Apple has included excellent display panels iMacs for years, but for the longest time there hasn’t been a way to use it for anything other than macOS. there was a feature called Target Screen mode, but it has long been discontinued. It’s a shame, because many iMacs have great displays that go to waste once computing wears out.
I found a pretty good solution though, and it involves a 4K capture card and a great app available on the Mac App Store. Any HDMI input, whether a Transition 2PS5, Xbox or something else – it can show up on your device iMac (or USB-C iPad!)
Sure, I have a TV in my room that I can just use – but there’s something elegant and comfortable about just having it in my hand. iMac display on my desk.
The solution
For this solution I used UGREEN’s 4K 60Hz capture card. It’s not cheap at $95, but it’s the most affordable offering from a reputable brand that promises 4K and 60Hz – many of the cheaper offerings fall short and only do 4K at 30Hz. UGREEN’s capture card It also supports HDR, which I didn’t test as part of this project – but you can use your MacBook Pro screen or iPad Proyou can do it! It also supports up to 240Hz (though not in 4K) if you want to use that.
On the software side of things, I used a program called the Mac App Store UVC Video Capture. It requires a $9.99/year subscription (and annoyingly has a record button that can’t be hidden) – but it seemed the most reliable to me, and there’s a free trial. for iPadyou can use Orion from Halide manufacturers. It’s free for the basics and has a one-time purchase of $9.99 for some extra features like brightness adjustment.
With both of these programs, it’s pretty simple: you plug in the HDMI cable of your source device (in my case, Transition 2) included capture cardthen connect the USB-C cable of the capture card to the network iPad – and then open the app! Your content should flow.
Using this UGREEN capture cardit was incredibly low latency – virtually indistinguishable from local output. I’ve played several rounds of Mario Kart World and Fortnite Transition 2 through my iMacand it was great.
Wrap it up
It would certainly be nice if Apple brought it back (and expanded). Target display mode so you didn’t need any additional software for it, and instead any USB-C video input could appear on your screen iMac. At first, Apple scrapped it because Intel chips couldn’t handle it on a 5K panel — among other technical limitations.
Apple hasn’t decided to bring it back to Apple Silicon, so in the interim – this capture card + software solution works wonders.
Interested in doing more with you iMac you are more interested in using your screen iPad like a bigger screen for you Transition 2? Let us know in the comments.
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