Everything is too small -- windows 8.1 not allow me to enlarge entire interface?

Anonymous

I'm on a Lenovo Yoga 2 Pro and the entire interface--every app, every dialogue box, every icon, etc--is too small on this high resolution (3200x1800) screen. The size of the mouse pointer was the only thing I could increase to an adequate size.

In Control Panel\Appearance and Personalization\Display I've specified EXTRA LARGE (200%) for all items.

It's still too small.

Is it possible that Windows (I have 8.1) isn't keeping up with screen resolutions and I need to just wait for a Windows update?

Locked Question. This question was migrated from the Microsoft Support Community. You can vote on whether it's helpful, but you can't add comments or replies or follow the question.

0 comments

43 answers

@CmdrKeene 90,631 Reputation points Volunteer Moderator

2016-06-09T13:08:42+00:00

It's a public build, but even that one has been superseded (even again by another update yesterday). They're working hard to crank out all the bugs before the full release to everyone in July.
Was this answer helpful?

0 comments No comments
Anonymous

2016-06-09T12:15:30+00:00

You have the new build link to perform tests on my machine ?
Was this answer helpful?

0 comments No comments
@CmdrKeene 90,631 Reputation points Volunteer Moderator

2016-05-04T01:10:51+00:00

About a week ago they released a new window insider test build that we're told has fixes to improve this issue, but I've not tested it myself yet. I'm afraid to install an insider build on my Surface. But the update comes out to the public this July in the antifreeze anniversary update, so we will know then.
Was this answer helpful?

0 comments No comments
Anonymous

2016-05-04T00:13:54+00:00

Thanks for sharing your post. This was a perfect way to convey this issue. Its good to know that I am not the only one whom is having this problem. And the Windows 10 upgrade I had to revert back to windows 8.1 of which I do not remember having these problems prior to Microsofts suggestion to "upgrade to Windows 10.
Was this answer helpful?

0 comments No comments
@CmdrKeene 90,631 Reputation points Volunteer Moderator

2015-10-05T23:20:47+00:00

Hey Mad_01,

I've had this as well, wrote about it at length and discuss some other options you can use here. It's not perfect (it still irks me just about daily), but it's not something that has a better solution than that really concludes there. The problem is the only real solution is to just take the image the program is outputting and have the OS zoom it (just like it does for multi-display DPI adjustments would be fine), but even in those low thresholds (usually no more than 50% increase), you get severe blurring. The trouble is the program is specifically sending a picture of x by y size pixels, but that's incredibly tiny on a "retina" level screen with so many pixels. To prevent the blur, the application can be built to use vector graphics and text/layouts that can adapt and scale correctly, but the application developer has to make that choice.

Now really it might help if they just employed the same DPI scaling used for multi-mon but let you intentionally enlarge a single app (just willing to put up with it getting more blurry and pixilated). Apple had to do that when they first got retina iPad, the old "2x" button to double the app size but make it slightly blurry. Although in Windows the average increase from an app that used to expect 1024x768, is really going to need to be enlarged 4x or more, so the blur could be severe.

Eventually, as with Apple, most programs will get updated for the new screensize when their programmers release updates.
Was this answer helpful?

0 comments No comments