There’s a new HDMI standard coming out, with a feature called Game Mode VRR that combats motion blur and input lag. Here’s how it supercharges the future of gaming.
An open secret on the PC gaming world is that 4K TVs double as great PC monitors. Or potentially great, anyway. Big-screen gamers have lived with many a compromise, if only to play Overwatch or Battlefield on a 65-inch display at resolutions that living room game consoles can still only dream about.
But now, thanks to the new HDMI 2.1 specification, future TVs could eliminate — or at least diminish — many of those compromises. The greater bandwidth possible with 2.1 means higher resolutions and higher framerates, but that’s not all. The Game Mode VRR feature could potentially improve input lag , bringing TVs in closer parity to computer monitors for this important spec. It could also remove, or at least reduce, two serious visual artifacts: jutter and image tearing.
With the prices of big TVs far, far less than the price of big computer monitors, many gamers wonder if buying a big TV is the better option. Up until now the answer has been « usually. » But once HDMI 2.1 hits, the answer could be « probably. » Here’s why.
Using a TV as a monitor is hardly a new trend. Any gamer looking at the price of 4K TVs and the price of 4K monitors instantly starts to wonder… but can it run Crysis?
I’ve been using a TV (projector, actually) as my main gaming display for years, and while « Battlefield » on a 100-inch screen is epic, it’s far from a perfect solution.
There are two main issues. The first is bandwidth. The current (pre-2.1) HDMI specification maxes out at 4,096 by 2,160 pixels (4K resolution) at 60 frames per second. In the earliest days of 4K, there were TVs that could accept 24 frames per second. While 4K/60 is certainly « fine, » there are plenty of gamers for which « fine » is synonymous with « bad. »
Part of the issue is motion blur and input lag. LCD and the current implementations of OLED have noticeable motion blur at 60 Hz. They combat this with higher framerates. Some 1080p TVs went up to 240 Hz. Current 4K TVs max out at 120 Hz. With regular video, the TV internally creates the additional frames needed to display 24- (Blu-ray) and 60- (sports) fps content on 120/240 Hz TVs. Though this can lead to the Soap Opera Effect , motion blur is greatly reduced.
A representation of screen tearing due to a mis-match between what framerate the video card can render, and what the display needs. (Created from a photo on my Instagram )
That video processing, though, takes time. This leads to input lag, which is a lag between when you press a button on your controller, and when that action happens on screen. Worst case scenario, in the time it takes for you to see something on screen (an enemy, say), react (press a button) and for that action to show on screen, the enemy has already shot you. Slightly annoying when playing on your own, infuriating when playing online. To put this in perspective, with « Battlefield 1 » I went from the bottom 10 percent of every round when using a projector with 120ms input lag, to the top 10 percent just switching to a 33ms lag projector. It makes a big difference.
The solution, of course, is let the PC create all the frames the TV needs. Best of both worlds: minimize motion blur, minimize input lag.
