Force Windows 8 Metro apps to run lower resolutions below 1024x768?

Solution 1:

I have found a workaround here: http://liliputing.com/2011/09/how-to-enable-windows-8-metro-style-apps-on-an-older-netbook.html What it does is basically it 'pretends' that the screen has resolution 1024x728 - when, obviously, it has still only 1024x600. The effect is OK if you want to play a bit with the Metro, but graphics and especially text displayed in this 'artificial' resolution looks bad, I found it quite tiring for my eyes... So I won't close this question for a while hoping that somebody comes up with a better solution.

Anyway, to get this 'artificial' higher resolution you need to modify registry entry (I found only one) Display1_DownScalingSupported - by default it is set to 0, so set it to 1. After restarting computer right-click on your Desktop and you'll find additional higher resolutions.

Solution 2:

Enabling Metro apps:

1. Press Win+R, type in regedit and hit Enter. Registry Editor will open up.
2. Now press Ctrl+F, and the Find dialog box will appear.
3. Type in Display1_DownScalingSupported in the "Find what" box and click Find Next.
4. Once the key is found, change its value from 0 to 1.
5. Press F3, and if it finds any more keys called Display1_DownScalingSupported, change all 0 values to 1 as well.
6. Reboot your device.
7. After a successful reboot, change the screen resolution to 1024×768 and apply changes.

Solution 3:

In Windows8 you need the screen resolution to be at least 1024x768 for Metro apps to work:

From http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/apps/br229516 :

To run Metro style Apps, you need a screen resolution of 1024 X 768 or greater

There is no fix for this other than to ensure that your hardware meets the minimum specifications of Windows8.