Getting Sharper Text on M1-based Macs with 1440p Displays

Originally published at: Getting Sharper Text on M1-based Macs with 1440p Displays - TidBITS

If you’ve wanted to enable HiDPI scaling for sharper text on a 1440p display connected to an M1-based Mac, you’ve been out of luck… until now. The open source BetterDummy helps you take full advantage of 1440p external screens.

Does SwitchResX not work?

According to its FAQ:

Version 4.11.1 was released this past April. The current version is 4.11.2 (released in September). See also the version history.

BetterDummy is free. SwitchResX is $16.

If 1440p HiDPI is the issue you’re trying to solve on an M1, you’d be a fool not to try BetterDummy first.

But (if I understand the products correctly), BetterDummy creates an additional virtual desktop, that gets mapped onto your screen. SwitchResX tweaks macOS’s internal tables so the OS natively provides the configured resolution. I would expect this use less system resources, if it works.

There’s a thread on the Better Dummy git site about lower battery life when running Better Dummy. Obviously there is most shuffling of data around using the method that Better Dummy uses vs how SwitchRes works. There’s also the possibility that the shuffling could incur swap to the SSD, which would create unnecessary wear and tear on the SSD, which is not changeable on the Apple Silicon Macs.

From the original article:
" users have been complaining about it for months to no avail"

Is this a “feature” or a defect? Is there any sign that Apple will resolve this?