NVIDIA recently announced their new lineup of 40-series graphics cards. The RTX 4080 and RTX 4090 cards demonstrated impressive results, however, what caught the most attention in the entire presentation is the new DLSS 3 — an evolution of the DLSS technology that comes being implemented on RTX boards since the 20 series. But what is this technology and what is the importance of DLSS 3 ?
What is DLSS?
DLSS is an acronym for Deep Learning Super Sampling , an upscaling technology created by NVIDIA for use in their RTX line cards . DLSS uses machine learning to render high-quality graphics without sacrificing performance , requiring much less of your computer’s hardware and delivering smoother frame rates for the most demanding games.
With DLSS , players can activate other newer rendering techniques such as ray tracing without worrying about performance drops in heavier areas of the game, as the artificial intelligence will reconstruct that image at a higher resolution. smaller, but without losing much graphic quality. Within the game, the user can choose between different quality profiles, being able to configure the way that DLSS works on your machine so that it prioritizes image quality or performance .
In the beginning, DLSS 1.0 was only used in a few games, recreating images in real time with fewer pixels , making less processing power from the video card and processor needed. However, few games were compatible with the technology, as the artificial intelligence needed to be “trained” by the software in advance, but that changed with the arrival of DLSS 2.0 .
NVIDIA delivered DLSS 2.0 with a technique of more efficient use of the voltage cores of the RTX cards , guaranteeing higher frame rates in games, firmer and more realistic images, and without the need for neural network training, gaining the support of more games. Until then, all RTX 20 and 30 series cards supported the technology, but NVIDIA has already confirmed that things will change with DLSS 3 .
What is DLSS 3?
During the announcement of the new RTX 4080 and RTX 4090 cards , NVIDIA also revealed DLSS 3 , promising performance improvements of up to 4 times compared to native rendering . In addition, the manufacturer confirms that more than 35 games are already integrating the new technology, with the first games ready to be released sometime in the month of October. Unfortunately, in a controversial decision, NVIDIA confirmed that DLSS 3 will be exclusive to 40-series cards , leaving users of the more powerful 30-series cards aside.
In some demos, NVIDIA revealed that games like Cyberpunk 2077 were running at around 98 frames per second. In terms of comparison, on the highest graphics settings, the game runs at just 22 frames at native resolution. Already using the previous version of the technology, DLSS 2.0 , Cyberpunk 2077 only reaches 60 frames per second.
The foundation of DLSS technology remains the same in its third generation, as it will continue to deliver high performance in games while maintaining a quality image in rendering. However, the decision to make the technology unique to the RTX 4080 and RTX 4090 cards did not sit well with fans and enthusiasts. According to NVIDIA , this decision was made because DLSS 3 uses the new voltage chips and optical accelerator of the new 4000 cards , making it impossible to implement on previous generation cards.
More than 35 games have already been confirmed to support the new DLSS , including some big names like HITMAN 3 , A Plague Tale: Requiem , Cyberpunk 2077 , Flight Simulator , Dying Light 2 Stay Human , Hogwarts Legacy , and a remaster of Portal — which gets the famous Ray Tracing in a free update in November.
FSR, the DLSS alternative
NVIDIA pioneered AI-powered upscale technology , encouraging other competitors to build their own solutions, such as AMD ‘s FidelityFX Super Resolution ( FSR ) . The technology also recreates the images being rendered at a lower resolution to deliver smoother frames for gamers. However, unlike DLSS , FSR does not use Artificial Intelligence to render your images, but uses your graphics card’s own processing power to recreate the images in real time .
An interesting point is that FSR technology is not exclusive to AMD cards , that is, even users with NVIDIA cards can enjoy improvements in the performance of their favorite games, from the 10 series to the latest RTX cards . The FSR delivers several performance modes that prioritize image quality or performance, and can be changed at any time by the player until they find the most pleasant setting.
But so, is DLSS 3 enough to make you shell out for a brand new RTX 4080 or 4090 ? Tell us in the comments!
See too:
Looking for GPUs with DLSS technology? We list some models from R$ 1,499 .
Sources: The Verge , Engadget .
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