Adjusting Screen Display Resolution or Magnification for Ease of Viewing

By default, most systems come with displays set for “optimal” viewing, but that doesn’t mean it’s optimal for everyone. If the elements on your screen appear too small for comfortable viewing, or conversely you would like screen elements smaller to fit more on the screen, it is easy to tweak your display settings. There are other ways to adjust the size of some elements. More about that later.

Note that while displays may offer a variety of resolution options, that doesn’t mean they will perform well at all settings. If you set your display to an unsupported resolution, your screen may go black for a few seconds (Mac and PC). Then, it will default to a resolution it can support (usually your previous resolution). Accept that as a sign the resolution you selected won’t work with your current system/monitor configuration.

Changing Screen Display Resolution, Windows 10 Machines

1. Access Screen Resolution options by typing Display Settings in the search bar next to the Windows icon in the lower left of your display.
2. In the Display Settings window, under Scale and Layout, you can adjust screen resolution (pixels per inch) and/or display magnification (the size of text, apps, and other items) either up or down. The best option depends on the situation.

• If the box under Screen Resolution includes the notation “(Recommended),” then changing this setting may cause issues with the display. Try changing the setting under Magnification instead (to 125% if you want to enlarge items on your screen, for example).
• If the Screen resolution does not say “Recommended,” or if increasing/decreasing the Magnification causes problems, change screen resolution and keep the display magnification set to 100%.

Changing Screen Display Resolution — Macs

1. Access the Screen Resolution option by selecting the Apple menu and System Preferences.
2. Click Displays, then click Display.
3. Under Resolution, Default for Display will likely be selected. Beneath that option, click Scaled, then select one of the options. Using a scaled resolution other than the default may affect performance. Note: If you want to see Low Resolution options, which may not work on your machine, click the checkbox for it to see other choices.

If your goal is to increase the size of screen elements but all options cause system glitches, both Macs and PCs offer a magnification feature to temporarily increase the size of screen elements. It is beyond the scope of this Tech Tip, but to access it, search for Accessibility (Mac) or Ease of Access (Windows).