Broken iMac as an External Monitor for 16" MacBook Pro?

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Level 1

8 points

Broken iMac as an External Monitor for 16" MacBook Pro?

Hi Apple!

I have just purchased the 16" MacBook Pro a few days ago. I am interested in connecting an external monitor to the 16" MacBook Pro.

I have a broken 21.5" Mid 2011 iMac. It can be turned on by pressing the switch at the back. Once it's turned on, it shows the white background with an Apple logo in the middle and the progress bar loading. But the computer stuck on that page and cannot access to the login page. And the computer will keep restarting automatically by itself and it will stuck on that page again.

Is it able to use that broken iMac as an external monitor for my 16" MacBook Pro with a HDMI cable and adapters, or other forms of connection? I think it's not worth to repair the iMac because it's an old device, but at the same time I do not want to waste it.

Thank you.

MacBook Pro 16", macOS 10.15

Posted on Apr 19, 2020 4:26 AM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

Jeff Donald

Level 7

22,921 points

Apr 19, 2020 8:49 AM in response to BDAqua

This is headed down a rabbit hole. Until you get to a log in screen in will not work in Target Display Mode.

A keyboard and mouse will be needed to go further with diagnostics to determine and repair the iMac so it can get to the login screen and then go into Target Display Mode.

A wireless keyboard/mouse won’t help because at the Macs current state they’ll be hard, if not impossible to pair with Bluetooth.

You could be looking at a number of repair issues that would cost more to fix, than a 9 year old broken computer is worth. Sorry.

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Answer 2

ccheng28 Author

Level 1

8 points

Apr 19, 2020 5:06 AM in response to sapper

Thank you for your reply.

I believe this unlock method may not be working on my iMac. Because I have disconnected its Apple keyboard a long time ago and connected the keyboard to my other MacBook devices. For the original Magic Mouse, was broken and I have already threw it away. So for now, there's neither mouse nor keyboard connecting to the iMac.

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