1. Choose the displays to control
Open MoniBridge in the menu bar and expand Master — Displays. Enable the screens you want to adjust. Unselected screens are not controlled.
MoniBridge / Support
Help & support
From your first setup to brightness controls and troubleshooting.
01
Getting started
2. Set each display’s range
Set a comfortable minimum and maximum for each screen. The top slider adjusts selected displays together within their individual ranges. Tune each range while comparing the bright and dim ends to bring shared dimming closer across monitors from different manufacturers. Panel and brightness-curve differences can still leave some variation.
3. Choose everyday brightness and dimming steps
Choose your everyday brightness with the top slider, then set idle delays and brightness percentages under Dimming steps. Start with a short delay to check dimming and restoration on mouse activity, then choose your everyday delays.
02
Brightness, Master, and dimming steps
The top slider
A manually selected value is saved as your everyday brightness. The display also follows automatic dimming and restoration. Moving this slider does not change the Master minimum or maximum for any screen.
Dimming steps are relative to everyday brightness
With everyday brightness at 60% and a dimming step at 50%, the position within the Master range is 30%. With a Master minimum of 5% and maximum of 100%, the output is about 34%. These percentages are control values, not measurements of emitted light.
0% does not mean off
0% within the range maps to Master minimum; 100% maps to Master maximum. A screen with equal minimum and maximum values is fixed. If all selected screens are fixed, the top slider is disabled.
03
Automatic dimming and restoration
Timing and fade
Brightness follows the step reached by the current idle time. For example, use 70% after three minutes and 40% after ten. Advanced Settings lets you adjust dimming fade duration, FPS, and the Ease Out or Linear curve.
Resume activity to restore brightness
Mouse movement, clicks, scrolling, and keyboard activity restore everyday brightness immediately. The dimming fade does not delay restoration.
Restore Master maximum
Press Control + Option + R to restore brightness. In normal mode, this restores Master maximum and sets everyday brightness to 100%. Automatic dimming pauses for five minutes, then starts counting idle time again. Master settings stay unchanged. In full gamma mode, it restores the original gamma without changing hardware brightness, temporarily removing the gamma-based Master maximum limit too.
04
Media playback and pausing
Pause During Media Playback
When enabled, MoniBridge pauses dimming when a playback app prevents display sleep. It does not inspect video content on screen, so detection depends on the app and playback method.
Pause for a selected duration
Choose 5, 15, 30, or 60 minutes under Pause. MoniBridge maintains everyday brightness and shows the resume time. You can resume manually before the time expires. A pause does not persist across app restarts.
05
Displays and advanced settings
External and built-in screens
External screens use DDC on Apple Silicon Macs; MacBook screens use built-in brightness control. External behavior depends on the monitor and connection. A successful communication status in Master means a control request succeeded; it does not guarantee actual brightness or a matching read-back value.
Safety and full gamma mode
Safety limits the brightness and gamma values sent by MoniBridge and defaults to 5%. You can change it in Advanced Settings. Full gamma mode adjusts appearance without changing hardware brightness. Normal mode also uses gamma assistance at low brightness. This may interact with HDR, Night Shift, and True Tone. Safety neither measures actual brightness nor prevents other apps from turning a display off.
Reconnecting and launching at login
Master ranges, full gamma mode, and selection are saved using display identifiers. If the connection path changes the identifier, check settings after reconnecting. Enable Launch at Login in Advanced Settings. If approval is required, follow the link to System Settings.
06
Uninstall
1. Prepare in Advanced Settings
Open MoniBridge from the menu bar and expand Advanced Settings. Click Prepare next to Uninstall.
2. Choose whether to keep settings
Choose Prepare and keep settings or Delete settings and diagnostics. Keep settings if you want to reuse them after reinstalling. The delete option removes saved settings and diagnostic logs.
3. Move the app to the Trash in Finder
MoniBridge disables launch at login, reveals the app in Finder, and quits. Then move MoniBridge to the Trash in Finder. Preparation alone does not remove the app. If preparation reports an error, review the message before continuing.
07
Troubleshooting
Brightness does not change
Check that the display is selected in Master and its minimum and maximum are different. Adjust the range if it is fixed. For an external screen, also check the control status. An unverified status or communication failure does not confirm DDC support.
No automatic dimming / dimming during video
Check the pause timer, media playback pause setting, and the delay of the first dimming step. Ongoing input resets idle time. If video playback is not detected, use a timed pause.
Too dim / colors look different
First restore with Control + Option + R, then review Master minimum and everyday brightness. If colors change only at low brightness, check gamma assistance and its interaction with HDR, Night Shift, or True Tone.
Settings differ after waking or reconnecting
MoniBridge detects screens again after waking. Check display selection and Master ranges. A changed display identifier, for example after changing the connection path, may prevent previous settings from matching the same screen.
Does it prevent OLED burn-in?
MoniBridge aims to reduce display load by lowering idle brightness. It does not guarantee burn-in prevention or a longer panel lifespan.
Contact
Still need help?
Include the following information so we can understand your setup:
- MoniBridge version and build number, shown in Advanced Settings
- macOS version, Mac model, and monitor model
- Connection type, including any dock or adapter
- Expected behavior, actual behavior, and steps to reproduce
- Screenshots showing Master ranges, dimming steps, and control status