Retina MacBook Pro Can Run Three External Displays Simultaneously - MacRumors
Skip to Content

Retina MacBook Pro Can Run Three External Displays Simultaneously

NewImage
Other World Computing posted this picture on their blog showing a MacBook Pro with Retina Display hooked up to a pair of iMacs serving as Thunderbolt displays and a third monitor via HDMI. This setup powers four screens with a total of 15,680,000 pixels.

The writer of the post, OWC Mike, seemed impressed with the performance of the MacBook Pro:

Moving images and media didn’t create any lag and we were able to play video on all four displays simultaneously.

Apple officially supports hooking three monitors into the Retina MacBook Pro, noting in the Thunderbolt ports FAQ in its Support Knowledge Base:

MacBook Pro (Retina, Mid 2012) can support an HDMI-compatible device on its HDMI port while also using two Thunderbolt displays.

This makes the Retina MacBook Pro the first Mac -- other than a tower-based workstation like the Mac Pro -- to natively power four displays simultaneously.

Popular Stories

iPhone Handoff iOS 27 Feature

T-Mobile to Charge $5 a Month for iOS 27 iPhone Handoff

Thursday September 10, 2026 3:58 pm PDT by
T-Mobile will charge customers $5 per month to use iPhone Handoff, an e-SIM feature that allows the same phone number to be used on two separate iPhones. iPhone Handoff requires carrier support, and at launch, only T-Mobile users in the U.S. and Deutsche Telekom users in Germany will be able to use it. T-Mobile says customers can use their number across two compatible iPhone models and...
iphone duo

IMAX Reacts to iPhone Duo's 1:1.4 Aspect Ratio Displays

Friday September 11, 2026 4:42 am PDT by
Production theater company IMAX has responded in a mixed way to Apple's embrace of a 1:1.4 aspect ratio on the iPhone Duo's inner and outer displays. The boxier ratio happens to be very close to the classic "full-frame" IMAX 1.43:1 aspect ratio, which comes from the geometry of the company's original 15-perforation/70mm film system. In response to an X post from someone wondering if we'll see...
iOS 27 Feature Dark

Apple Announces iOS 27 Release Date

Wednesday September 9, 2026 10:46 am PDT by
At its event today unveiling the iPhone 18 Pro, AirPods 5, Apple Watch Series 12, and more, Apple announced that iOS 27 will be released later this month. iOS 27 has already been available as a developer beta since June and as a public beta since July, and Apple today said that the update will be released for all users with a compatible iPhone model on Monday, September 14. iOS 27 is...

Top Rated Comments

186 months ago
Unfortunately my wallet can't power four displays.
Score: 126 Votes (Like | Disagree)
basesloaded190 Avatar
186 months ago
That's incredible. So much power in such a thin computer.
Score: 60 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Xian Zhu Xuande Avatar
186 months ago
I thought Thunderbolt was supposed to be powerful enough to support up to 10 monitors...
Thunderbolt can do things that the actual computer may not be able to do. In the case of monitors, while Thunderbolt can support 10 monitors, the hardware capabilities of a given computer may not be able to.
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ryanflanders256 Avatar
186 months ago
Could a traditional 15" MacBook pro also do this with daisy-chained thunderbolt monitors?
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
AQUADock Avatar
186 months ago
Wow that is an amazing amount of pixels for a computer so thin and light.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
186 months ago
That's nice...but you're leaving out how hot it gets after doing so?
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)