In a nutshell, these aim to allow PCs with midrange graphics cards or lesser integrated graphics (and gaming-console GPUs) to run at higher resolution while minimizing the performance hit and loss in visual quality. A crop of software technologies (image sharpeners, upscalers, and supersamplers) from both AMD and Nvidia have hit the market recently. Gaming at 4K resolution isn't strictly about your hardware nowadays.

If you don't have such a card, gaming at 4K is going to demand compromises and may not be worth the splurge.

These elite cards include models like Nvidia's GeForce RTX 3080, GeForce RTX 3090, and GeForce RTX 2080, as well as AMD's Radeon RX 6800 and RX 6700 series-all commanding steep prices. (And if you're turning down the detail settings to make a game run better at 4K, that defeats much of the point of 4K in the first place.) Right now, only a handful of high-end graphics cards can reliably drive a 4K display with leading game titles at top image-quality settings. While gorgeous to look at, playing modern games at 4K resolution takes a ton of graphics horsepower to get above 60 frames per second (fps), today's generally acknowledged minimum for serious gamers. (See our picks for the best TVs, now uniformly 4K models.) That's because many 4K TV sets aren't beholden to the same standards that 4K monitors are, such as the need for boosted refresh rates (for gaming models), elite or specialized color accuracy (for content creators), or low input lag. To 4K or Not to 4K: That's the Gamer's Dilemmaįor starters, if you want a really big 4K monitor solely for home-entertainment purposes that don't center on PC gaming, a 4K TV would likely be a cheaper option. How to Set Up Two-Factor Authenticationīut before we get too deep into details, we should help you answer a key question: Is a 4K monitor right for you in the first place? Depending on what you do most with your monitor, and where you'll place it, the extra money you'd pay versus a lower-resolution display may not be necessary.How to Record the Screen on Your Windows PC or Mac.How to Convert YouTube Videos to MP3 Files.

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