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So you see a monitor or laptop saying it has adaptive sync or variable refresh rate. Maybe Nvidia G-Sync or AMD FreeSync. Perhaps the vendor has been detailed enough to include an adaptive sync range indicating a refresh rate range, as well as a response time number and overdrive feature that promises super-smooth video playback. But then you see a bunch of other monitors and laptops claiming the same thing. How can you tell which monitor will provide a better media experience?
To help, the Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA) on Monday launched a certification program for PC monitors and laptop monitors with adaptive sync. The Adaptive-Sync Display Conformance Test Specification (Adaptive-Sync Display CTS) aims to provide a deeper understanding of screen tearing resistance technology.
The program has certified some products with more than 50 standards in two layers: MediaSync Display, which focuses on video playback and requires an Adaptive-Sync range of at least 48 to 60 Hz, and Adaptive-Sync Display, which focuses on gaming , an adaptive sync range of at least 60 to 144 Hz is required.
Deep dive into adaptive sync performance
In 2014, VESA (a nonprofit organization of hardware, software, computer, and component manufacturers that also develops standards for DisplayPort, DisplayHDR, and VESA monitor mounts) added the Adaptive Sync protocol to the DisplayPort video interface. Adaptive-Sync, which includes monitors like Nvidia G-Sync and AMD FreeSync, is designed to make video playback look smoother by eliminating screen tearing, judder, and flickering. Adaptive sync also seeks to reduce power consumption and efficiency when processing content played at various frame rates.
Adaptive-Sync now works with all types of monitors, including gaming and general purpose monitors. It is also supported by major GPU vendors. Nvidia and AMD offer further optimizations for their graphics cards and may have additional image quality requirements depending on the type of G-Sync or FreeSync.
For a more detailed preview of the expected Adaptive-Sync performance of a monitor or laptop at default settings, VESA has been in development for over two years, including Nvidia, AMD, Intel, and monitor manufacturers. and other components, an Adaptive-Sync certification program with more stringent requirements is being launched. You can become an Adaptive-Sync, G-Sync and/or FreeSync display without the new MediaSync display or Adaptive-Sync display standard. But getting one of those new logos means the monitor has passed extensive VESA testing, which we’ll be testing soon.
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But before that, we should note that displays require DisplayPort to get one of these certifications. This prevents HDMI-only Adaptive Sync monitors from getting the new logo. The move gets even more interesting when you consider that HDMI 2.1 brings variable refresh rates to the standard.
Increased requirements at both levels
VESA’s new Adaptive-Sync and MediaSync certification marks.
VESA
The most basic requirement for the new layer is to set the adaptive sync range. The MediaSync display layer requires an Adaptive-Sync range as low as at least 48 Hz and as high as at least 60 Hz. For the game-centric Adaptive Sync display layer, the range is wider, 60 to 144 Hz.
But that’s just the beginning of what a monitor has to go through to get one of the VESA logos.
Jitter test
According to VESA, to be MediaSync or Adaptive-Sync certified, a monitor must have less than 1 millisecond of jitter, which is much lower than what the human eye should see.
This number must meet 10 international frame rate standards: 23.976 Hz (Hollywood movies); 24, 30, and 60 Hz (usually content shot on consumer cameras, such as YouTube videos or content played locally), 25 Hz ( UK TV), 29.97 Hz (US TV), 47.952 Hz (rare but used in some movies), 48 Hz (also used in rare movies), 50 Hz (UK sports) and 59.94 Hz (US sports).
VESA then tests the display within the display’s minimum adaptive sync range. For example, if a monitor has an Adaptive-Sync range of 40 to 60 Hz, VESA will test it at 40 Hz, even though the MediaSync display layer only requires a range as low as 48 Hz and Adaptive-Sync 60 Hz. If the minimum value of the display’s adaptive sync range is higher than the minimum required for certification, VESA will double the frames below the minimum value.
A common cause of jitter is 3:2 pulldown, which is used to display Hollywood movies made at 23.976 Hz and results in dropped frames per second. VESA’s certification is designed to eliminate the need for a 3:2 pulldown.