How to use Windows Magnifier.

This tutorial applies to: Windows 10/ Windows 8.1 / Windows 7

Imagine accidentally pressing a few key strokes and your laptop or desktop becomes another source of stress to you. Interrupted updating reports for the bosses, a  friend of mine recently drove 10 Kilometers to my home on a Sunday evening when his little daughter had “killed” his laptop as he impetuously explained. The kid had activated Magnifier on the dads laptop. A 10 kilometer drive wasn’t worth it. I simply keyed in a combination of two buttons for a cup of coffee at my favorite hangout! Knowledge is power.

Magnifier makes part or all of your screen bigger so you can see words and images better. Here is how you can make proper use it.

Turning Magnifier on and off

Press the Windows logo key‌  + Plus sign (+) on the keyboard to turn Magnifier on. Press Windows logo key  + Esc to turn it off.

To turn Magnifier on and off using touch or a mouse, select Start  > Settings  > Ease of Access  > Magnifier , and switch on the toggle under Turn on Magnifier.

You can also turn off Magnifier by selecting the Close  button on the Magnifier toolbar.

Zooming in and out and use Magnifier views

When Magnifier is on, zoom in and out by pressing the Windows logo key  + Plus sign (+) or Windows logo key  + Minus sign (-). You can also zoom in and out using the mouse by pressing Ctrl + Alt and rotating the wheel on your mouse.

You can use Magnifier in three different views: full screen, lens, or docked. To change views, use the Views menu on the Magnifier toolbar.

Full screen view magnifies the entire screen. You won’t be able to see the whole screen at the same time, but you’ll see parts of it as you move around.

Lens view is like moving a magnifying glass around the screen. You can change the size of the lens in Magnifier settings.

Docked view works on the desktop. In this view, Magnifier is anchored to your screen. As you move around the screen, parts of the screen are magnified in the docking area, even though the main part of the screen is unchanged.

Changing Magnifier settings

Magnifier includes different settings to help suit your needs. To get to them, select Start  > Settings  > Ease of Access  > Magnifier . You can also press Windows logo key  + Ctrl + M or select the Settings 

button on the Magnifier toolbar.

Here’s what you can change:

• Zoom level. Change the default amount of magnification when you turn on Magnifier.
• Zoom level increment. Change the amount by which Magnifier zooms in and out.
• Start Magnifier after sign-in. Turn on Magnifier automatically after you sign in to your PC.
• Start Magnifier before sign-in for everyone. Turn on Magnifier for everyone before they sign in to your PC.
• Invert colors. Reverse the colors on the screen. Sometimes reversing colors can make text easier to read.
• Image and text smoothing.Make the edges of magnified text appear smooth when you zoom in.
• Collapse to magnifying glass icon. Collapse the Magnifier toolbar to a magnifying glass icon. To show the Magnifier toolbar, select the magnifying glass icon.
• Choose Magnifier view. Select the default view that Magnifier uses when you turn it on. If you select lens view, you can also change the size of the lens.

Use Magnifier with a touchscreen

Here are some tips on how to use Magnifier with a touchscreen:

• To zoom in and out, tap on the plus (+) and minus (-) symbols on the corners of the screen.
• To move around the screen, drag along the borders of the screen in full screen view.
• To instantly zoom out and see where you are on the screen, tap with one finger on opposite borders of the screen simultaneously.
• To close Magnifier, tap the Close  button.