Peripherals
Thinking inside the box to refresh the parts other tips can’t reach
Q
I’m due to give a talk in Keynote using my M1 MacBook Pro with a video projector. How can my Mac connect to that projector?
A
To a Mac, a video projector is just another display. When it has been connected and the Mac has synced with it to deliver the correct format of video data, it will appear as a second display in System Settings > Displays (the Displays pane in System Preferences).
There you can select whether to mirror your Mac’s internal display to the projection screen, or to operate it as a separate display altogether. When giving Keynote presentations, most speakers find it easiest to mirror the internal display. When you then click the Play tool in Keynote, it should switch to full-screen mode ready for you to give your presentation.
The biggest problem is usually working out how to connect your Mac to one of the video projector’s input ports, which will at least require an adaptor cable. Modern projectors almost invariably support HDMI connections, for which your Mac may need a specific USB-C or Thunderbolt to HDMI adaptor. Similar cable adaptors are also available to connect to older DVI and even VGA input ports.
Whatever you need, make time to check it all works well before you’re due to give your talk. Sometimes getting a Mac notebook to sync with a video projector can be tricky.
If it just won’t work reliably, and there’s no better option, you can always export your presentation from Keynote to PowerPoint, and show that on an inferior laptop PC as a fallback option.