So you have decided to take the next step in your gaming adventures. Upgrading your system to feature NVidia’s G-Sync. This is a brave move which will absolutely heighten your gaming experience. For the experienced gamer and casual user alike though, you may be wondering if this is a truly beneficial move or an overpriced, luxury item which does more to enhance customer image rather than actually boost performance.
Here we will outline exactly what you get for your money when you choose G-Sync. What it is exactly and ultimately if it is worth your hard earned cash or not.
G-Sync Basics
The purpose of G-Sync is pretty simple. It helps to eliminate screen tearing and ultimately increase the visual performance of your machine. As many high level gamers will know, screen tearing can be a major issue.
It can completely spoil the enjoyment of a gaming experience, even making some games unplayable. This occurs because of frame and refresh rate of games and monitors. In more cases these days, the frame rates of games can vary a lot outside the regular refresh rate of say, a 60Hz monitor.
This variance in rates is what causes screen tearing. G-Sync eliminates this issue by working in collaboration with your GPU to produce a variable refresh rate which matches the varying frame rate of your games.
Basically by working hand in hand with your GPU, a G-Sync monitor will produce a smooth a silk output from your games at all times. For an experienced gamer, this can be a delightful improvement and one which is becoming ever more necessary. Let’s take a more in-depth look at some of the main advantages and disadvantages of G-Sync to help with your choice.
Why Invest in G-Sync?
Basically, you will achieve optimal visual performance with a G-Sync monitor. No more screen tearing or input lagging. Especially if you play graphically intensive games, G-Sync is something that you absolutely need to consider.
If you are going to be buying or already operating a high-end gaming machine, then it makes perfect sense to invest in a G-Sync monitor to optimize performance.
What about AMD Freesync?
Many may point to AMD Freesync as a more cost effective solution to your visual tearing and performance issues with high-end graphic games, however, it is not without its problems. Firstly, to benefit from the full features of Freesync you should really be running with an AMD GPU also.
Also, whilst you can combine your Freesync monitor with an NVidia GPU, it will not be able to run all features at an optimal level, therefore, you essentially lose the added benefits of the Freesync monitor itself.
Although the G-Sync and Freesync do reach a very similar level of performance. Overall it is highly thought that G-Sync runs just that little bit smoother and just has the edge over its license free AMD rival.
It is true that G-Sync is more expensive and NVidia do keep it on a tight leash in regard to proprietary use and licensing. However, there is one other major feature that you will get with G-Sync which you will not find elsewhere. Ultra Low Motion Blur (ULMB). This provides with an even more increased viewing experience as a stable frame rate by decreasing blur and minimizing ghosting.
Sticking With V-Sync
G-sync is basically a step up from V-Sync. Though for many lighter users, V-Synch still eliminates some of the screen tearing issues. The drawback with V-Sync is the input lag which can occur. Overall, V-Sync will still provide you with a more stable performance. It is worthwhile remaining with if you are overly budget conscious or not a graphically heavy gamer.
How Much Will It Cost?
A common drawback for many perspective purchasers of G-Sync is the cost. It is true that the cost of upgrading remains relatively high. NVidia’s tight grip on the technology mean that you basically have to run an NVidia GPU to harness the full benefit of the technology.
Prices for a G-Sync monitor run for reasonable prices on Amazon, with many fantastic deals to be found. Though this is relatively expensive in comparison, most agree that you get what you pay for. In this case, it certainly is worth it.
Conclusion
As previously mentioned, if you are a gamer of particularly intense graphic games, the G-Sync is something which you should certainly consider. G-Sync will greatly improve your graphical performance. It will also help your games run super smoothly at any frame rate while simultaneously eliminating input lag.
It is worth bearing in mind that G-Sync is basically only beneficial to gamers and high level gamers at that. If you are a light, casual gamer or just regular computer user, the G-Sync really offers no feasible benefit for you. This is unless you just want to generally upgrade your system to house the latest technologies.
Overall, G-Sync is a fantastic technology. It greatly enhances visual performance by providing adaptable output which in turn produces seamless results. Though it may come at a price, it is a must have addition for the avid gamer.
