Slashdot Mirror
Mobile G-SYNC Confirmed and Tested With Leaked Driver
jones_supa writes: A few weeks ago, an ASUS Nordic support representative inadvertently made available an interim build of the NVIDIA graphics driver. This was a mobile driver build (version 346.87) focused at ASUS G751 line of laptops. The driver was pulled shortly, but PC Perspective managed to get their hands on a copy of it, and installed it on a ASUS G751 review unit. To everyone's surprise, a 'G-SYNC display connected' system tray notification appeared. It turned out to actually be a functional NVIDIA G-SYNC setup on a laptop. PC Perspective found a 100Hz LCD panel inside, ran some tests, and also noted that G-SYNC is picky about the Tcon implementation of the LCD, which can lead to some glitches if not implemented minutely. NVIDIA confirmed that G-SYNC on mobile is coming in the near future, but the company wasn't able to yet discuss an official arrival date or technology specifics.
The original story goes like this:
1. Nvidia claims that it needs the expensive FPGA chip to make variable refresh rate on current range of monitors. Calls it G-sync, tech adds significant costs and nvidia takes additinal licensing fee from monitors that include the said FPGA board.
2. AMD finds the adaptivesync spec in current VESA spec for embedded displayport used in laptops. Gets VESA to add it to upcoming displayport 1.2a spec for desktop. This does mostly the same thing without needed FPGA board or additional costly licencing fee. Monitors with adaptivesync and same specs end up about 100USD cheaper than monitors with G-sync and same specs.
3. Nvidia openly states that it cannot make G-sync cards compatible with adaptivesync any time soon and that it will continue supporting G-sync. Many pundits wonder how long Nvidia could keep attempting this kind of vendor lock-in on monitors before ceding its position due to rather extreme price differential between G-sync and adaptivesync monitors.
4. Laptops use eDP (embedded displayport) to connect monitor to GPU card which already has adaptivesync in the spec.
5, Alpha driver for nvidia mobile GPU sufraces which is made to work with adaptivesync over eDP, which driver itself calls "G-sync".
Conclusion - Nvidia lied about its adaptation of adaptivesync and it now appears extremely likely that nvidia will be using adaptivesync in its future products and just call it "G-sync mobile" or something similar.
An animation running with fixed vsync on a 60 Hz display can only run at 60, 30, 15, ... Hz.
Now if the game engine only manages to render 59 Hz, it will depict 30 Hz due to vsync.
Adaptive vsync allows the system to run at 59 Hz without tearing.