Nvidia will support Adaptive Sync from January 15 – Update
Nvidia announced during its press conference at CES that it will support adaptive sync from the VESA. That is the same technology that competitor AMD is called FreeSync. The manufacturer has certified twelve monitors, but the option can also be enabled for non-certified FreeSync screens.
Nvidia has tested four hundred screens and the manufacturer labels twelve of them as ‘G-Sync Compatible’. The twelve screens are listed in the figure below. Nvidia is testing about 150 other screens, the approved part of which will also receive the G-Sync Compatible label.
Image: hardware.info
A quick look at the Pricewatch shows that the above G-Sync Compatible displays are gaming monitors with tn panels. They all have a large FreeSync range, for example from 40 to 144Hz, or 48 to 240Hz. The cheaper screens with FreeSync support often have a smaller range, for example from 40 to 60Hz. On screens that do have FreeSync, but are not certified by Nvidia, adaptive sync can also be turned on, but it is turned off by default, according to a blog post from Nvidia.
In addition to Nvidia’s certification, Nvidia’s proprietary G-Sync technology also requires separate hardware in the screen, which makes the G-Sync monitors a lot more expensive than FreeSync screens, which support the open standard of the vesa. Nvidia now labels the screens that have a separate G-Sync module as ‘G-Sync Ultimate’. In addition to AMD and now Nvidia, Intel also plans to support adaptive sync.
The Nvidia driver that provides adaptive sync support on Nvidia hardware will be available for download from January 15 and will work on 10- and 20-series video cards.
Update, 9:19: Adaptive sync can also be used on FreeSync screens that are not certified, the article has been adapted accordingly.