility permissions warning triangle to a more appropriate location - #963

Clarify wording of native smooth scaling manually defined limits - #916

Fixed: In fully headless the default headless virtual display should have a proper name - #986

Fixed: Restoring saved DDC values on startup on Apple Silicon macs - #982

Fixed: Slider percentage does not always exactly match DDC value - #974

Fixed: Upon mirror configuration the menu icon is not updated properly - #943

Fixed: Slider right side text wiggle issue when only sliders are present in the Menu and Tools block is closed - #917

Source code(tar.gz)
Source code(zip)
BetterDisplay-v1.3.7.dmg(5.16 MB)
v1.3.6(Nov 20, 2022)
About this version

This release contains improvements and bug fixes.

UPDATE: This version has an issue with auto-start (Big Sur and Monterey, but affects upgrading Ventura users as well), so the version was relegated to pre-release status. Use v1.3.7 instead which has this bug fixed!

Enhancements

Add keyboard shortcut for DDC inputs - #1129

Add alternate formats for copyable EDID data - #1156

Separate DDC support and EDID and I/O Registry parsing toggle (Apple Silicon) - #1154

Support for DDC scale skew (curve) setting - #1153

Toggle for automatic brightness adjustment (Apple native) - #1171

Minor UI tweak - delegate some less used settings to an expandable block under Settings/keyboards - #1162

Fixed

Startup DDC mute read works in reverse - #1166 opened 2 days ago by waydabber

DDC reads do not adhere to min and max DDC value overrides - #1167

XDR upscaling is not always not enabled after launching the app the first time - have to open twice. - #1158

Combined brightness slider does not reflect properly externally induced Apple display brightness changes - #1170

Change log of earlier v1.3.x versions

Changes in v1.3.5

DDC Display Input control - #604

Retrieve and export EDID data from display (Apple Silicon only) - #1112

Show detailed display info under Settings/Displays (Apple Silicon only ) - #1144

Ability to customize factory reset and input select DDC control codes - #1136

Added option to customize display name and menu icon - #1137

Use new API (SMAppService) for automatic login (macOS Ventura only) - #1125

Updated Paddle SDK to new v4.4 version - #1139

Fixed: The expand icon (wide chevron) at the bottom of menu blocks is light gray and not obvious enough - #1111

Fixed: Unfoldable advanced settings font not rendered as small in Settings/App Menu - #1143

Fixed: Settings/Displays block look bad in some scenarios when a display is collapsed - #1145

Fixed: Accessibility setting menu icon not hidden when menu icons are generally disabled - #1146

Changes in v1.3.4

Option to display percentage as scaling factor - #1076

Fixed: Refresh Rate menu item should be hidden when a display is mirror target - #1075

Fixed: Some items are missing from the Tools menu - #1079

Changes in v1.3.3

Customizable menubar icon - #722

Show both resolution slider and resolution menu - #1042

Option to hide disconnected dummy from menu - #1068

A more prominent and by default visible way to connect/disconnect dummies - #1067

Refactor/rewrite menu generation - #1066

Fixed: When a display is collapsed and remains the sole display, without its fully hidden from the menu when header for a single display is disabled - #1072

Fixed: When both menu item and header icons are disabled, texts do not line up properly - #1071

Fixed: Some menu items have icons even when icons are disabled - #1070

Fixed: DDC menu appears with a factory reset option for non-DDC compliant displays - #1069

Fixed: The Set Resolution menu is erroneously available for the mirror target display - #1059

Removed: option to have a tri-state collapsible header in menu instead of the more options menu expander - #1048

Changes in v1.3.2-beta

Higher luminance with HDR brightness upscaling calibration - #1053

Recalibrated percentages for brightness upscaling on Apple XDR displays - #1053

Smoother XDR brightness upscaling experience for Apple XDR displays (also avoid overshoot effect) - #1051

Add DDC factory reset to DDC menu

Option to have a tri-state collapsible header in menu instead of the more options menu expander - #1048

Improved native smooth scaling compatibility with some Intel macs - #1041

Fixed: App incorrectly sets default DDC contrast (and for v1.3.x R/G/B black level) upon changing brightness after starting the app the first time - #1046

Fixed: Apple brightness smooth transition toggle has no effect - #1050

Fixed: Sidecar display name appears in random foreign language - #1047

Changes in v1.3.1-beta

Display configuration protection (also: protection for/against VRR) - #995

Keyboard shortcut to start/stop PIP window - #1026

Add display rotation keyboard shortcut - #1014

DDC R/G/B Gain and Black Level adjustments - #1019

Option to enable/disable support for specific DDC controls for a display - #1002

Custom Video Control Codes or multiple codes for DDC control - #1005

Support for on/off value override for the DDC mute command - #1009

Support for inverted control values for DDC - #1004

Support for different scale than the usual 0-100 for DDC - #1003

Options to adjust DDC communication timings - #1008

Add option to customize audio device name associated with the display for DDC volume control - #638

Change More Options... submenu into an expandable area - #1034, #1033

Dismiss button for the blue reboot banner under Settings/Displays - #1011

Option to hide Check for Updates form the Tools menu when it is set to be closable - #1037

All menu block header should be clickable to show/hide block - #1032

Disconnected dummies should be listed under Settings/Displays - #1031

Improve the design of Settings expandable subsections - #989

Fixed: 270 degree PIP and Full Screen Streaming rotation does not work properly - #1028

Changes in v1.3.0-beta

Add option to circumvent the lack of macOS support for the HiDPI variant for native pixel resolution - #965

Support reading DDC values upon startup - #633

Make restoring DDC values optional - #983

Add option to prohibit keyboard control for a display - #967

Add hardware DDC contrast control with keyboard shortcuts - #635

Add option to hide volume OSD for a display - #966

Add option to adjust/disable control smoothing - #634

Improve mirroring submenu usability - #927

Add option to hide a display from the app menu - #984

Collapsible headers for displays under Settings/Displays - #981

Increase the size of Settings a bit - #964

Put the accessibility permissions warning triangle to a more appropriate location - #963

Clarify wording of native smooth scaling manually defined limits - #916

Fixed: In fully headless the default headless virtual display should have a proper name - #986

Fixed: Restoring saved DDC values on startup on Apple Silicon macs - #982

Fixed: Slider percentage does not always exactly match DDC value - #974

Fixed: Upon mirror configuration the menu icon is not updated properly - #943

Fixed: Slider right side text wiggle issue when only sliders are present in the Menu and Tools block is closed - #917

Source code(tar.gz)
Source code(zip)
BetterDisplay-v1.3.6.dmg(5.16 MB)
v1.3.5-beta(Nov 14, 2022)
About this version

This beta release contains new features and fixes some issues found in the previous stable release (see details for more info).

Enhancements

DDC Display Input control - #604

Retrieve and export EDID data from display (Apple Silicon only) - #1112

Show detailed display info under Settings/Displays (Apple Silicon only ) - #1144

Ability to customize factory reset and input select DDC control codes - #1136

Added option to customize display name and menu icon - #1137

Use new API (SMAppService) for automatic login (macOS Ventura only) - #1125

Updated Paddle SDK to new v4.4 version - #1139

Fixed

The expand icon (wide chevron) at the bottom of menu blocks is light gray and not obvious enough - #1111

Unfoldable advanced settings font not rendered as small in Settings/App Menu - #1143

Settings/Displays block look bad in some scenarios when a display is collapsed - #1145

Accessibility setting menu icon not hidden when menu icons are generally disabled - #1146

Change log of previous v1.3.x versions

Changes in v1.3.4

Option to display percentage as scaling factor - #1076

Fixed: Refresh Rate menu item should be hidden when a display is mirror target - #1075

Fixed: Some items are missing from the Tools menu - #1079

Changes in v1.3.3

Customizable menubar icon - #722

Show both resolution slider and resolution menu - #1042

Option to hide disconnected dummy from menu - #1068

A more prominent and by default visible way to connect/disconnect dummies - #1067

Refactor/rewrite menu generation - #1066

Fixed: When a display is collapsed and remains the sole display, without its fully hidden from the menu when header for a single display is disabled - #1072

Fixed: When both menu item and header icons are disabled, texts do not line up properly - #1071

Fixed: Some menu items have icons even when icons are disabled - #1070

Fixed: DDC menu appears with a factory reset option for non-DDC compliant displays - #1069

Fixed: The Set Resolution menu is erroneously available for the mirror target display - #1059

Removed: option to have a tri-state collapsible header in menu instead of the more options menu expander - #1048

Changes in v1.3.2-beta

Higher luminance with HDR brightness upscaling calibration - #1053

Recalibrated percentages for brightness upscaling on Apple XDR displays - #1053

Smoother XDR brightness upscaling experience for Apple XDR displays (also avoid overshoot effect) - #1051

Add DDC factory reset to DDC menu

Option to have a tri-state collapsible header in menu instead of the more options menu expander - #1048

Improved native smooth scaling compatibility with some Intel macs - #1041

Fixed: App incorrectly sets default DDC contrast (and for v1.3.x R/G/B black level) upon changing brightness after starting the app the first time - #1046

Fixed: Apple brightness smooth transition toggle has no effect - #1050

Fixed: Sidecar display name appears in random foreign language - #1047

Changes in v1.3.1-beta

Display configuration protection (also: protection for/against VRR) - #995

Keyboard shortcut to start/stop PIP window - #1026

Add display rotation keyboard shortcut - #1014

DDC R/G/B Gain and Black Level adjustments - #1019

Option to enable/disable support for specific DDC controls for a display - #1002

Custom Video Control Codes or multiple codes for DDC control - #1005

Support for on/off value override for the DDC mute command - #1009

Support for inverted control values for DDC - #1004

Support for different scale than the usual 0-100 for DDC - #1003

Options to adjust DDC communication timings - #1008

Add option to customize audio device name associated with the display for DDC volume control - #638

Change More Options... submenu into an expandable area - #1034, #1033

Dismiss button for the blue reboot banner under Settings/Displays - #1011

Option to hide Check for Updates form the Tools menu when it is set to be closable - #1037

All menu block header should be clickable to show/hide block - #1032

Disconnected dummies should be listed under Settings/Displays - #1031

Improve the design of Settings expandable subsections - #989

Fixed: 270 degree PIP and Full Screen Streaming rotation does not work properly - #1028

Changes in v1.3.0-beta

Add option to circumvent the lack of macOS support for the HiDPI variant for native pixel resolution - #965

Support reading DDC values upon startup - #633

Make restoring DDC values optional - #983

Add option to prohibit keyboard control for a display - #967

Add hardware DDC contrast control with keyboard shortcuts - #635

Add option to hide volume OSD for a display - #966

Add option to adjust/disable control smoothing - #634

Improve mirroring submenu usability - #927

Add option to hide a display from the app menu - #984

Collapsible headers for displays under Settings/Displays - #981

Increase the size of Settings a bit - #964

Put the accessibility permissions warning triangle to a more appropriate location - #963

Clarify wording of native smooth scaling manually defined limits - #916

Fixed: In fully headless the default headless virtual display should have a proper name - #986

Fixed: Restoring saved DDC values on startup on Apple Silicon macs - #982

Fixed: Slider percentage does not always exactly match DDC value - #974

Fixed: Upon mirror configuration the menu icon is not updated properly - #943

Fixed: Slider right side text wiggle issue when only sliders are present in the Menu and Tools block is closed - #917

Source code(tar.gz)
Source code(zip)
BetterDisplay-v1.3.5-beta.dmg(5.14 MB)
v1.3.4(Oct 18, 2022)
About this version

This stable release contains improvements found in previous v1.3.x versions and contains fixes for some issues found in the recently released v1.3.3 stable version (see the details for more info).

The following change log lists all improvements compared to the v1.2.9 version.

Enhancements

Option to display percentage as scaling factor (new in v1.3.4) - #1076

Smoother XDR brightness upscaling experience for Apple XDR displays (also avoid overshoot effect) - #1051

Recalibrated percentages for brightness upscaling on Apple XDR displays - #1053

Higher luminance with HDR brightness upscaling calibration - #1053

Improved native smooth scaling compatibility with Intel macs - #1041

Display configuration protection (also: protection for/against VRR) - #995

DDC R/G/B Gain and Black Level adjustments - #1019

Add DDC factory reset to DDC menu

Customizable menubar icon - #722

Show both resolution slider and resolution menu - #1042

Option to hide disconnected dummy from menu - #1068

A more prominent and by default visible way to connect/disconnect dummies - #1067

Keyboard shortcut to start/stop PIP window - #1026

Add display rotation keyboard shortcut - #1014

Option to enable/disable support for specific DDC controls for a display - #1002

Custom Video Control Codes or multiple codes for DDC control - #1005

Support for on/off value override for the DDC mute command - #1009

Support for inverted control values for DDC - #1004

Support for different scale than the usual 0-100 for DDC - #1003

Options to adjust DDC communication timings - #1008

Add option to customize audio device name associated with the display for DDC volume control - #638

Change More Options... submenu into an expandable area - #1034, #1033

Dismiss button for the blue reboot banner under Settings/Displays - #1011

Option to hide Check for Updates form the Tools menu when it is set to be closable - #1037

All menu block header should be clickable to show/hide block - #1032

Disconnected dummies should be listed under Settings/Displays - #1031

Improve the design of Settings expandable subsections - #989

Add option to circumvent the lack of macOS support for the HiDPI variant for native pixel resolution - #965

Support reading DDC values upon startup - #633

Make restoring DDC values optional - #983

Add option to prohibit keyboard control for a display - #967

Add hardware DDC contrast control with keyboard shortcuts - #635

Add option to hide volume OSD for a display - #966

Add option to adjust/disable control smoothing - #634

Improve mirroring submenu usability - #927

Add option to hide a display from the app menu - #984

Collapsible headers for displays under Settings/Displays - #981

Increase the size of Settings a bit - #964

Put the accessibility permissions warning triangle to a more appropriate location - #963

Fixed

Apple brightness smooth transition toggle has no effect - #1050

Sidecar display name appears in random foreign language - #1047

When a display is collapsed and remains the sole display, without its fully hidden from the menu when header for a single display is disabled - #1072

When both menu item and header icons are disabled, texts do not line up properly - #1071

270 degree PIP and Full Screen Streaming rotation does not work properly - #1028

In fully headless the default headless virtual display should have a proper name - #986

Restoring saved DDC values on startup on Apple Silicon macs - #982

Slider percentage does not always exactly match DDC value - #974

Upon mirror configuration the menu icon is not updated properly - #943

Slider right side text wiggle issue when only sliders are present in the Menu and Tools block is closed - #917

Various internal efficiency improvements, refactoring, wording improvements etc.

Change log of v1.3.x versions

Changes in v1.3.4

Option to display percentage as scaling factor - #1076

Fixed: Refresh Rate menu item should be hidden when a display is mirror target - #1075

Fixed: Some items are missing from the Tools menu - #1079

Changes in v1.3.3

Customizable menubar icon - #722

Show both resolution slider and resolution menu - #1042

Option to hide disconnected dummy from menu - #1068

A more prominent and by default visible way to connect/disconnect dummies - #1067

Refactor/rewrite menu generation - #1066

Fixed: When a display is collapsed and remains the sole display, without its fully hidden from the menu when header for a single display is disabled - #1072

Fixed: When both menu item and header icons are disabled, texts do not line up properly - #1071

Fixed: Some menu items have icons even when icons are disabled - #1070

Fixed: DDC menu appears with a factory reset option for non-DDC compliant displays - #1069

Fixed: The Set Resolution menu is erroneously available for the mirror target display - #1059

Removed: option to have a tri-state collapsible header in menu instead of the more options menu expander - #1048

Changes in v1.3.2-beta

Higher luminance with HDR brightness upscaling calibration - #1053

Recalibrated percentages for brightness upscaling on Apple XDR displays - #1053

Smoother XDR brightness upscaling experience for Apple XDR displays (also avoid overshoot effect) - #1051

Add DDC factory reset to DDC menu

Option to have a tri-state collapsible header in menu instead of the more options menu expander - #1048

Improved native smooth scaling compatibility with some Intel macs - #1041

Fixed: App incorrectly sets default DDC contrast (and for v1.3.x R/G/B black level) upon changing brightness after starting the app the first time - #1046

Fixed: Apple brightness smooth transition toggle has no effect - #1050

Fixed: Sidecar display name appears in random foreign language - #1047

Changes in v1.3.1-beta

Display configuration protection (also: protection for/against VRR) - #995

Keyboard shortcut to start/stop PIP window - #1026

Add display rotation keyboard shortcut - #1014

DDC R/G/B Gain and Black Level adjustments - #1019

Option to enable/disable support for specific DDC controls for a display - #1002

Custom Video Control Codes or multiple codes for DDC control - #1005

Support for on/off value override for the DDC mute command - #1009

Support for inverted control values for DDC - #1004

Support for different scale than the usual 0-100 for DDC - #1003

Options to adjust DDC communication timings - #1008

Add option to customize audio device name associated with the display for DDC volume control - #638

Change More Options... submenu into an expandable area - #1034, #1033

Dismiss button for the blue reboot banner under Settings/Displays - #1011

Option to hide Check for Updates form the Tools menu when it is set to be closable - #1037

All menu block header should be clickable to show/hide block - #1032

Disconnected dummies should be listed under Settings/Displays - #1031

Improve the design of Settings expandable subsections - #989

Fixed: 270 degree PIP and Full Screen Streaming rotation does not work properly - #1028

Changes in v1.3.0-beta

Add option to circumvent the lack of macOS support for the HiDPI variant for native pixel resolution - #965

Support reading DDC values upon startup - #633

Make restoring DDC values optional - #983

Add option to prohibit keyboard control for a display - #967

Add hardware DDC contrast control with keyboard shortcuts - #635

Add option to hide volume OSD for a display - #966

Add option to adjust/disable control smoothing - #634

Improve mirroring submenu usability - #927

Add option to hide a display from the app menu - #984

Collapsible headers for displays under Settings/Displays - #981

Increase the size of Settings a bit - #964

Put the accessibility permissions warning triangle to a more appropriate location - #963

Clarify wording of native smooth scaling manually defined limits - #916

Fixed: In fully headless the default headless virtual display should have a proper name - #986

Fixed: Restoring saved DDC values on startup on Apple Silicon macs - #982

Fixed: Slider percentage does not always exactly match DDC value - #974

Fixed: Upon mirror configuration the menu icon is not updated properly - #943

Fixed: Slider right side text wiggle issue when only sliders are present in the Menu and Tools block is closed - #917

Source code(tar.gz)
Source code(zip)
BetterDisplay-v1.3.4.dmg(5.16 MB)
v1.3.3(Oct 16, 2022)
About this version

This stable release contains improvements found in previous pre-release versions along with some additional improvements and bug fixes.

Enhancements

Customizable menubar icon - #722

Show both resolution slider and resolution menu - #1042

Option to hide disconnected dummy from menu - #1068

A more prominent and by default visible way to connect/disconnect dummies - #1067

Refactor/rewrite menu generation - #1066

Fixed

When a display is collapsed and remains the sole display, without its fully hidden from the menu when header for a single display is disabled - #1072

When both menu item and header icons are disabled, texts do not line up properly - #1071

Some menu items have icons even when icons are disabled - #1070

DDC menu appears with a factory reset option for non-DDC compliant displays - #1069

The Set Resolution menu is erroneously available for the mirror target display - #1059

Removed

Option to have a tri-state collapsible header in menu instead of the more options menu expander - #1048

Change log of previous v1.3.x versions

Changes in v1.3.2-beta

Higher luminance with HDR brightness upscaling calibration - #1053

Recalibrated percentages for brightness upscaling on Apple XDR displays - #1053

Smoother XDR brightness upscaling experience for Apple XDR displays (also avoid overshoot effect) - #1051

Add DDC factory reset to DDC menu

Option to have a tri-state collapsible header in menu instead of the more options menu expander - #1048

Improved native smooth scaling compatibility with some Intel macs - #1041

Fixed: App incorrectly sets default DDC contrast (and for v1.3.x R/G/B black level) upon changing brightness after starting the app the first time - #1046

Fixed: Apple brightness smooth transition toggle has no effect - #1050

Fixed: Sidecar display name appears in random foreign language - #1047

Changes in v1.3.1-beta

Display configuration protection (also: protection for/against VRR) - #995

Keyboard shortcut to start/stop PIP window - #1026

Add display rotation keyboard shortcut - #1014

DDC R/G/B Gain and Black Level adjustments - #1019

Option to enable/disable support for specific DDC controls for a display - #1002

Custom Video Control Codes or multiple codes for DDC control - #1005

Support for on/off value override for the DDC mute command - #1009

Support for inverted control values for DDC - #1004

Support for different scale than the usual 0-100 for DDC - #1003

Options to adjust DDC communication timings - #1008

Add option to customize audio device name associated with the display for DDC volume control - #638

Change More Options... submenu into an expandable area - #1034, #1033

Dismiss button for the blue reboot banner under Settings/Displays - #1011

Option to hide Check for Updates form the Tools menu when it is set to be closable - #1037

All menu block header should be clickable to show/hide block - #1032

Disconnected dummies should be listed under Settings/Displays - #1031

Improve the design of Settings expandable subsections - #989

Fixed: 270 degree PIP and Full Screen Streaming rotation does not work properly - #1028

Changes in v1.3.0-beta

Add option to circumvent the lack of macOS support for the HiDPI variant for native pixel resolution - #965

Support reading DDC values upon startup - #633

Make restoring DDC values optional - #983

Add option to prohibit keyboard control for a display - #967

Add hardware DDC contrast control with keyboard shortcuts - #635

Add option to hide volume OSD for a display - #966

Add option to adjust/disable control smoothing - #634

Improve mirroring submenu usability - #927

Add option to hide a display from the app menu - #984

Collapsible headers for displays under Settings/Displays - #981

Increase the size of Settings a bit - #964

Put the accessibility permissions warning triangle to a more appropriate location - #963

Clarify wording of native smooth scaling manually defined limits - #916

Fixed: In fully headless the default headless virtual display should have a proper name - #986

Fixed: Restoring saved DDC values on startup on Apple Silicon macs - #982

Fixed: Slider percentage does not always exactly match DDC value - #974

Fixed: Upon mirror configuration the menu icon is not updated properly - #943

Fixed: Slider right side text wiggle issue when only sliders are present in the Menu and Tools block is closed - #917

Source code(tar.gz)
Source code(zip)
BetterDisplay-v1.3.3.dmg(5.16 MB)
v1.3.2-beta(Oct 7, 2022)
About this version

This beta contains some nice improvements and some important fixes (more features are planned - check out the enhancement list). If you encounter any issues, please report! In case of show-stopper bugs, it is safe to downgrade to the previous betas or the v1.2.9 stable version after using this version.

New

Higher luminance with HDR brightness upscaling calibration - #1053

Recalibrated percentages for brightness upscaling on Apple XDR displays - #1053

Smoother XDR brightness upscaling experience for Apple XDR displays (also avoid overshoot effect) - #1051

Add DDC factory reset to DDC menu

Option to have a tri-state collapsible header in menu instead of the more options menu expander - #1048

Improved native smooth scaling compatibility with some Intel macs - #1041

Fixed

App incorrectly sets default DDC contrast (and for v1.3.x R/G/B black level) upon changing brightness after starting the app the first time - #1046

Apple brightness smooth transition toggle has no effect - #1050

Sidecar display name appears in random foreign language - #1047

The details of the associated issues/enhancements is available here.

Change log of previous v1.3.x versions

Changes in v1.3.1-beta

Display configuration protection (also: protection for/against VRR) - #995

Keyboard shortcut to start/stop PIP window - #1026

Add display rotation keyboard shortcut - #1014

DDC R/G/B Gain and Black Level adjustments - #1019

Option to enable/disable support for specific DDC controls for a display - #1002

Custom Video Control Codes or multiple codes for DDC control - #1005

Support for on/off value override for the DDC mute command - #1009

Support for inverted control values for DDC - #1004

Support for different scale than the usual 0-100 for DDC - #1003

Options to adjust DDC communication timings - #1008

Add option to customize audio device name associated with the display for DDC volume control - #638

Change More Options... submenu into an expandable area - #1034, #1033

Dismiss button for the blue reboot banner under Settings/Displays - #1011

Option to hide Check for Updates form the Tools menu when it is set to be closable - #1037

All menu block header should be clickable to show/hide block - #1032

Disconnected dummies should be listed under Settings/Displays - #1031

Improve the design of Settings expandable subsections - #989

Fixed: 270 degree PIP and Full Screen Streaming rotation does not work properly - #1028

Changes in v1.3.0-beta

Add option to circumvent the lack of macOS support for the HiDPI variant for native pixel resolution - #965

Support reading DDC values upon startup - #633

Make restoring DDC values optional - #983

Add option to prohibit keyboard control for a display - #967

Add hardware DDC contrast control with keyboard shortcuts - #635

Add option to hide volume OSD for a display - #966

Add option to adjust/disable control smoothing - #634

Improve mirroring submenu usability - #927

Add option to hide a display from the app menu - #984

Collapsible headers for displays under Settings/Displays - #981

Increase the size of Settings a bit - #964

Put the accessibility permissions warning triangle to a more appropriate location - #963

Clarify wording of native smooth scaling manually defined limits - #916

Fixed: In fully headless the default headless virtual display should have a proper name - #986

Fixed: Restoring saved DDC values on startup on Apple Silicon macs - #982

Fixed: Slider percentage does not always exactly match DDC value - #974

Fixed: Upon mirror configuration the menu icon is not updated properly - #943

Fixed: Slider right side text wiggle issue when only sliders are present in the Menu and Tools block is closed - #917

Source code(tar.gz)
Source code(zip)
BetterDisplay-v1.3.2-beta.dmg(5.15 MB)
v1.3.1-beta(Oct 2, 2022)
About this version

This is the second v1.3.x version of the app. Released as beta since it is still a work in progress (more features are planned - check out the enhancement list). If you encounter any issues, especially regarding DDC usage on Intel, please report! In case of show-stopper bugs, it is safe to downgrade to the previous beta or the v1.2.9 stable version after using this version.

This release contains new features, various enhancements, tweaks and fixes.

New

Display configuration protection (also: protection for/against VRR) - #995

Keyboard shortcut to start/stop PIP window - #1026

Add display rotation keyboard shortcut - #1014

DDC R/G/B Gain and Black Level adjustments - #1019

Option to enable/disable support for specific DDC controls for a display - #1002

Custom Video Control Codes or multiple codes for DDC control - #1005

Support for on/off value override for the DDC mute command - #1009

Support for inverted control values for DDC - #1004

Support for different scale than the usual 0-100 for DDC - #1003

Options to adjust DDC communication timings - #1008

Add option to customize audio device name associated with the display for DDC volume control - #638

Change More Options... submenu into an expandable area - #1034, #1033

Dismiss button for the blue reboot banner under Settings/Displays - #1011

Option to hide Check for Updates form the Tools menu when it is set to be closable - #1037

All menu block header should be clickable to show/hide block - #1032

Disconnected dummies should be listed under Settings/Displays - #1031

Improve the design of Settings expandable subsections - #989

Fixed

270 degree PIP and Full Screen Streaming rotation does not work properly - #1028

The details of the associated issues/enhancements is available here.

Change log of previous v1.3.x versions

Changes in v1.3.0-beta

Add option to circumvent the lack of macOS support for the HiDPI variant for native pixel resolution - #965

Support reading DDC values upon startup - #633

Make restoring DDC values optional - #983

Add option to prohibit keyboard control for a display - #967

Add hardware DDC contrast control with keyboard shortcuts - #635

Add option to hide volume OSD for a display - #966

Add option to adjust/disable control smoothing - #634

Improve mirroring submenu usability - #927

Add option to hide a display from the app menu - #984

Collapsible headers for displays under Settings/Displays - #981

Increase the size of Settings a bit - #964

Put the accessibility permissions warning triangle to a more appropriate location - #963

Clarify wording of native smooth scaling manually defined limits - #916

Fixed: In fully headless the default headless virtual display should have a proper name - #986

Fixed: Restoring saved DDC values on startup on Apple Silicon macs - #982

Fixed: Slider percentage does not always exactly match DDC value - #974

Fixed: Upon mirror configuration the menu icon is not updated properly - #943

Fixed: Slider right side text wiggle issue when only sliders are present in the Menu and Tools block is closed - #917

Source code(tar.gz)
Source code(zip)
BetterDisplay-v1.3.1-beta.dmg(5.13 MB)
v1.3.0-beta(Sep 11, 2022)
About this version

This is the first v1.3.x version of the app. Released as beta since it is still a work in progress (more features are planned - check out the enhancement list), but it should be a fairly stable so it can (hopefully) be used on a daily basis.

This release contains new features, various enhancements, tweaks and fixes.

New

Add option to circumvent the lack of macOS support for the HiDPI variant for native pixel resolution - #965

Support reading DDC values upon startup - #633

Make restoring DDC values optional - #983

Add option to prohibit keyboard control for a display - #967

Add hardware DDC contrast control with keyboard shortcuts - #635

Add option to hide volume OSD for a display - #966

Add option to adjust/disable control smoothing - #634

Improve mirroring submenu usability - #927

Add option to hide a display from the app menu - #984

Collapsible headers for displays under Settings/Displays - #981

Increase the size of Settings a bit - #964

Put the accessibility permissions warning triangle to a more appropriate location - #963

Clarify wording of native smooth scaling manually defined limits - #916

Fixed

In fully headless the default headless virtual display should have a proper name - #986

Restoring saved DDC values on startup on Apple Silicon macs - #982

Slider percentage does not always exactly match DDC value - #974

Upon mirror configuration the menu icon is not updated properly - #943

Slider right side text wiggle issue when only sliders are present in the Menu and Tools block is closed - #917

The detailed list of the associated issues/enhancements is available here.
Source code(tar.gz)
Source code(zip)
BetterDisplay-v1.3.0-beta.dmg(5.09 MB)
v1.2.9(Aug 18, 2022)
About this version

This release contains various minor enhancements, tweaks to existing functionality and fixes.

New

Added PIP window auto (re)connect option - option to start PIP window when connecting to a display or dummy - #573

Added option to toggle PIP window shadow (works when window titlebar is hidden and free scaling is enabled) - #870

App now saves PIP window location - #869

Added option to customize native smooth scaling min. and max. resolution - #866

Added warning about smooth scaling HiDPI not available on pre-12.4 macOS versions to reduce confusion - #761

Added option treat a display detected Apple-made as third party/generic - #810

Added toggle to allow invalid resolutions and allow 8K+ native scaling options - dependent on macOS support - #834

Added option to hide the display header in menu when only one display is present (and there are no dummies)- #886

Added option to close the Tools menu into the bottom icon row (instead of collapsing it) - #887

Added option to toggle hiding PIP menu item with single display (by default it is hidden now) - #899

Menu items wiggle slightly vertically depending on visible content due to differing icon sizes - #907

Fixed

Color adjustments, XDR upscaling, dimming might not work upon wake in certain situations - #863

Associated dummy still auto-connects in safe mode (SHIFT is pressed during startup) - #856

XDR upscaling - slider is rather ineffective beyond combined brightness of 125% on the MBP - #861

Apply Display System Configuration button does not take into account the last field update - #891

App locked during credentials prompt when clicking Settings/Displays/Apply... - #892

Menu items wiggle slightly vertically depending on visible content due to differing icon sizes - #907

Typo in settings - #830

The detailed list of the associated issues/enhancements is available here.

Click here for a detailed changelog of previous v1.2.x versions

Changes in v1.2.8

Enable Night Shift on Televisions - ability to configure your TV as a computer monitor to let Night Shift and True Tone to take effect. Useful for TV as monitor setups. - #756

Added option to force-enable color adjustments on non-natively connected displays - works with DisplayLink displays using the new v1.7.x+ drivers with color-temperature alteration support enabled. - #750

Added True Tone and Dark Mode toggles under Tools/System Colors - #748

In-app external display HDR switch toggle can now also disable True Tone (alongside Night Shift) during a HDR session - #748

Added a notification to Tools/System Colors when Night Shift and/or True Tone was disabled by the in-app HDR switch - #748

Ability to flip image horizontally (and vertically) for Picture in Picture and Full Screen Streaming - this is especially useful for teleprompter devices - #757

Fixed: 'Manually add custom resolutions' does not work properly (only one resolution added instead of multiple entries) - #771

Fixed: Restore software brightness/dimming levels, color alterations, external display HDR brightness upscaling levels after resolution switch, app restart or sleep. - #802

Fixed: Volume OSD not showing on the mirror source screen when the volume controlled display is a mirror target - #732

Fixed: Custom system configuration for displays with 0 as vendor or model ID not stored properly - #740

Fixed: Various other stability improvements.

Changes in v1.2.7

Fixed: Third-party external display HDR upscaling does not get activated - #715

Fixed: Some settings are not enabled until an other setting is changed on that specific pref pane - #716

Fixed: Brightness OSD is not visible on dummy screen when it is being mirrored to a real screen (regression) - #655

Fixed: If native media keys used during display configuration, keys might get stuck afterwards - #725

Changes in v1.2.6

Less intrusive alternative for the permissions problem alert dialog - #699

Emphasize the display header under Displays - #704

Display reconfiguarion app menu icon - #703

Fixed: Newly connected display with smooth scaling enabled is not detected properly - 694

Fixed: Ambient light sensor induced XDR macOS battery drain issue - #702

Changes in v1.2.5c-beta

Fixed: Some text in settings is cut off - #683

Fixed: Display configuration is editable for DisplayLink connected displays (which don't support this feature) - #681

Fixed: Keyboard brightness control does not work when hardware control is disabled in the latest beta - #679

Fixed: With combined brightness, when the brightness is decresed to zero externally for Apple displays, external controls can't recover the brightness - #687

Fixed: The resolution list in simple mode should show only resolutions for the current refresh rate - #686

Fixed: (Suggestion) Reverse resolution list in submenu to show high resolutions first - #684

Fixed: Resolution slider always falls short of fully reaching the end even at 100% - #685

Fixed: Resolution slider changes to Low resolution when the max value was set once - #682

Changes in v1.2.5b-beta

Added option Reset color table on neutral settings + explanation - #644

Added cool option to show hw/sw subsliders when combined brightness is enabled

Fixed: menu blocks cannot be collapsed and some other display or dummy related settings cannot be changed - #666

Fixed: resolution slider is missing issues - #665

Fixed: corrupt system configuration when the display is in a rotated during the procedure - #665

Fixed: brightness OSD is not visible on dummy screen when it is being mirrored to a real screen - #655

Changes in v1.2.5a-beta

App rebranding (in progress) - #641

Added feature to manage display system configuration - #645

Added feature to allow smooth resolution slider for displays - requires Pro - #645

Added feature to override various display data (display name, native resolution, default resolution) - #645

Added feature to add custom scaled resolutions to native displays - #645

Add option to have only resolutions in the resolution slider that matches/approximates native aspect ratio - #658

Added option to show resolution slider as percentage for smoothly-scaled displays - #660

Added support for M2 Macbook Air - #656

Added support for macOS 13 Ventura - #664

Added a way to show some technical info about the displays for troubleshooting - #650

Fixed: v1.2.4 and v1.1.24 regression in terms of handing display UUIDs - #662

Changes in v1.2.4-beta

Added option to show slider labels - #630

Added an option under Preferences/General to enable/disable all brightness related display control functionality - #628

Added option to disengage from F14/F15 keys - #629

Create a Displays tab for various display related settings - #603

Preferences tab should be reorganized to look consistent (scrolling type) - #621 opened 5 days ago by waydabber

Startup in safe mode should not restore previous brightness and color adjustment settings - #620

A proper prompt to gain Accessibility Privilege for media key control upon startup - #613

Streaming status should be shown in app menu just like mirroring - #619

Update combined brightness slider/keyboard control state for Apple screens when brightness is changed outside of the app - #602

Fixed: "Make fine scale default" for brightness control is at a wrong place in Preferences - #626

Fixed: XDR upscale should not be activated on EDR capable non-XDR Apple displays - #622

Fixed: Brightness keyboard shortcuts should not affect dummy screens directly but only non-dummy mirror or stream target displays - #616

Fixed: DDC Volume slider does not zero on mute + app forgets mute state after restart - #605

Fixed: Combined brightness sub-hw-zero-dimming and XDR upscale switching points should always correspond to a full OSD chiclet - #618

Fixed: Full screen stream can be resized by clicking on the top/bottom/left/right border of the stream target screen - #617

Fixed: Oversaturation when changing between combined and not combined color controls for upscaled Apple XDR displays - #614

Fixed: Night Shift should be turned back off when it was turned off by activating HDR mode from app-menu - #606

Fixed: Custom keyboard shortcuts don't work when app Menu is open - #596

Fixed: Resolution menu/slider is a wreck for some real displays in Monterey 12.4 - #601 opened 11 days ago by waydabber

Fixed: Resolution issue with app-created dummies optimized for the new 14" and 16" macbook pro screens and some other displays - #581

Changes in v1.2.3-beta

Added various options to manage brightness control methods - #599

Combined keyboard control of hardware (Apple, DDC) brightness, software dimming and XDR/HDR upscale - #589

Combined hardware brightness, software dimming, XDR/HDR upscale slider - #588

Additional options to define keyboard control target screen - #587

Advanced options for native keyboard control for brightness and audio - #586

Implement Apple native key support for brightness and volume - #583

Added fine scale brightness/volume control for custom keyboard shortcuts - #585

Brightness and color control smooth transitions - #547

Implement DDC Mute control for external displays - #582

Implement DDC Volume control for external displays - #580

Implement DDC brightness control for external displays - #515

Implement Apple brightness control - #516

Make the contents of general Tools menu block configurable - #571

Option to match menu icon with main display icon - #593

Fixed: Display name suffixes might get messed up with multiple displays of same name - #594

Fixed: Slider graphics and text colors are somewhat off with some backgrounds - #572

Changes in v1.2.2-beta

Added color temperature adjustment slider (especially useful for TVs that are incompatible with Night Shift) - #555

Added contrast control - #566

Add gain option to squeeze out some more nits or improve brightness when watching a dark movie - #561

Added R/G/B tint (gamma) control for... I don't know - why not? - #560

HDR/XDR brightness upscale setting is now remembered permanently, don't need to toggle it all the time - #557

Added Night Shift controls to the menu (so you don't have to look for that deeply hidden nightshift slider anymore in System Preferences) - #548

Added keyboard shortcut options for Night Shift and color temperature - #556

Added option to auto-disable Night Shift when reference HDR mode is enabled on an external display in the app menu - #554

Added option to reset all color adjustments - #564

Restore last applied brightness/color adjustments upon reconnect/restart - #563

Redesign the bottom part of the menu - #567

Fixed: App keeps forgetting I have a license - update Paddle SDK to 4.3.0 - #558

Fixed: After resetting the app in Preferences no items appear under the display in the menu - #565

Fixed: Dimming overlay (Sidecar, Dummy, AirPlay, DisplayLink) not resized properly on resolution change - #551

Fixed: Enabling HDR/XDR Upscale makes brightness slider disappear - #568

Fixed: Max dummy resolution gets limited when switching to portrait mode - #559

Changes in v1.2.1-beta

Updated menu appearance, persistent collapsible display/dummy menu blocks - #546

Gamma correction slider (you can enable it under Preferences/Appearance) - #525

Overlay dimming for virtual displays, Sidecar/AirPlay and DisplayLink - #513

System OSD shown for keyboard shortcut induced brightness changes

Custom keyboard shortcut for brightness, gamma, HDR upscale and adjustments reset - #521
Note: Apple keyboard native keys support not added yet!

Updated Appearance and Keyboard shortcuts tab - #536

Configurable menu location for display/dummy information, toggles and tools and new sliders - #531, #535

Fixed: Resolution slider not updated in some circumstances - #534

Fixed: Non-whole-numbers refresh rates not shown properly in menu - #541

Fixed: Resolution sliders go missing - #532

Fixed: Trial counter does not update properly - #533

Integrated DDC control framework for Apple Silicon and Intel - #514
Note: DDC brightness and volume control not yet accessible!

Changes in v1.2.0-beta (compared to v1.1.12)

HDR/XDR upscaling (extra brightness) - #499

Source code(tar.gz)
Source code(zip)
BetterDisplay-v1.2.9.dmg(5.06 MB)
v1.2.8(Jul 26, 2022)
About this version

This release is mainly about bug fixes and stability improvements. Some useful new features were are added as well.

New

Enable Night Shift on Televisions - ability to configure your TV as a computer monitor to let Night Shift and True Tone to take effect. Useful for TV as monitor setups. - #756

Added option to force-enable color adjustments on non-natively connected displays - works with DisplayLink displays using the new v1.7.x+ drivers with color-temperature alteration support enabled. - #750

Added True Tone and Dark Mode toggles under Tools/System Colors - #748

In-app external display HDR switch toggle can now also disable True Tone (alongside Night Shift) during a HDR session - #748

Added a notification to Tools/System Colors when Night Shift and/or True Tone was disabled by the in-app HDR switch - #748

Ability to flip image horizontally (and vertically) for Picture in Picture and Full Screen Streaming - this is especially useful for teleprompter devices - #757

Fixed

'Manually add custom resolutions' does not work properly (only one resolution added instead of multiple entries) - #771

Restore software brightness/dimming levels, color alterations, external display HDR brightness upscaling levels after resolution switch, app restart or sleep. - #802

Volume OSD not showing on the mirror source screen when the volume controlled display is a mirror target - #732

Custom system configuration for displays with 0 as vendor or model ID not stored properly - #740

Various other stability improvements.

Click here for a detailed changelog of previous v1.2.x versions

Changes in v1.2.7

Fixed: Third-party external display HDR upscaling does not get activated - #715

Fixed: Some settings are not enabled until an other setting is changed on that specific pref pane - #716

Fixed: Brightness OSD is not visible on dummy screen when it is being mirrored to a real screen (regression) - #655

Fixed: If native media keys used during display configuration, keys might get stuck afterwards - #725

Changes in v1.2.6

Less intrusive alternative for the permissions problem alert dialog - #699

Emphasize the display header under Displays - #704

Display reconfiguarion app menu icon - #703

Fixed: Newly connected display with smooth scaling enabled is not detected properly - 694

Fixed: Ambient light sensor induced XDR macOS battery drain issue - #702

Changes in v1.2.5c-beta

Fixed: Some text in settings is cut off - #683

Fixed: Display configuration is editable for DisplayLink connected displays (which don't support this feature) - #681

Fixed: Keyboard brightness control does not work when hardware control is disabled in the latest beta - #679

Fixed: With combined brightness, when the brightness is decresed to zero externally for Apple displays, external controls can't recover the brightness - #687

Fixed: The resolution list in simple mode should show only resolutions for the current refresh rate - #686

Fixed: (Suggestion) Reverse resolution list in submenu to show high resolutions first - #684

Fixed: Resolution slider always falls short of fully reaching the end even at 100% - #685

Fixed: Resolution slider changes to Low resolution when the max value was set once - #682

Changes in v1.2.5b-beta

Added option Reset color table on neutral settings + explanation - #644

Added cool option to show hw/sw subsliders when combined brightness is enabled

Fixed: menu blocks cannot be collapsed and some other display or dummy related settings cannot be changed - #666

Fixed: resolution slider is missing issues - #665

Fixed: corrupt system configuration when the display is in a rotated during the procedure - #665

Fixed: brightness OSD is not visible on dummy screen when it is being mirrored to a real screen - #655

Changes in v1.2.5a-beta

App rebranding (in progress) - #641

Added feature to manage display system configuration - #645

Added feature to allow smooth resolution slider for displays - requires Pro - #645

Added feature to override various display data (display name, native resolution, default resolution) - #645

Added feature to add custom scaled resolutions to native displays - #645

Add option to have only resolutions in the resolution slider that matches/approximates native aspect ratio - #658

Added option to show resolution slider as percentage for smoothly-scaled displays - #660

Added support for M2 Macbook Air - #656

Added support for macOS 13 Ventura - #664

Added a way to show some technical info about the displays for troubleshooting - #650

Fixed: v1.2.4 and v1.1.24 regression in terms of handing display UUIDs - #662

Changes in v1.2.4-beta

Added option to show slider labels - #630

Added an option under Preferences/General to enable/disable all brightness related display control functionality - #628

Added option to disengage from F14/F15 keys - #629

Create a Displays tab for various display related settings - #603

Preferences tab should be reorganized to look consistent (scrolling type) - #621 opened 5 days ago by waydabber

Startup in safe mode should not restore previous brightness and color adjustment settings - #620

A proper prompt to gain Accessibility Privilege for media key control upon startup - #613

Streaming status should be shown in app menu just like mirroring - #619

Update combined brightness slider/keyboard control state for Apple screens when brightness is changed outside of the app - #602

Fixed: "Make fine scale default" for brightness control is at a wrong place in Preferences - #626

Fixed: XDR upscale should not be activated on EDR capable non-XDR Apple displays - #622

Fixed: Brightness keyboard shortcuts should not affect dummy screens directly but only non-dummy mirror or stream target displays - #616

Fixed: DDC Volume slider does not zero on mute + app forgets mute state after restart - #605

Fixed: Combined brightness sub-hw-zero-dimming and XDR upscale switching points should always correspond to a full OSD chiclet - #618

Fixed: Full screen stream can be resized by clicking on the top/bottom/left/right border of the stream target screen - #617

Fixed: Oversaturation when changing between combined and not combined color controls for upscaled Apple XDR displays - #614

Fixed: Night Shift should be turned back off when it was turned off by activating HDR mode from app-menu - #606

Fixed: Custom keyboard shortcuts don't work when app Menu is open - #596

Fixed: Resolution menu/slider is a wreck for some real displays in Monterey 12.4 - #601 opened 11 days ago by waydabber

Fixed: Resolution issue with app-created dummies optimized for the new 14" and 16" macbook pro screens and some other displays - #581

Changes in v1.2.3-beta

Added various options to manage brightness control methods - #599

Combined keyboard control of hardware (Apple, DDC) brightness, software dimming and XDR/HDR upscale - #589

Combined hardware brightness, software dimming, XDR/HDR upscale slider - #588

Additional options to define keyboard control target screen - #587

Advanced options for native keyboard control for brightness and audio - #586

Implement Apple native key support for brightness and volume - #583

Added fine scale brightness/volume control for custom keyboard shortcuts - #585

Brightness and color control smooth transitions - #547

Implement DDC Mute control for external displays - #582

Implement DDC Volume control for external displays - #580

Implement DDC brightness control for external displays - #515

Implement Apple brightness control - #516

Make the contents of general Tools menu block configurable - #571

Option to match menu icon with main display icon - #593

Fixed: Display name suffixes might get messed up with multiple displays of same name - #594

Fixed: Slider graphics and text colors are somewhat off with some backgrounds - #572

Changes in v1.2.2-beta

Added color temperature adjustment slider (especially useful for TVs that are incompatible with Night Shift) - #555

Added contrast control - #566

Add gain option to squeeze out some more nits or improve brightness when watching a dark movie - #561

Added R/G/B tint (gamma) control for... I don't know - why not? - #560

HDR/XDR brightness upscale setting is now remembered permanently, don't need to toggle it all the time - #557

Added Night Shift controls to the menu (so you don't have to look for that deeply hidden nightshift slider anymore in System Preferences) - #548

Added keyboard shortcut options for Night Shift and color temperature - #556

Added option to auto-disable Night Shift when reference HDR mode is enabled on an external display in the app menu - #554

Added option to reset all color adjustments - #564

Restore last applied brightness/color adjustments upon reconnect/restart - #563

Redesign the bottom part of the menu - #567

Fixed: App keeps forgetting I have a license - update Paddle SDK to 4.3.0 - #558

Fixed: After resetting the app in Preferences no items appear under the display in the menu - #565

Fixed: Dimming overlay (Sidecar, Dummy, AirPlay, DisplayLink) not resized properly on resolution change - #551

Fixed: Enabling HDR/XDR Upscale makes brightness slider disappear - #568

Fixed: Max dummy resolution gets limited when switching to portrait mode - #559

Changes in v1.2.1-beta

Updated menu appearance, persistent collapsible display/dummy menu blocks - #546

Gamma correction slider (you can enable it under Preferences/Appearance) - #525

Overlay dimming for virtual displays, Sidecar/AirPlay and DisplayLink - #513

System OSD shown for keyboard shortcut induced brightness changes

Custom keyboard shortcut for brightness, gamma, HDR upscale and adjustments reset - #521
Note: Apple keyboard native keys support not added yet!

Updated Appearance and Keyboard shortcuts tab - #536

Configurable menu location for display/dummy information, toggles and tools and new sliders - #531, #535

Fixed: Resolution slider not updated in some circumstances - #534

Fixed: Non-whole-numbers refresh rates not shown properly in menu - #541

Fixed: Resolution sliders go missing - #532

Fixed: Trial counter does not update properly - #533

Integrated DDC control framework for Apple Silicon and Intel - #514
Note: DDC brightness and volume control not yet accessible!

Changes in v1.2.0-beta (compared to v1.1.12)

HDR/XDR upscaling (extra brightness) - #499

Source code(tar.gz)
Source code(zip)
BetterDisplay-v1.2.8.dmg(5.03 MB)
v1.2.7(Jun 25, 2022)
About this version

This service release contains fixes for some of the issues found in the previous v1.2.6 version.

Fixed: Third party external display HDR upscaling does not activate - #715

Fixed: Some settings are not enabled until an other setting is changed on that specific pref pane - #716

Fixed: Brightness OSD is not visible on dummy screen when it is being mirrored to a real screen (regression) - #655

Fixed: If native media keys used during display configuration, keys might get stuck afterwards - #725

As a refresher, the previous version introduced some major changes:

BetterDummy is now BetterDisplay

Native smooth resolution scaling - have a flexible scaled resolution slider on Apple Silicon even without a dummy!

XDR/HDR upscaling - unlock the full brightness of your Apple XDR or third party HDR displays!

Custom resolutions - create any number of native custom HiDPI resolutions on Apple Silicon! Redefine the native and default resolutions!

Brightness control - control the brightness of your internal and external displays - all methods (native, DDC, colortable, overlay) supported. Also change color temperature, gamma, gain, contrast, color gain. Supports DDC audio volume control.

Click here for a detailed changelog of v1.2.x versions

Changes in v1.2.7

Fixed: Third-party external display HDR upscaling does not get activated - #715

Fixed: Some settings are not enabled until an other setting is changed on that specific pref pane - #716

Fixed: Brightness OSD is not visible on dummy screen when it is being mirrored to a real screen (regression) - #655

Fixed: If native media keys used during display configuration, keys might get stuck afterwards - #725

Changes in v1.2.6

Less intrusive alternative for the permissions problem alert dialog - #699

Emphasize the display header under Displays - #704

Display reconfiguarion app menu icon - #703

Fixed: Newly connected display with smooth scaling enabled is not detected properly - 694

Fixed: Ambient light sensor induced XDR macOS battery drain issue - #702

Changes in v1.2.5c-beta

Fixed: Some text in settings is cut off - #683

Fixed: Display configuration is editable for DisplayLink connected displays (which don't support this feature) - #681

Fixed: Keyboard brightness control does not work when hardware control is disabled in the latest beta - #679

Fixed: With combined brightness, when the brightness is decresed to zero externally for Apple displays, external controls can't recover the brightness - #687

Fixed: The resolution list in simple mode should show only resolutions for the current refresh rate - #686

Fixed: (Suggestion) Reverse resolution list in submenu to show high resolutions first - #684

Fixed: Resolution slider always falls short of fully reaching the end even at 100% - #685

Fixed: Resolution slider changes to Low resolution when the max value was set once - #682

Changes in v1.2.5b-beta

Added option Reset color table on neutral settings + explanation - #644

Added cool option to show hw/sw subsliders when combined brightness is enabled

Fixed: menu blocks cannot be collapsed and some other display or dummy related settings cannot be changed - #666

Fixed: resolution slider is missing issues - #665

Fixed: corrupt system configuration when the display is in a rotated during the procedure - #665

Fixed: brightness OSD is not visible on dummy screen when it is being mirrored to a real screen - #655

Changes in v1.2.5a-beta

App rebranding (in progress) - #641

Added feature to manage display system configuration - #645

Added feature to allow smooth resolution slider for displays - requires Pro - #645

Added feature to override various display data (display name, native resolution, default resolution) - #645

Added feature to add custom scaled resolutions to native displays - #645

Add option to have only resolutions in the resolution slider that matches/approximates native aspect ratio - #658

Added option to show resolution slider as percentage for smoothly-scaled displays - #660

Added support for M2 Macbook Air - #656

Added support for macOS 13 Ventura - #664

Added a way to show some technical info about the displays for troubleshooting - #650

Fixed: v1.2.4 and v1.1.24 regression in terms of handing display UUIDs - #662

Changes in v1.2.4-beta

Added option to show slider labels - #630

Added an option under Preferences/General to enable/disable all brightness related display control functionality - #628

Added option to disengage from F14/F15 keys - #629

Create a Displays tab for various display related settings - #603

Preferences tab should be reorganized to look consistent (scrolling type) - #621 opened 5 days ago by waydabber

Startup in safe mode should not restore previous brightness and color adjustment settings - #620

A proper prompt to gain Accessibility Privilege for media key control upon startup - #613

Streaming status should be shown in app menu just like mirroring - #619

Update combined brightness slider/keyboard control state for Apple screens when brightness is changed outside of the app - #602

Fixed: "Make fine scale default" for brightness control is at a wrong place in Preferences - #626

Fixed: XDR upscale should not be activated on EDR capable non-XDR Apple displays - #622

Fixed: Brightness keyboard shortcuts should not affect dummy screens directly but only non-dummy mirror or stream target displays - #616

Fixed: DDC Volume slider does not zero on mute + app forgets mute state after restart - #605

Fixed: Combined brightness sub-hw-zero-dimming and XDR upscale switching points should always correspond to a full OSD chiclet - #618

Fixed: Full screen stream can be resized by clicking on the top/bottom/left/right border of the stream target screen - #617

Fixed: Oversaturation when changing between combined and not combined color controls for upscaled Apple XDR displays - #614

Fixed: Night Shift should be turned back off when it was turned off by activating HDR mode from app-menu - #606

Fixed: Custom keyboard shortcuts don't work when app Menu is open - #596

Fixed: Resolution menu/slider is a wreck for some real displays in Monterey 12.4 - #601 opened 11 days ago by waydabber

Fixed: Resolution issue with app-created dummies optimized for the new 14" and 16" macbook pro screens and some other displays - #581

Changes in v1.2.3-beta

Added various options to manage brightness control methods - #599

Combined keyboard control of hardware (Apple, DDC) brightness, software dimming and XDR/HDR upscale - #589

Combined hardware brightness, software dimming, XDR/HDR upscale slider - #588

Additional options to define keyboard control target screen - #587

Advanced options for native keyboard control for brightness and audio - #586

Implement Apple native key support for brightness and volume - #583

Added fine scale brightness/volume control for custom keyboard shortcuts - #585

Brightness and color control smooth transitions - #547

Implement DDC Mute control for external displays - #582

Implement DDC Volume control for external displays - #580

Implement DDC brightness control for external displays - #515

Implement Apple brightness control - #516

Make the contents of general Tools menu block configurable - #571

Option to match menu icon with main display icon - #593

Fixed: Display name suffixes might get messed up with multiple displays of same name - #594

Fixed: Slider graphics and text colors are somewhat off with some backgrounds - #572

Changes in v1.2.2-beta

Added color temperature adjustment slider (especially useful for TVs that are incompatible with Night Shift) - #555

Added contrast control - #566

Add gain option to squeeze out some more nits or improve brightness when watching a dark movie - #561

Added R/G/B tint (gamma) control for... I don't know - why not? - #560

HDR/XDR brightness upscale setting is now remembered permanently, don't need to toggle it all the time - #557

Added Night Shift controls to the menu (so you don't have to look for that deeply hidden nightshift slider anymore in System Preferences) - #548

Added keyboard shortcut options for Night Shift and color temperature - #556

Added option to auto-disable Night Shift when reference HDR mode is enabled on an external display in the app menu - #554

Added option to reset all color adjustments - #564

Restore last applied brightness/color adjustments upon reconnect/restart - #563

Redesign the bottom part of the menu - #567

Fixed: App keeps forgetting I have a license - update Paddle SDK to 4.3.0 - #558

Fixed: After resetting the app in Preferences no items appear under the display in the menu - #565

Fixed: Dimming overlay (Sidecar, Dummy, AirPlay, DisplayLink) not resized properly on resolution change - #551

Fixed: Enabling HDR/XDR Upscale makes brightness slider disappear - #568

Fixed: Max dummy resolution gets limited when switching to portrait mode - #559

Changes in v1.2.1-beta

Updated menu appearance, persistent collapsible display/dummy menu blocks - #546

Gamma correction slider (you can enable it under Preferences/Appearance) - #525

Overlay dimming for virtual displays, Sidecar/AirPlay and DisplayLink - #513

System OSD shown for keyboard shortcut induced brightness changes

Custom keyboard shortcut for brightness, gamma, HDR upscale and adjustments reset - #521
Note: Apple keyboard native keys support not added yet!

Updated Appearance and Keyboard shortcuts tab - #536

Configurable menu location for display/dummy information, toggles and tools and new sliders - #531, #535

Fixed: Resolution slider not updated in some circumstances - #534

Fixed: Non-whole-numbers refresh rates not shown properly in menu - #541

Fixed: Resolution sliders go missing - #532

Fixed: Trial counter does not update properly - #533

Integrated DDC control framework for Apple Silicon and Intel - #514
Note: DDC brightness and volume control not yet accessible!

Changes in v1.2.0-beta (compared to v1.1.12)

HDR/XDR upscaling (extra brightness) - #499

Source code(tar.gz)
Source code(zip)
BetterDisplay-v1.2.7.dmg(5.02 MB)
v1.2.6(Jun 18, 2022)
About this version

The app has a new name. Say hello to BetterDisplay!

It's not just the about name, the app has some cool new features as well (see below)!

Those who upgrade from BetterDummy via the built-in updater will see the app icon changed but the app name will remain unchanged in the Applications folder. All existing features work the same!

The app works with your existing Pro license, no need to purchase a new license!

Of course the existing free features and many of the new features are available completely free!

Some of the exciting new features compared to the previous stable version:

BetterDummy is now BetterDisplay!

Native smooth resolution scaling - have a flexible scaled resolution slider on Apple Silicon even without a dummy! *

Custom resolutions - create any number of native custom HiDPI resolutions on Apple Silicon! Redefine the native and default resolutions!

Brightness control - control the brightness of your internal and external displays - all methods (native, DDC, colortable, overlay) supported!

XDR/HDR upscaling - unlock the full brightness of your Apple XDR or third party HDR displays! *

Change the audio volume of your external display via DDC.

Use native Apple keyboard brightness/volume key support with native OSD.

Color temperature, gamma, gain, contrast and color control. *

Various improvements and bug-fixes (see detailed changelog).

Some or all aspect of the features marked with an asterisk (*) require a Pro license.

Note to beta users: the app is marked as stable so after upgrading to this, you'll not receive further beta updates unless Receive beta updates is enabled under Settings/General.

Click here for a detailed changelog of v1.2.x versions

Changes in v1.2.6

Less intrusive alternative for the permissions problem alert dialog - #699

Emphasize the display header under Displays - #704

Display reconfiguarion app menu icon - #703

Fixed: Newly connected display with smooth scaling enabled is not detected properly - 694

Fixed: Ambient light sensor induced XDR macOS battery drain issue - #702

Changes in v1.2.5a/b/c

rev. c - Fixed: Some text in settings is cut off - #683

rev. c - Fixed: Display configuration is editable for DisplayLink connected displays (which don't support this feature) - #681

rev. c - Fixed: Keyboard brightness control does not work when hardware control is disabled in the latest beta - #679

rev. c - Fixed: With combined brightness, when the brightness is decresed to zero externally for Apple displays, external controls can't recover the brightness - #687

rev. c - Fixed: The resolution list in simple mode should show only resolutions for the current refresh rate - #686

rev. c - Fixed: (Suggestion) Reverse resolution list in submenu to show high resolutions first - #684

rev. c - Fixed: Resolution slider always falls short of fully reaching the end even at 100% - #685

rev. c - Fixed: Resolution slider changes to Low resolution when the max value was set once - #682

rev. b - Added option Reset color table on neutral settings + explanation - #644

rev. b - Added cool option to show hw/sw subsliders when combined brightness is enabled

rev. b - Fixed: menu blocks cannot be collapsed and some other display or dummy related settings cannot be changed - #666

rev. b - Fixed: resolution slider is missing issues - #665

rev. b - Fixed: corrupt system configuration when the display is in a rotated during the procedure - #665

rev. b - Fixed: brightness OSD is not visible on dummy screen when it is being mirrored to a real screen - #655

App rebranding (in progress) - #641

Added feature to manage display system configuration - #645

Added feature to allow smooth resolution slider for displays - requires Pro - #645

Added feature to override various display data (display name, native resolution, default resolution) - #645

Added feature to add custom scaled resolutions to native displays - #645

Add option to have only resolutions in the resolution slider that matches/approximates native aspect ratio - #658

Added option to show resolution slider as percentage for smoothly-scaled displays - #660

Added support for M2 Macbook Air - #656

Added support for macOS 13 Ventura - #664

Added a way to show some technical info about the displays for troubleshooting - #650

Fixed: v1.2.4 and v1.1.24 regression in terms of handing display UUIDs - #662

Changes in v1.2.4

Added option to show slider labels - #630

Added an option under Preferences/General to enable/disable all brightness related display control functionality - #628

Added option to disengage from F14/F15 keys - #629

Create a Displays tab for various display related settings - #603

Preferences tab should be reorganized to look consistent (scrolling type) - #621 opened 5 days ago by waydabber

Startup in safe mode should not restore previous brightness and color adjustment settings - #620

A proper prompt to gain Accessibility Privilege for media key control upon startup - #613

Streaming status should be shown in app menu just like mirroring - #619

Update combined brightness slider/keyboard control state for Apple screens when brightness is changed outside of the app - #602

Fixed: "Make fine scale default" for brightness control is at a wrong place in Preferences - #626

Fixed: XDR upscale should not be activated on EDR capable non-XDR Apple displays - #622

Fixed: Brightness keyboard shortcuts should not affect dummy screens directly but only non-dummy mirror or stream target displays - #616

Fixed: DDC Volume slider does not zero on mute + app forgets mute state after restart - #605

Fixed: Combined brightness sub-hw-zero-dimming and XDR upscale switching points should always correspond to a full OSD chiclet - #618

Fixed: Full screen stream can be resized by clicking on the top/bottom/left/right border of the stream target screen - #617

Fixed: Oversaturation when changing between combined and not combined color controls for upscaled Apple XDR displays - #614

Fixed: Night Shift should be turned back off when it was turned off by activating HDR mode from app-menu - #606

Fixed: Custom keyboard shortcuts don't work when app Menu is open - #596

Fixed: Resolution menu/slider is a wreck for some real displays in Monterey 12.4 - #601 opened 11 days ago by waydabber

Fixed: Resolution issue with app-created dummies optimized for the new 14" and 16" macbook pro screens and some other displays - #581

Changes in v1.2.3

Added various options to manage brightness control methods - #599

Combined keyboard control of hardware (Apple, DDC) brightness, software dimming and XDR/HDR upscale - #589

Combined hardware brightness, software dimming, XDR/HDR upscale slider - #588

Additional options to define keyboard control target screen - #587

Advanced options for native keyboard control for brightness and audio - #586

Implement Apple native key support for brightness and volume - #583

Added fine scale brightness/volume control for custom keyboard shortcuts - #585

Brightness and color control smooth transitions - #547

Implement DDC Mute control for external displays - #582

Implement DDC Volume control for external displays - #580

Implement DDC brightness control for external displays - #515

Implement Apple brightness control - #516

Make the contents of general Tools menu block configurable - #571

Option to match menu icon with main display icon - #593

Fixed: Display name suffixes might get messed up with multiple displays of same name - #594

Fixed: Slider graphics and text colors are somewhat off with some backgrounds - #572

Changes in v1.2.2

Added color temperature adjustment slider (especially useful for TVs that are incompatible with Night Shift) - #555

Added contrast control - #566

Add gain option to squeeze out some more nits or improve brightness when watching a dark movie - #561

Added R/G/B tint (gamma) control for... I don't know - why not? - #560

HDR/XDR brightness upscale setting is now remembered permanently, don't need to toggle it all the time - #557

Added Night Shift controls to the menu (so you don't have to look for that deeply hidden nightshift slider anymore in System Preferences) - #548

Added keyboard shortcut options for Night Shift and color temperature - #556

Added option to auto-disable Night Shift when reference HDR mode is enabled on an external display in the app menu - #554

Added option to reset all color adjustments - #564

Restore last applied brightness/color adjustments upon reconnect/restart - #563

Redesign the bottom part of the menu - #567

Fixed: App keeps forgetting I have a license - update Paddle SDK to 4.3.0 - #558

Fixed: After resetting the app in Preferences no items appear under the display in the menu - #565

Fixed: Dimming overlay (Sidecar, Dummy, AirPlay, DisplayLink) not resized properly on resolution change - #551

Fixed: Enabling HDR/XDR Upscale makes brightness slider disappear - #568

Fixed: Max dummy resolution gets limited when switching to portrait mode - #559

Changes in v1.2.1

Updated menu appearance, persistent collapsible display/dummy menu blocks - #546

Gamma correction slider (you can enable it under Preferences/Appearance) - #525

Overlay dimming for virtual displays, Sidecar/AirPlay and DisplayLink - #513

System OSD shown for keyboard shortcut induced brightness changes

Custom keyboard shortcut for brightness, gamma, HDR upscale and adjustments reset - #521
Note: Apple keyboard native keys support not added yet!

Updated Appearance and Keyboard shortcuts tab - #536

Configurable menu location for display/dummy information, toggles and tools and new sliders - #531, #535

Fixed: Resolution slider not updated in some circumstances - #534

Fixed: Non-whole-numbers refresh rates not shown properly in menu - #541

Fixed: Resolution sliders go missing - #532

Fixed: Trial counter does not update properly - #533

Integrated DDC control framework for Apple Silicon and Intel - #514
Note: DDC brightness and volume control not yet accessible!

Changes in v1.2.0 (compared to v1.1.12)

HDR/XDR upscaling (extra brightness) - #499

Source code(tar.gz)
Source code(zip)
BetterDisplay-v1.2.6.dmg(5.00 MB)
v1.2.5-beta(Jun 11, 2022)
About this version

Finally! Native smooth scaling and HiDPI for your displays on Apple Silicon

At last, what many of you've been waiting for! There is now an option in the app to enable a smooth HiDPI resolution scaling on Apple Silicon for internal displays and natively connected external displays. This means you do not have to create a dummy and mirror it to your main screen simply to have flexible HiDPI resolutions and a resolution slider.

This also fixes a host of issues for those who simply want flexible resolutions - high refresh rate, Apple TV/HDCP content, sleep issues.

The smooth resolution scaling feature also works with the notch for the new MBPs and the new MBA.

Please note that the smooth resolution scale is a Pro feature and it might still have bugs so if it does not work on your setup, please let me know (on the Discord channel or open an Issue). The feature was tested on Apple Silicon.

While at it, I also added some other nifty features - you can now override you real display's name, native resolution, default resolution and also add your own custom scaled HiDPI resolutions on Apple Silicon. These are available for free for the benefit of all.

When correctly set up, you should see a super flexible resolution scaling slider (if resolution slider is not disabled) for your affected displays in the app menu (just like if they were dummies - but they are not!).

To enable the feature, simply navigate to the Displays section in Preferences, enable the Edit and manage the system configuration of this display feature first under a suitable display, and then enable the Allow smooth resolution scale option just below it as it appears. If you did this for all the relevant displays, click on the Apply System Display Configuration button at the bottom of the screen, enter your admin password and then reboot:

Please note that the smooth scaling feature works on macOS Monterey 12.4 or 12.5 beta and also macOS 13 Ventura and the upper limit of the flexible resolutions is the pixel-doubled native resolution of the display (so for a 1440p display it maxes out at 1440p HiDPI). The feature works only for natively connected (USB-C/DisplayPort, HDMI) and internal displays. For Sidecar, DisplayLink or if you want higher-than-native resolutions (for extra screen real estate) you still need dummy mirroring for flexible scaling on Apple Silicon.

Say hello to BetterDisplay!

An other major news is the fact that the app is being rebranded from BetterDummy to BetterDisplay. This process is not 100% completed (see the progress here), but this build has a new app icon, menu bar icon and the labels inside the app now reflect this upcoming change.

For those who use the built-in updater to update, the app will retain the name BetterDummy in the Application folders to avoid (or foster?) confusion. :)

Detailed change log

Changes in v1.2.5a/b/c

rev. c - Fixed: Some text in settings is cut off - #683

rev. c - Fixed: Display configuration is editable for DisplayLink connected displays (which don't support this feature) - #681

rev. c - Fixed: Keyboard brightness control does not work when hardware control is disabled in the latest beta - #679

rev. c - Fixed: With combined brightness, when the brightness is decresed to zero externally for Apple displays, external controls can't recover the brightness - #687

rev. c - Fixed: The resolution list in simple mode should show only resolutions for the current refresh rate - #686

rev. c - Fixed: (Suggestion) Reverse resolution list in submenu to show high resolutions first - #684

rev. c - Fixed: Resolution slider always falls short of fully reaching the end even at 100% - #685

rev. c - Fixed: Resolution slider changes to Low resolution when the max value was set once - #682

rev. b - Added option Reset color table on neutral settings + explanation - #644

rev. b - Added cool option to show hw/sw subsliders when combined brightness is enabled

rev. b - Fixed: menu blocks cannot be collapsed and some other display or dummy related settings cannot be changed - #666

rev. b - Fixed: resolution slider is missing issues - #665

rev. b - Fixed: corrupt system configuration when the display is in a rotated during the procedure - #665

rev. b - Fixed: brightness OSD is not visible on dummy screen when it is being mirrored to a real screen - #655

App rebranding (in progress) - #641

Added feature to manage display system configuration - #645

Added feature to allow smooth resolution slider for displays - requires Pro - #645

Added feature to override various display data (display name, native resolution, default resolution) - #645

Added feature to add custom scaled resolutions to native displays - #645

Add option to have only resolutions in the resolution slider that matches/approximates native aspect ratio - #658

Added option to show resolution slider as percentage for smoothly-scaled displays - #660

Added support for M2 Macbook Air - #656

Added support for macOS 13 Ventura - #664

Added a way to show some technical info about the displays for troubleshooting - #650

Fixed: v1.2.4 and v1.1.24 regression in terms of handing display UUIDs - #662

Changes in v1.2.4

Added option to show slider labels - #630

Added an option under Preferences/General to enable/disable all brightness related display control functionality - #628

Added option to disengage from F14/F15 keys - #629

Create a Displays tab for various display related settings - #603

Preferences tab should be reorganized to look consistent (scrolling type) - #621 opened 5 days ago by waydabber

Startup in safe mode should not restore previous brightness and color adjustment settings - #620

A proper prompt to gain Accessibility Privilege for media key control upon startup - #613

Streaming status should be shown in app menu just like mirroring - #619

Update combined brightness slider/keyboard control state for Apple screens when brightness is changed outside of the app - #602

Fixed: "Make fine scale default" for brightness control is at a wrong place in Preferences - #626

Fixed: XDR upscale should not be activated on EDR capable non-XDR Apple displays - #622

Fixed: Brightness keyboard shortcuts should not affect dummy screens directly but only non-dummy mirror or stream target displays - #616

Fixed: DDC Volume slider does not zero on mute + app forgets mute state after restart - #605

Fixed: Combined brightness sub-hw-zero-dimming and XDR upscale switching points should always correspond to a full OSD chiclet - #618

Fixed: Full screen stream can be resized by clicking on the top/bottom/left/right border of the stream target screen - #617

Fixed: Oversaturation when changing between combined and not combined color controls for upscaled Apple XDR displays - #614

Fixed: Night Shift should be turned back off when it was turned off by activating HDR mode from app-menu - #606

Fixed: Custom keyboard shortcuts don't work when app Menu is open - #596

Fixed: Resolution menu/slider is a wreck for some real displays in Monterey 12.4 - #601 opened 11 days ago by waydabber

Fixed: Resolution issue with app-created dummies optimized for the new 14" and 16" macbook pro screens and some other displays - #581

Changes in v1.2.3

Added various options to manage brightness control methods - #599

Combined keyboard control of hardware (Apple, DDC) brightness, software dimming and XDR/HDR upscale - #589

Combined hardware brightness, software dimming, XDR/HDR upscale slider - #588

Additional options to define keyboard control target screen - #587

Advanced options for native keyboard control for brightness and audio - #586

Implement Apple native key support for brightness and volume - #583

Added fine scale brightness/volume control for custom keyboard shortcuts - #585

Brightness and color control smooth transitions - #547

Implement DDC Mute control for external displays - #582

Implement DDC Volume control for external displays - #580

Implement DDC brightness control for external displays - #515

Implement Apple brightness control - #516

Make the contents of general Tools menu block configurable - #571

Option to match menu icon with main display icon - #593

Fixed: Display name suffixes might get messed up with multiple displays of same name - #594

Fixed: Slider graphics and text colors are somewhat off with some backgrounds - #572

Changes in v1.2.2

Added color temperature adjustment slider (especially useful for TVs that are incompatible with Night Shift) - #555

Added contrast control - #566

Add gain option to squeeze out some more nits or improve brightness when watching a dark movie - #561

Added R/G/B tint (gamma) control for... I don't know - why not? - #560

HDR/XDR brightness upscale setting is now remembered permanently, don't need to toggle it all the time - #557

Added Night Shift controls to the menu (so you don't have to look for that deeply hidden nightshift slider anymore in System Preferences) - #548

Added keyboard shortcut options for Night Shift and color temperature - #556

Added option to auto-disable Night Shift when reference HDR mode is enabled on an external display in the app menu - #554

Added option to reset all color adjustments - #564

Restore last applied brightness/color adjustments upon reconnect/restart - #563

Redesign the bottom part of the menu - #567

Fixed: App keeps forgetting I have a license - update Paddle SDK to 4.3.0 - #558

Fixed: After resetting the app in Preferences no items appear under the display in the menu - #565

Fixed: Dimming overlay (Sidecar, Dummy, AirPlay, DisplayLink) not resized properly on resolution change - #551

Fixed: Enabling HDR/XDR Upscale makes brightness slider disappear - #568

Fixed: Max dummy resolution gets limited when switching to portrait mode - #559

Changes in v1.2.1

Updated menu appearance, persistent collapsible display/dummy menu blocks - #546

Gamma correction slider (you can enable it under Preferences/Appearance) - #525

Overlay dimming for virtual displays, Sidecar/AirPlay and DisplayLink - #513

System OSD shown for keyboard shortcut induced brightness changes

Custom keyboard shortcut for brightness, gamma, HDR upscale and adjustments reset - #521
Note: Apple keyboard native keys support not added yet!

Updated Appearance and Keyboard shortcuts tab - #536

Configurable menu location for display/dummy information, toggles and tools and new sliders - #531, #535

Fixed: Resolution slider not updated in some circumstances - #534

Fixed: Non-whole-numbers refresh rates not shown properly in menu - #541

Fixed: Resolution sliders go missing - #532

Fixed: Trial counter does not update properly - #533

Integrated DDC control framework for Apple Silicon and Intel - #514
Note: DDC brightness and volume control not yet accessible!

Changes in v1.2.0 (compared to v1.1.12)

HDR/XDR upscaling (extra brightness) - #499

Source code(tar.gz)
Source code(zip)
BetterDisplay-v1.2.5c-beta.dmg(4.90 MB)
v1.1.24(Jun 2, 2022)
About this version

This stable version is mostly about bug fixes - it contains all relevant fixes from the latest v1.2.x beta version (which is still under development). Some new functionality and an updated appearance was also carried over from the v1.2.x version. The new advanced display control features (brightness, color control, hardware management, XDR/HDR brightness upscaling (beyond 100% brightness), DDC control, display volume control) are not present in this version - if you want to use these, please download the latest v1.2.x beta build.

Changes in v1.1.24 (compared to the previous stable version v1.1.12)

Added Night Shift slider/control to Tools menu - #548

Added keyboard shortcut for Night Shift - #556

Added option to auto-disable Night Shift when enabling HDR - #554

Added option to show submenu toggles at main menu level - #531

Added option to match menu icon with main display icon - #593

Improved slider graphics and text colors - #572

Introduced new configurable Tools menu block - #567, #571

Improved menu usability + collapsible menu blocks - #546

Streaming status is shown in app menu (like mirroring) - #619

Reorganized Preferences tab - #621, #536

Option to add slider labels - #630

Fixed: Resolution issue with app-created dummies optimized for the new 14" and 16" macbook pro screens and some other displays - #581

Fixed: Resolution menu/slider fake resolutions appear in macOS Monterey v12.4 - #601

Fixed: Custom keyboard shortcuts not working when menu is open - #596

Fixed: Full screen stream unexpected resizing issue - #617

Fixed: Limited max dummy resolution limit in portrait mode - #559

Fixed: Display name suffixes might get messed up with multiple displays of same name - #594

Fixed: After resetting the app in Preferences no items appear under the display in the menu - #565

Fixed: App keeps forgetting I have a license - update Paddle SDK to 4.3.0 - #558

Fixed: Refresh Rate list does not properly show non-whole natural number Refresh Rates - #541

Fixed: Resolution slider not updated correctly upon mode change in some circumstances - #534

Fixed: Trial counter does not seem to update in Preferences - #533

Fixed: In some instances resolution sliders go missing - #532

Click here for a detailed change log from v1.0.13 to v1.1.12...

Changes in v1.1.12

Fixed menu icon hiding - #507

Fixed slider text adjustment - #508

Changes in v1.1.12-rc

Customizable menu layout - #481

Added nice menu item icons to all menu items (only when enabled in Preferences) - #500

Option to use alternative display identification instead of UUID for DisplayLink - #503

Added back default portrait options to the New Dummy menu - #501

Various bug fixes and improvements

Changes in v1.1.11-beta

Add keyboard shortcuts to control the app - #11

Add safe mode during startup (by pressing Shift) - #475

Add Refresh Rate submenu to real displays - #480

Add low resolution switch to real displays as well - #486

Add a HDR toggle to the menu for (HDR capable) real displays - #479

Option to hide full screen stream temporarily - #488

Option to pause/freeze PIP window or full screen stream - #473

Option to hide mouse cursor for PIP window and full screen stream - #493

New dummy for display should default to current resolution, or allow to change default resolution via setting - #438

Rename the option 'Filp Aspect Ratio' back to 'Portrait' for better discoverability - #472

Fixed: Mouse is not visible in streamed real screens - #489

Fixed: Resolution slider should stick to current refresh rate - #482

Fixed: Changing mirror sleep settings do not register - #478

Fixed: Resolution slider omits native (highest) resolution - #494

Installer is now in DMG format for easier use

Changes in v1.1.10-beta

Paddle integration - #368

Fixed: Switching inputs causes dummy to become pixelated - #443

Fixed: Native and Default resolutions are not indicated in the resolution menu sometimes - #458

Fixed: Resolution slider text is hard to read in dark mode - #442

Add move display adjacent to the corner of an other display in the move menu - #453

Changes in v1.1.0-beta9

Mirror sets show up as grouped in the menu - #416

Main menu icons are optional - #426

Display/dummy menu headers have icons - #427

Option to reconnect all dummies - #424

Show variable refresh rates in resolution menu - #422

Change how reconnect after wake works - #425

Prompt about missing Screen Recording permissions upon full screen streaming. - #437

Inline resolution text in slider

Fixed resolution slider's rightmost setting not registering - #440

Fixed high memory usage issue - #434

Various other fixes and improvements

Changes in v1.1.0-beta8

Real display rotation (for supported displays) - #397

Ability to resize dummy (redefine aspect ratio or resolution) - #418

Various internal changes required for future features - #410, #417, #421

Various stability and other improvements.

Might have introduced new bugs, sorry about that.

Fixed mirrored dummy sleep workaround not working properly in previous beta.

Changes in v1.1.0-beta7

Create dummies with custom aspect ratios or resolutions - #84

Added feature to assist moving displays around - #385

Auto-configure and mirror or stream a dummy suited for display - #405

Full screen streaming is now more resilient - #400

Support off-center full-screen streaming (suitable for TVs used in close-up) - #196

Ability to preserve aspect ratio with full screen streaming - #396

Beta versions will receive beta updates no matter what - beta opt-out setting will apply on first stable update - #395

More detailed info about the display under in the Configuration submenu

Various bug fixes and improvements

Changes in v1.1.0-beta6

You can now rename dummies - #159

Option to change if a display/dummy is main or extended - #380

More info about dummies and displays - #373

Added mirroring menu for real displays - #379

Mirroring menu distinguishes between mirror targets and sources - #378

Experimental option to prohibit the mouse from entering a display when it is covered with a full screen stream - #367

Fixed iPad Air 2020 aspect ratio problem - #375

Several bugs have been fixed (probably some new introduced)

Changes in v1.1.0-beta5

Fixed beta channel update issue (previous betas won't receive auto updates, sorry about that)

Various other bug fixes

Changes in v1.1.0-beta4

Fixed full screen streaming target display best resolution scaling

Solved conflict when multiple screens was streamed to the same target display

Fixed full screen streaming resolution mismatch and display identification confusion

Display resolutions are now updated in the menu properly when changed outside of the app

Changes in v1.1.0-beta3

Resolution selector for non-dummy displays as well - #87

Enhanced resolution selector menu for displays (helps understanding EDID issues) - #356

Add a hint to the menu if mirroring might be misconfigured - #357

Picture in Picture mode for non-dummy screens as well - #259

Some general refactoring.

Changes in v1.1.0-beta2

Proper Preferences pane instead of the Settings menu. - #94

Option to enable sub-720p resolutions. - #265

Quick was to disconnect and reconnect a dummy. - #313

Dummy default colorspace is sRGB instead of Generic RGB. - #331

Expiration date is pushed off by an other month.

Changes in v1.1.0-beta1

Removal of the 10 minute tryout period and the need to manually start the tryout every time the app starts.

Removal of the pre-release version header from the top of the menu (man that was annoying :)).

Added an expiration date for the app (checked during app startup against the current system date).

Changes in v1.1.0-alpha2

Lots of bug fixes.

Lots of brand new bugs. :)

Added some new features (see below).

Improved clarity for full screen stream.

Removed time limit (except for the Pro features)

Changes in v1.1.0-alpha1

More logical menu layout

A more intuitive resolution slider instead of resolution list

Quick toggle for Low Resolution mode

Indicate displays matching aspect ratios in the create new dummy menu

Connecting a newly created dummy is now optional

Automate display rearrangement for first time dummy connect (with option to disable)

Use an entire desktop as a Window

PIP window priority setting

PIP window rotation

PIP window freeform aspect-ratio

PIP window title-less mode

Stream your dummy contents to a display as an alternative of mirroring

Full screen stream rotation

Quick toggle for portrait mode

Support for portrait orientation of all aspect ratios

Portrait Sidecar & built-in screen support with full screen streaming

Automation of display rearrangement when changing to/from portrait dummy orientation

Dummy automatically follows orientation of associated display

Automate the process of mirror creation for a display

Enforce mirroring for dummies associated with displays

Known Issues

See the standard known issue list

Source code(tar.gz)
Source code(zip)
BetterDummy-v1.1.24.dmg(4.14 MB)
v1.1.12(Apr 20, 2022)
About this version

This version includes licensing for Pro features with an in-app check-out system.

By purchasing a Pro license for $15 (includes VAT, sales tax, payment fees etc.) you support the development. Thank you for this!

There is a trial period for 14 days. If you don't purchase, you can still keep using the app for free after the trial without the Pro features. :)

For more information check out this discussion!

To the backers of the open-source project

I'd like to thank you for backing the open source project in the past by providing you with a Pro coupon code.

As Open Collective won't let me reach out you directly, please contact me at Discord by sending me private message with a screenshot of the confirmation you received when you donated. I'll respond with a code (some patience might be needed). Thank you!

List of major new features in v1.1.10 compared to v1.0.x

Note: Items marked with an asterix (*) are available in BetterDummy Pro

General

More logical and customizable menu layout

Menu item icons (configurable)

Proper Preferences pane

Keyboard shortcuts *

Dummy creation and management

A more intuitive resolution slider instead of resolution list

Quick toggle for Low Resolution mode

Option to disconnect and reconnect on lock

Indicate displays matching aspect ratios in the create new dummy menu

Connecting a newly created dummy is now optional

Automate display rearrangement for first time dummy connect (with option to disable)

Option to enable sub-720p resolutions

Quick way to disconnect and reconnect a dummy

You can now rename dummies *

Added information about dummies

Create dummies with custom aspect ratios or resolutions *

Auto-configure dummy, mirroring and streaming suited for a display *

Ability to move connected dummies in the display coordinate space

You can now resize dummies *

Real (non-dummy) display management

Show real and other virtual displays as well in the menu

Resolution selector for real (non-dummy) displays as well

Configure mirroring for real displays

Configure full screen streaming for real displays *

Picture in Picture for real displays *

Setting main/extended status

Option to reconnect all dummies

Added information about displays

Ability to move displays in the display coordinate space

Display rotation

Quickly enable/disable HDR mode (for supported displays)

Change refresh rate from menu

Quickly change between low and HiDPI resolution

Picture-in-Picture (PIP) window

Show an entire desktop in a window *

Works both for real and dummy displays *

PIP window priority setting *

PIP window rotation *

PIP window freeform aspect-ratio *

PIP window title-less mode *

Picture in Picture mode for real displays *

Pause PIP stream *

Full-screen streaming

Stream your dummy contents to a display as an alternative of mirroring *

Works both for real and dummy displays *

Full screen stream rotation *

Automatically set native mode for full screen stream target display (with an option to disable it) *

Improved clarity *

Support for off-center streaming (suitable for TVs used in displays in close proximity for example) *

Fixed or stretched aspect ratio *

Full screen streaming for real displays *

Temporarily hide full screen stream *

Pause full screen stream *

Portrait mode

Quick toggle for portrait mode

Support for portrait orientation of all aspect ratios

Portrait Sidecar & built-in screen support with full screen streaming *

Automation of display rearrangement when changing to/from portrait dummy orientation *

Dummy automatically follows orientation of associated display *

Mirroring

Automate the process of mirror creation for a display *

Enforce mirroring for dummies associated with displays *

Add some mirroring info + a hint to the menu if mirroring might be misconfigured

Mirrored items appear combined in the menu

Click here for a detailed change log from v1.0.13 to v1.1.12...

Changes in v1.1.12

Fixed menu icon hiding - #507

Fixed slider text adjustment - #508

Changes in v1.1.12-rc

Customizable menu layout - #481

Added nice menu item icons to all menu items (only when enabled in Preferences) - #500

Option to use alternative display identification instead of UUID for DisplayLink - #503

Added back default portrait options to the New Dummy menu - #501

Various bug fixes and improvements

Changes in v1.1.11-beta

Add keyboard shortcuts to control the app - #11

Add safe mode during startup (by pressing Shift) - #475

Add Refresh Rate submenu to real displays - #480

Add low resolution switch to real displays as well - #486

Add a HDR toggle to the menu for (HDR capable) real displays - #479

Option to hide full screen stream temporarily - #488

Option to pause/freeze PIP window or full screen stream - #473

Option to hide mouse cursor for PIP window and full screen stream - #493

New dummy for display should default to current resolution, or allow to change default resolution via setting - #438

Rename the option 'Filp Aspect Ratio' back to 'Portrait' for better discoverability - #472

Fixed: Mouse is not visible in streamed real screens - #489

Fixed: Resolution slider should stick to current refresh rate - #482

Fixed: Changing mirror sleep settings do not register - #478

Fixed: Resolution slider omits native (highest) resolution - #494

Installer is now in DMG format for easier use

Changes in v1.1.10-beta

Paddle integration - #368

Fixed: Switching inputs causes dummy to become pixelated - #443

Fixed: Native and Default resolutions are not indicated in the resolution menu sometimes - #458

Fixed: Resolution slider text is hard to read in dark mode - #442

Add move display adjacent to the corner of an other display in the move menu - #453

Changes in v1.1.0-beta9

Mirror sets show up as grouped in the menu - #416

Main menu icons are optional - #426

Display/dummy menu headers have icons - #427

Option to reconnect all dummies - #424

Show variable refresh rates in resolution menu - #422

Change how reconnect after wake works - #425

Prompt about missing Screen Recording permissions upon full screen streaming. - #437

Inline resolution text in slider

Fixed resolution slider's rightmost setting not registering - #440

Fixed high memory usage issue - #434

Various other fixes and improvements

Changes in v1.1.0-beta8

Real display rotation (for supported displays) - #397

Ability to resize dummy (redefine aspect ratio or resolution) - #418

Various internal changes required for future features - #410, #417, #421

Various stability and other improvements.

Might have introduced new bugs, sorry about that.

Fixed mirrored dummy sleep workaround not working properly in previous beta.

Changes in v1.1.0-beta7

Create dummies with custom aspect ratios or resolutions - #84

Added feature to assist moving displays around - #385

Auto-configure and mirror or stream a dummy suited for display - #405

Full screen streaming is now more resilient - #400

Support off-center full-screen streaming (suitable for TVs used in close-up) - #196

Ability to preserve aspect ratio with full screen streaming - #396

Beta versions will receive beta updates no matter what - beta opt-out setting will apply on first stable update - #395

More detailed info about the display under in the Configuration submenu

Various bug fixes and improvements

Changes in v1.1.0-beta6

You can now rename dummies - #159

Option to change if a display/dummy is main or extended - #380

More info about dummies and displays - #373

Added mirroring menu for real displays - #379

Mirroring menu distinguishes between mirror targets and sources - #378

Experimental option to prohibit the mouse from entering a display when it is covered with a full screen stream - #367

Fixed iPad Air 2020 aspect ratio problem - #375

Several bugs have been fixed (probably some new introduced)

Changes in v1.1.0-beta5

Fixed beta channel update issue (previous betas won't receive auto updates, sorry about that)

Various other bug fixes

Changes in v1.1.0-beta4

Fixed full screen streaming target display best resolution scaling

Solved conflict when multiple screens was streamed to the same target display

Fixed full screen streaming resolution mismatch and display identification confusion

Display resolutions are now updated in the menu properly when changed outside of the app

Changes in v1.1.0-beta3

Resolution selector for non-dummy displays as well - #87

Enhanced resolution selector menu for displays (helps understanding EDID issues) - #356

Add a hint to the menu if mirroring might be misconfigured - #357

Picture in Picture mode for non-dummy screens as well - #259

Some general refactoring.

Changes in v1.1.0-beta2

Proper Preferences pane instead of the Settings menu. - #94

Option to enable sub-720p resolutions. - #265

Quick was to disconnect and reconnect a dummy. - #313

Dummy default colorspace is sRGB instead of Generic RGB. - #331

Expiration date is pushed off by an other month.

Changes in v1.1.0-beta1

Removal of the 10 minute tryout period and the need to manually start the tryout every time the app starts.

Removal of the pre-release version header from the top of the menu (man that was annoying :)).

Added an expiration date for the app (checked during app startup against the current system date).

Changes in v1.1.0-alpha2

Lots of bug fixes.

Lots of brand new bugs. :)

Added some new features (see below).

Improved clarity for full screen stream.

Removed time limit (except for the Pro features)

Changes in v1.1.0-alpha1

More logical menu layout

A more intuitive resolution slider instead of resolution list

Quick toggle for Low Resolution mode

Indicate displays matching aspect ratios in the create new dummy menu

Connecting a newly created dummy is now optional

Automate display rearrangement for first time dummy connect (with option to disable)

Use an entire desktop as a Window

PIP window priority setting

PIP window rotation

PIP window freeform aspect-ratio

PIP window title-less mode

Stream your dummy contents to a display as an alternative of mirroring

Full screen stream rotation

Quick toggle for portrait mode

Support for portrait orientation of all aspect ratios

Portrait Sidecar & built-in screen support with full screen streaming

Automation of display rearrangement when changing to/from portrait dummy orientation

Dummy automatically follows orientation of associated display

Automate the process of mirror creation for a display

Enforce mirroring for dummies associated with displays

Known Issues

Trial counter might not update properly in the app menu or Preferences

In some instances resolution sliders might go missing (empty space appears instead)

Resolution slider is not updated during some configuration changes

Also see the standard known issue list

Source code(tar.gz)
Source code(zip)
BetterDummy-v1.1.12.dmg(3.80 MB)
v1.0.13(Dec 15, 2021)
Notes

This is the open source version of the app. Source code for this version is now fully available in the opensource branch on the app's GitHub page.

This is a minor bugfix release.

Changes

Fixed currently selected resolution not being reflected in the menu (issue 246)

Added "Use display serial number for association" setting (issue 211)

Some cosmetic changes for UI consistency

Source code(tar.gz)
Source code(zip)
BetterDummy-v1.0.13.zip(2.17 MB)
v1.0.12(Nov 28, 2021)
Changes

Various cosmetic changes, slightly redesigned menubar icon, reorganized menu for easier access.

Better support for association with virtual displays (like Sidecar, DisplayLink etc) - note: you need to reassociate the display in v1.0.12 for these devices!

Fixed update issue related to sandboxing. Users of v1.0.10 and v1.0.11 will not be able to update though. :(

Some under-the-hood changes and bug fixes.

Notes

The built-in app update fails due to a sandboxing issue when updating from versions 1.0.10 and v1.0.11. If you are on these versions you'll need to download the update manually! Really sorry about this!

If you have any issues with this release (besides the list of known issues), please let me know!

Source code(tar.gz)
Source code(zip)
BetterDummy-v1.0.12.zip(2.17 MB)
v1.0.10(Nov 12, 2021)
Changes

Added option to enable up to 16K resolutions under Settings (this might benefit 5K double-wide and ultrawide users to allow for higher resolution HiDPI).

Added options to connect/disconnect/discard/disassociate all dummies at once.

Added option to associate a dummy with a real display - association result in the dummy auto connecting/disconnecting whenever the associated display is present or removed from the configuration.

Added in-menu resolution selector for connected dummies.

Added option to enable low-resolution options in menu resolution selector.

Added option to hide the menubar icon.

Enabled full sandboxing.

If you find the app useful, please consider donating. I am truly thankful for all the support, every little bit counts.

Don't forget to star the GitHub project and spread the word!

If you have any issues with this release, please let me know!
Source code(tar.gz)
Source code(zip)
BetterDummy-v1.0.10.zip(2.16 MB)
v1.0.9(Nov 5, 2021)
Changes

Added some additional aspect ratios (notably support for newer iPads).

Added application reset.

Added option to enable/disable the workaround for macOS virtual display sleep bug that affects some setups. *

Fixed crash on sleep affecting some with v1.0.8.

Don't forget to Star the GitHub project! :)

If you have any issues with this release, please let me know!

* Virtual Displays mirrored to an other displays tend to break sleep on some setups (the screen just freezes). The problem is unrelated to BetterDummy and seems to be a bug in macOS - on affected setups it can be replicated without BD, simply by attempting to mirror a Sidecar display (or an other virtual screen of similar kind) and initiate sleep. A Bug Report has been submitted to Apple regarding this but the timetable of a proper fix is highly uncertain. The app implements a workaround for the issue, but since on some configs the workaround itself caused issues, an option was now added to disable it.
Source code(tar.gz)
Source code(zip)
BetterDummy-v1.0.9.zip(2.11 MB)
v1.0.7(Oct 29, 2021)
Changes

Improved handling of resolutions

Updated Manage Dummies menu

Start at Login option

Auto-update functionality

Unlocked resolutions up to 8K+ (8192px) *

Updated tailor-made app and menubar icons in place of the old generic icons *

The app is still a work in progress. If you have any issues with this release, please let me know!

* Note: the attached release binary was updated to v1.0.7e with the marked additional features but otherwise the app has no new features compared to the old v1.0.7, therefore this slightly updated version is not offered via the in-app update mechanism.
Source code(tar.gz)
Source code(zip)
BetterDummy-v1.0.7.zip(2.10 MB)
v1.0.6b(Oct 28, 2021)
Changes

Added more resolutions.

Option to connect/disconnect dummy without destroying it. It is preferred to disconnect a dummy instead of discarding it if you want to reuse a dummy later (this preserves previous display configuration and avoids creating unnecessary ColorSync profiles and display configuration entries stored by the OS).

Option to cycle connected dummies upon wake.

Release is properly notarized.

Known issues

Start at login option is not working yet.

Source code(tar.gz)
Source code(zip)
BetterDummy-v1.0.6b2.zip(725.91 KB)
v1.0.5(Oct 27, 2021)
Changes (over v1.0.2):

Added whitepoint and colorant tristimulus information to the dummy descriptors (taken from Apple's "Generic RGB Profile")

Decreased minimum resolution for people with vision challenges.

Source code(tar.gz)
Source code(zip)
BetterDummy-v1.0.5.zip(754.92 KB)
v1.0.2(Oct 26, 2021)
Minor updates:

Fixed restoring settings of multiple dummy displays.

Each dummy now has an unique persistent serial number. This means that multiple dummies of the same aspect ratio can be created (for multi-display setup) and upon app restart the previous display configuration is recognized and restored by macOS.

Internal refactoring to allow room for planned future improvements.

Note:

The format of the preferences store has changed so the app will forget all its settings when upgrading from v1.0.1.

Source code(tar.gz)
Source code(zip)
BetterDummy-v1.0.2.zip(704.55 KB)
v1.0.1(Oct 25, 2021)
Minor updates:

Added portrait aspect ratios (where it makes sense) for mirroring to rotated displays

Added an About section to show version number

Added a link to the GitHub page

Source code(tar.gz)
Source code(zip)
BetterDummy-v1.0.1.zip(747.54 KB)
v1.0.0-beta1(Oct 24, 2021)
Initial release:

Should be fully functional.

All aspect ratios added.

Ability to save display configuration and restore upon startup.

Mirrored dummy screen sleep glitch is fixed by utilizing an other glitch - this might work well on all configs. Proceed with caution!

Tested only on M1 and Monterey.

Source code(tar.gz)
Source code(zip)
BetterDummy-v1.0.0.zip(740.54 KB)