Conclusion

Final Words & Verdict

So it goes a little something like this, I can not deny that G-Sync really is a nice improvement over the overall visual quality. A game changer in my personal opinion would be a bit of an over statement. But as simple as the idea is, it is a pretty impressive technology alright. This all sounds a little contradictory, but once you experienced it'll be hard to go back to a regular screen. The visual gaming experience is a lot better, but realistically gaming the old-fashioned way with vsync on honestly works just fine for me as well. However playing games without input lag, screen tearing and VSYNC pulsing simply is an improvement of the game experience. As such we think G-Sync is the next logical step in the evolution of PC gaming. 

A bit of a danger however remains to be the fact that this is proprietary technology from NVIDIA solely. Without any competition in this segment that is and will drive up monitor prices that are G-Sync enabled. We'll just have to wait and see how this will develop. Also this being proprietary Nvidia technology means that you can only pair it with selected Nvidia graphics cards. The rule of thumb here is, any mainstream Nvidia graphics card starting at series 600 and upwards will be compatible.

The Advantages

Gaming looks and "feels" a little better visually (okay that sounds a little weird). I do want to state this though, prefereably you want to be above 40 FPS really, as at that framerate things start to look incredibly good. This means that with a mid-range graphics card you'll have a blast of an experience. BUT, mid-range graphics cards do dip faster under 35 FPS with modern game titles, and that's where your game experience does change and overall anything below 30 FPS is not rather lovely to see. Still that's the same with a regular monitor as well with the one difference, you won't have any of that blasphemy tearing thanks to G-sync.

Also and this is a nice thing, with some nice horsepower like a GTX 780 you can enable much more eye-candy, as long as you stay above that say 40 FPS it's all good. The fun thing is that an Ultra HD screen with G-sync would become very playable with just one GTX 780 / 780 Ti wheras right now you'd probaly opt two cards. Since at 40 FPS you eliminate most of the sync stutters and obliterate screen tearing that would be a massive win alright. Ooh ooh ooh, and try gaming with a high mouse with a high polling rate, it is incredibly precise as input lag is a thing of the past as well. 

So 30~35 FPS Is Not Enough?

No, I've been using the monitor and have been playing with G-Sync for a couple of days now. My old and everlasting recommendation still stands, eveything below 30 FPS on average is crap, 30 to 40 is okay. But once you pass 40 FPS on average, that's where you'll get a wow factor in combo with G-Sync. For reasons I can't explain passing 40 FPS is precesiely the threshold where G-Sync starts to show off like a rock star and amaze. So my recommendation is for you to figure out settings or graphics card(s) that renders your favorite titles above 40 FPS, and that's where you'll be stunned, stumped and get seriously impressed.

No-Vsync - Is Tearing Really That Bad

Yes, it is horrible, screen tearing sucks. G-sync eliminates it all together.

But Vsync On Eliminates Tearing As Well Right? So Why Should I Get G-Sync?

Yes, and for those of you who play games with VSYNC On, you are the guys that will be harder to convince. Most of you don't even notice, understand or know what the VSYNC stutters / pulsing are that I have been talking about. It is because you are used to it, you don't know any better because your mind is telling you that it is normal rendering behaviour. But try to imagine a closeby building that moves from left to right real fast. With Vsync ON you won't have tearing, but you will get a tiny hint of sync stuttering, that one moment where you'd say, hey did that stutter or lag a little? That's what we are talking about. G-Sync eliminates that as well. The question that remains then is simple, are you cool with that stutter/pulse of do you find that anomaly important enough to go for G-Sync, and thus a more accurate and perfected image quality. Time will tell and it is something only you guys get to decide.

Final Words & Preliminary Verdict

I like G-Sync, I really really do like it :) Over the years we have gotten used to small VSync stutters a bit of lag with VSYNC ON and consider it to be normal, and then there's that demon called screen-tearing with VSYNC OFF. Why choose either one of them when both are effectively eliminated with G-Sync? That is the thesis for this entire article I guess. Well, the answer is simple. We as PC gamers demand the best of the best from our hardware to get the most out of our games. G-Sync fits the profile of the enthusiast gamer as it will enhance your gaming exprience in a visual manner. Now, make no mistake, stutters and small anomalies will always be part of gaming as the game rendering engine isn't a perfect thing either. There's obviously nothing G-Sync can do about that. But no-matter how and from whatever angle I look at G-Sync, it remains to be a much welcomed addition to PC gaming. It is one more thing we can tick of the box and a step closer to a more perfect gaming experience. With G-Sync, if you stay above the 40 FPS domain, it'll be a blast as even with the more mainstream graphics card you'll be enhancing your graphics experience greatly, think of it... no more vsync stutter, input lag or screen tearing. That means smooth input lag free gaming at say 40 FPS+ on a smooth and anomaly free visual gaming experience. We think G-Sync has huge potential for you guys, the gamers, but also the hardware industry. The problem right now is, you need to personally see it to believe it as no chart or recorded video can display the on-screen experience you can only see in a real-world environment with your own eyes, on the actual monitors. So in the near future whenever you get a chance to look at a live demo of G-Sync in say a computer store, just go for it. You'll be convinced on the visual improvement in less then a few minutes.

We just received the intial pricing for todays tested ASUS monitor with the GSYNC enabled module:

• USD 602.75
• EUR 437.85 + VAT
• GBP 445.00 Incl. VAT