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[Paragon]

That's fantastic news.
Hopefully it means that there will be a bigger push for HDMI 2.1 VRR support next year.
OLED supporting 24-120Hz VRR is the dream. Too bad they're all flat now though, and none are ultrawide.

I must say though, that even with G-Sync it still bothers me when the framerate drops below 55 FPS or so however.
Games running at 45 FPS VRR is unquestionably better than 45 FPS on a fixed 60Hz display, or having to cap to 30 FPS, but still lacks that fluidity of 60+ FPS.

I'm really starting to think that I picked the worst possible time to buy a G-Sync monitor though; 3440x1440@100Hz, but no HDR, and it seems like AMD's VEGA may handle DX12 games better than NVIDIA hardware.

 

[RoboPlato]

Very, very cool. Hopefully TV makers adopt this once HDMI 2.1 is commonplace. Right now this will only impact those who use monitors.

Would love to see this be a way of getting more console devs on board with higher framerates.

 

[Stiflers Mom]

Seems MS is listening to the gamers again they lost at the start of this gen.

 

[Hoo-doo]

If someone wants to correct my understanding then feel free, and apologies if this isn't very coherent. But say you have a scorpio and a freesync enabled screen, is there potential here to forego a hard-capped fps? I know that essentially freesync means that the gpu tells the screen when the refresh so it all lines up with minimal input latency and no tearing, but would the games still have a hard-cap on what the max frame rate can be, or would that simply be redundant?

Or perhaps it's more difficult for the developers to implement as they have to consider conditions where people won't have freesync support? I guess I'm just trying to think of the difference in practicality between doing this on a PC compared to Scorpio, or if it actually matters at all.

It basically eliminates screen tearing without the hit to input lag.

I have a 1440p monitor with Freesync and I never really felt like it was a world of difference, so I guess it depends on the game?

Why tell people to calm down? Including a feature to future proof a console for years after launch is a great thing and we, as consumers, should be encouraging that behavior.

This is a move that MS didn't really need to do but they did to provide an experience that will persist through the next TV hardware generation.

Well, this is just the latest HDMI spec. I think nearly all products that push graphics will support HDMI 2.1 by the end of the year.

 

[ironcreed]

Why tell people to calm down? Including a feature to future proof a console for years after launch is a great thing and we, as consumers, should be encouraging that behavior.

This is a move that MS didn't really need to do but they did to provide an experience that will persist through the next TV hardware generation.

Because it's obvious that the great design of this system actually bothers some people and they are going out of their way to try and find negatives. It's pretty sad, but also par for the course on gaming side.

 

[benicillin]

Very, very cool. Hopefully TV makers adopt this once HDMI 2.1 is commonplace. Right now this will only impact those who use monitors.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think HDMI VRR support is available right now over monitors? It's all done over DisplayPort.

EDIT: I am in fact wrong, but the list of compatible screens is unfortunately small.

 

[arhra]

The HDMI spec that would include Freesync hadn't even been revealed when the Pro came out, let alone when they were designing it.

Freesync over HDMI (as an AMD vendor-specific extension, and as implemented in Scorpio until HDMI 2.1 is ratified and it can be updated with a standards-compliant implementation) has been a thing since December 2015, though.

Then again, given the tricks Sony pulled to get HDR working on the original PS4, maybe the HDMI encoder in the Pro is updateable and they'll be able to get VRR working with an update after 2.1 is ratified.

 

[Sanador]

I don't forsee myself buying a Freesync compatible TV or monitor for a few years since I just bought a KS8000. Cool feature though.

Ditto. My brand new TV will last past the life of the Scorpio. I must admit though, never heard of Freesync before this thread.

 

[Kaako]

Imagine a world where TV's actually had freesync/gsync support. Its not one we live in currently, but that would be dope.

Can't wait. Been saying for years that I'm willing to pay a $300+ premium if they can give me a Gsync OLED! Pleaaase someone just fucking do this already next year.

 

[splattered]

Great news, one of the best features of the console, I was bummed when people said this wasn't happening, but fortunately now it is.

Yeah in the Scorpio thread I said now we just needed to decide whether to buy new TVs now or wait for new TVs with HDMI 2.1... Was told by forum members here Scorpio does NOT have it so don't worry about it. Amazing to hear that it actually does!

 

[Inuhanyou]

My hope is that with more HDMI iterations, more and more nice features like this are added...and TV manufacturers actually start getting with the program.

 

[spons]

Where's jeff_rigby to explain how this works? Just when you needed him most.

 

[MisterXDTV]

its so funny to all of a sudden see Xbox fanboys scream in joy and celebration for freesync. When possibly most of them did not even know what it was or cared for it 2 hours ago. Before any more celebration goes on people need to read the fine print in the article,

"to see the benefit, you'll need to have a PC monitor - a 4K one preferably, though 1080p screens will work - and it needs to support FreeSync over HDMI. This limits the amount of potential screens as it's more frequently run via DisplayPort, a video output that is not supported by Scorpio."

Its gonna be years before TV manufacturers implement this if ever. Plus there are very few 4k Monitors that do freesync tru HDMI since most do it thru displayport. Plus pc monitors as far as ive heard, do not do HDR. Everybody calm down.

True, there are only a few monitors that support FreeSync over HDMI:

http://www.amd.com/Documents/freesync-hdmi.pdf

 

[CrimsonEclipse]

its so funny to all of a sudden see Xbox fanboys scream in joy and celebration for freesync. When possibly most of them did not even know what it was or cared for it 2 hours ago. Before any more celebration goes on people need to read the fine print in the article,

"to see the benefit, you'll need to have a PC monitor - a 4K one preferably, though 1080p screens will work - and it needs to support FreeSync over HDMI. This limits the amount of potential screens as it's more frequently run via DisplayPort, a video output that is not supported by Scorpio."

Its gonna be years before TV manufacturers implement this if ever. Plus there are very few 4k Monitors that do freesync tru HDMI since most do it thru displayport. Plus pc monitors as far as ive heard, do not do HDR. Everybody calm down.

You coming into a thread calling out Xbox fanboys make you seem like a fanboy yourself. People shouldn't be excited to see console hardware taking a nice step forward? Anyone here can do a quick Google search and get an understanding of what the benefits of this mean.

Also, unless you have the plans for every tv manufacturer foreseeable future you don't know that. Expect to see tv's/monitors next year with HDMI 2.1, I would be surprised if there aren't any.

 

[00ich]

Variable refresh support on a console is absolutely great. Now if only TV manufactures added variable refresh support in their products....

Yes, that would indeed be great.

 

[Wollan]

Excellent. The earlier developers can start to utilize this the better as it will take a few years in the living room. Should also give the Scorpio a bit more life.

Now the question is if this is HDMI 2.0 (18Gbps) w/VRR patched-in or full blood HDMI 2.1 (48Gbps transfer) though likely won't make much difference as it's the 30-60fps variable space that's by far most relevant for Scorpio.

 

[Hoo-doo]

True, there are only a few monitors that support FreeSync over HDMI:

http://www.amd.com/Documents/freesync-hdmi.pdf

That list is outdated. My Iiyama Prolite X2788Q supports Freesync over HDMI.
I have it connected through displayport, but still.

 

[flkraven]

No, they will support HDMI Game Mode VRR in a couple of years

I'm sorry, but I have no idea what that means.

With FreeSync devs can target any fps they want (ex. 45fps) but this freesync will link up the refresh rate of the display so it doesn't look choppy? Will I ever observe this benefit on a television? I'm planning on TV shopping in the next year or 2.

 

[Baleoce]

It basically eliminates screen tearing without the hit to input lag.

I have a 1440p monitor with Freesync and I never really felt like it was a world of difference, so I guess it depends on the game?

I read a bit more of the article and I think they kind of alluded to what I was referring to:

In here and now, what we can say is that Scorpio's adaptive sync support is baked in at the system level - the developer doesn't need to worry about it (though they could enable higher frame-rate caps for VRR users if the overhead is there).

But it's the longer term outlook that is arguably more important. There's a reason why games target either 60fps or 30fps: both divide equally into the 60Hz output of a traditional screen, meaning a smooth, consistent update. With the display refresh put in the developer's hands, arbitrary performance targets like 40fps or 45fps could be targeted. We've tested both on PC using a G-Sync screen running games with Riva Tuner Statistics Server's frame-rate cap in place and both of these frame-rates look so much better than the console standard 30fps. With games that target 60fps, performance drops down to around 50fps are really difficult to pick up on owing to the lack of tearing and reduced v-sync judder.

I guess I was just wondering if those caps needed to be there at all for those users, or whether they still need to be in place.

 

[martino]

 

[Kaako]

My hope is that with more HDMI iterations, more and more nice features like this are added...and TV manufacturers actually start getting with the program.

This is why I'm excited the most. Hopefully this will light a fire under their lazy asses to get the ball rolling faster on the inclusion of 2.1 and better features. I feel we're at the turning point and I'm quite excited for this shift.

 

[Deleted member 98878]

Hopefully this means Nvidia is forced to support Freesync too by TV/monitor manufactures choosing freesync over Gsync.

That's what I hope. Gsync monitors are just too expensive 😕

 

[sangreal]

I'm sorry, but I have no idea what that means.

With FreeSync devs can target any fps they want (ex. 45fps) but this freesync will link up the refresh rate of the display so it doesn't look choppy? Will I ever observe this benefit on a television? I'm planning on TV shopping in the next year or 2.

Watch the video in the OP, they explain it in detail

 

[Inuhanyou]

Freesync over HDMI (as an AMD vendor-specific extension, and as implemented in Scorpio until HDMI 2.1 is ratified and it can be updated with a standards-compliant implementation) has been a thing since December 2015, though.

Then again, given the tricks Sony pulled to get HDR working on the original PS4, maybe the HDMI encoder in the Pro is updateable and they'll be able to get VRR working with an update after 2.1 is ratified.

So your saying Pro could potentially support FreeSync as well if Sony updated their firmware like they did with HDR for the OG PS4?

I dunno what the point would be except a check box to compete against Scorpio on features on the back of the box tho.

Its just annoying because even with these cool things we have to wait until its even supported on a wide level to matter

 

[mcrommert]

its so funny to all of a sudden see Xbox fanboys scream in joy and celebration for freesync. When possibly most of them did not even know what it was or cared for it 2 hours ago. Before any more celebration goes on people need to read the fine print in the article,

"to see the benefit, you'll need to have a PC monitor - a 4K one preferably, though 1080p screens will work - and it needs to support FreeSync over HDMI. This limits the amount of potential screens as it's more frequently run via DisplayPort, a video output that is not supported by Scorpio."

Its gonna be years before TV manufacturers implement this if ever. Plus there are very few 4k Monitors that do freesync tru HDMI since most do it thru displayport. Plus pc monitors as far as ive heard, do not do HDR. Everybody calm down.

I will not be calm

 

[MisterXDTV]

I'm sorry, but I have no idea what that means.

With FreeSync devs can target any fps they want (ex. 45fps) but this freesync will link up the refresh rate of the display so it doesn't look choppy? Will I ever observe this benefit on a television? I'm planning on TV shopping in the next year or 2.

Right now NO TV set supports variable frame-rate

That will change in the future because of HDMI 2.1, but as of 2017 you won't find a TV that can use that feature...

 

[longdi]

Is there a difference in pin out between hdmi2 and hdmi2.1?

Polaris gpu already have dp1.4 support. So MS ensure the pin out is forward compatible?

I also dun think any monitor have hdmi2.1 yet.

 

[wesleyshark]

Perfect lol

 

[flkraven]

Watch the video in the OP, they explain it in detail

Can't watch youtube at work :/

I guess I'll check it on my phone later

 

[Baleoce]

oh god, this actually seems about right.

 

[gamz]

So your saying Pro could potentially support FreeSync as well if Sony updated their firmware like they did with HDR for the OG PS4?

I dunno what the point would be except a check box to compete against Scorpio on features on the back of the box tho.

Its just annoying because even with these cool things we have to wait until its even supported on a wide level to matter

But you need this from Scorpio in order for TV manufactures have a reason to bake in this technology. I mean MS probably knows what coming down the pike for TV's better then us.

 

[shandy706]

I don't forsee myself buying a Freesync compatible TV or monitor for a few years since I just bought a KS8000. Cool feature though.

Everyone that bought a KS8000 made a huge mistake.

 

[Detective]

Has this been downplayed yet?

 

[Izuna]

wait

HDMI to DisplayPort can't support this?

oh no

 

[MisterXDTV]

So your saying Pro could potentially support FreeSync as well if Sony updated their firmware like they did with HDR for the OG PS4?

I dunno what the point would be except a check box to compete against Scorpio on features on the back of the box tho.

Its just annoying because even with these cool things we have to wait until its even supported on a wide level to matter

It probably won't be called FreeSync but HDMI Game Mode VRR can be implemented via firmware on PS4 Pro in the future

 

[Neoxon]

I really want to see how MvCI & Overwatch benefit from this (I'd mention SFV, but that's locked down to PS4). If I can play both at 4K, I may have to start raising money for a Scorpio.

 

[mcrommert]

True, there are only a few monitors that support FreeSync over HDMI:

http://www.amd.com/Documents/freesync-hdmi.pdf

This is extremely old... I have an ultra wide LG 1080p monitor that isn't on this list

And best of all... The monitors are cheap

 

[Okami Haundo]

Wasn't this always the case? Sony view the Pro as a deluxe version of the PS4, whereas MS have pretty much always hinted at Scorpio being Xbone 1.5.

I've firmly believed that to be the case, but there seem to be two camps on this one.

Pro is as well, they are both 'half steps'. MS just has their eye a bit more on the future. They definitely have the superior half step box, for those into that sort of thing.

The good news is, the PS5 and other 'next gen' boxes proper should have more of a handle on these technologies, being in a more mature state by then

Oh most definitely! I guess the point I was trying to make is that it will all just boil down to the implementation. I firmly believe that Scorpio is Xbox One.5 right now, but will become the new "base" model once their "next" console comes out. In that regard, it makes sense that they'd want to make sure it was future-proofed enough to last more than half a gen.

With the PS4 Pro I'm more inclined to believe that they don't plan on actively supporting either model come PS5. I full expect that PS5 will cut ties completely with this gen, albeit with backwards compatibility for PS4 games.

For both companies, all we can really do is speculate until things actually happen.

 

[Kaako]

Right now NO TV set supports variable frame-rate

That will change in the future because of HDMI 2.1, but as of 2017 you won't find a TV that can use that feature...

I remember some where saying early 2019 for TVs. Hope they will be proven wrong though cause fuck that long wait. I'm thinking by mid 2018 is when we'll see TVs with HDMI 2.1.

 

[Zvonimir Boban]

Perfect.

 

[Inuhanyou]

But you need this from Scorpio in order for TV manufactures have a reason to bake in this technology. I mean MS probably knows what coming down the pike for TV's better then us.

Lmao, relatively niche game consoles having to be the ones to force TV manufacturers to support important features in their own HDMI roadmap. What a joke

 

[Zombie James]

Considering most people use shitty post processing on TVs and most TV signals are at a fixed framerate, are TV manufacturers really interested in this? I can't see them implementing this as it would increase cost and very few customers would have a use for it.

IIRC, I don't think TVs can be HDMI certified is they're missing parts of the spec.

 

[Detective]

I game on a monitor so this is perfect.

 

[Bsigg12]

Here's the HDMI 2.1 standard and FAQ for those wondering.

http://www.hdmi.org/manufacturer/hdmi_2_1/index.aspx

 

[Primethius]

With the Scorpio hitting in Holiday 2017, having the feature in place to support TVs dropping in 2018 is really nice. Will definitely be looking to upgrade my TV next year.



Games that seemingly drop frames will also see an advantage there because it'll just send frames to the TV when they're available with say a cap at 60fps so it won't be so glaringly ​obvious that the game is struggling.

Yea, that's true and a good feature. But still on the smaller side of the actual benefits that Freesync provides imo.

 

[Giftofgab24]

It would be nice if Microsoft partnered with a tv manufacturer to release a tv that supports all this at the same time as the Scorpio. I'd rather go bigger than a monitor, but if that's what I have to get so be it.

 

[LukasTaves]

Holy shit. Had already let go of that, but nice to see it's actually in.

Go go manufacturers the sooner you delivery a good set with freesync the sooner I'm replacing mine.

But just in case they took a long time: Can you use an HDMI to Display port adapter and use this over non HDMI freesync monitors?

 

[Samurai G0SU]

Has this been downplayed yet?

they beat you to the punch

 

[Detective]

they beat you to the punch

Nooooo, I missed it :/

 

[Beer Monkey]

While there's no such thing as a future-proof console, this is the closest I've ever seen.

Man, if they could get OG Xbox backwards-compatibility I'd lose it.