Video

Displays for Gaming

What to Know When Purchasing a TV or Monitor for Video Game Play

By Michael Heiss

Along with toilet paper, laptops, webcams, and all sorts of other things that one might never have thought would have shortages at the start of the pandemic, add video game consoles to the list. In hindsight, it makes sense. People stuck inside and unable to congregate found video games to be a great way to release the tension and boredom, as well as use the “chat” features to converse with others.

At this point, anyone who is interested in console or PC gaming will likely know more about the comparisons between Xbox Series X and PS5, as well as the benefits of the latest PC graphics cards such as the highly sought after Nvidia RTX series. However, at the end of the day, the source has to be connected to a sink. Once the only option for that was an RF connection to a TV, later surpassed by baseband video. On the console side, however, it used to be “VGA or nothing.” Now, with the exception of specialized applications where you might see DisplayPort or Thunderbolt on a source device, everything is HDMI. Great, that matches up to both consumer displays, be they direct view or projection or monitors.

Where that leaves us is that games are just another input source, which means that to some viewers everything is easy and great. However, for the growing number of game aficionados, it’s more than that. As you look at the new TVs being introduced now and going through the “holiday selling season,” you’ll see a “game mode” featured in one form or another. The fact that manufacturers are pushing this means that there is interest, so what is it all about and what do you need to know when purchasing a TV for yourself or specifying one for a client installation?

Let’s Start with HDMI

HDMI is the “pipe” that makes it possible to deliver high frame rate, high resolution, and better color. All of those things, as they are added together, require more bits that accumulate into a data package that HDMI 2.0 just can’t handle. At the top level, the easiest way to understand this is to remember that the upper limit for HDMI 2.0 is 18 Gbps, or a bit less when you take into consideration some headroom. That is acceptable for most of the current 4K frame rate, bit depth, color sampling combinations that you will encounter today. At least for now, almost every movie or entertainment content combination won’t go over that speed limit.

Gaming, however, is a different story. As time moves forward, you will see more games with 10- or perhaps even 12-bit color. Frame rates will climb from the everyday 60fps to 120fps and, for PC gaming, even higher. Add in dynamic HDR systems such as Dolby Vision at high frame rates and the coming 8K native games, or existing games upconverted to 8K, and you’ll quickly find that you are well over the speed limit. No, you won’t get a ticket for that type of speeding, but things will slow down or just not look as good.

HDMI 2.1 provides up to 48Gbps, but as is the case with most of the other parts of today’s puzzle, the end result speed is not specified or mandated. As always, it is a good idea to futureproof. Maybe not today, but within the set’s life cycle it may be presented with format combinations such as 4K/120fps/12 bit/4:4:4 color or 8K/60p/12-bit color. To have a chance to move that through the HDMI pipe, you will definitely need to look for not only a display, but an AVR with full 48Gbps and cables that can handle the load. There are many data rate charts available online and it is worth taking a look at one to see what will be needed and use that as a guideline for display selection.

HDMI 2.1 is Almost a Must

Although a display with HDMI 2.1 is almost a must for gaming, it isn’t as simple as that because “2.1” isn’t a single thing. Instead, HDMI 2.1 is a collection of features from which the manufacturer may choose. They can have some or all, but if they have only one it is still kosher to use the HDMI 2.1 designation.

Most contemporary sets, such as the TCL 85R745 have the ability to label an input for video games. TCL’s new 85-inch set will combine virtually everything one needs for gaming and entertainment.

Both Samsung (top) and LG recognize the need for gamers to look at different information and settings than one would for entertainment viewing. The goal for any game mode is to keep your eyes squarely centered on the screen.

The HDMI 2.1 feature most frequently seen is Enhanced Audio Return Channel (eARC). That is key for making certain that any audio from a game or app that is native to the TV, or for any source device such as a game, is sent to an AVR, soundbar, or surround processor with full multichannel, uncompressed, bitstream transmission. This is also essential if the content includes Dolby Atmos or DTS:X encoding. Remember of course, that every product in the chain also has to have HDMI 2.1 with eARC.

The Importance of VRR

Another important HDMI 2.1 feature that is fundamental to gaming is Variable Refresh Rate (VRR). Particularly with PC games, but also for the 5th generation consoles, the video may often change refresh rate faster than the set can render it. This causes a number of annoying artifacts, such as stuttering, that will drive a gamer crazy. VRR does a good job of mitigating that so that you see a smooth image.

VRR also appears in sets and monitors in other forms. VRR, or similar technology that may use a different brand-specific name, is often part of the “Game Mode” feature set of many sets. Check to see that the TV set or monitor you are considering offers a VRR-like setting. For PC games, in particular, you need to be aware of AMD FreeSync and Nvidia G-Sync. These are also what you might call an “adaptive sync technology that is part of the respective company’s video cards. If that is on the source end, then make certain that the TV set or monitor has the compatible format. Some have both. Some have one or the other.

ALLM and QFT

Auto Low Latency Mode (ALLM) and Quick Frame Transport (QFT) are two more HDMI 2.1 features of importance to gamers. Like VRR, ALLM also helps present a smooth, lag-free image and Quick Frame Transport (QFT) is another technique that helps to decrease “display latency.” These features may still be rare, or at the very least, hidden from market-facing view. All are worthwhile, but you are well advised to see if their advantage makes a difference to you, or the gamer, and then see if it is part of a set that you would otherwise want to specify or buy.

Dynamic HDR

Between HDMI 2.1’s advancements for gaming that enable a true end-to-end path for high bit rate-dependent features, gamers should look for other things when tailoring the choice of a set to their needs.

HDR is certainly one of those things, as an increasing number of games have it. Under the hood, the constantly changing scenes from light to dark during game play means that a display with a dynamic HDR system such as Dolby Vision or HDR-10+, as opposed to a more static HDR-10 system, will make it easier for a player to see more of what is going on in the game. After all, isn’t that what it is all about? You can’t shoot ’em if you can’t see ’em.

Unfortunately, as we begin to blend the benefits of all these features together, one may sometimes be looking for a combination that may not yet be widely available. A good example is Dolby Vision at 120Hz. As we go to press, LG just announced that they will push an upgrade for that to select premium sets. This is a good example of the constantly changing state of consumer video, even within a model year. Regardless of what set you focus on, look for the availability of gamecentric updates that may not be mentioned on the packaging or spec sheets.

Most current model year sets have their brand’s own “game mode,” which you’ll recognize, but which will have a different name from brand to brand, such as “Pro Gaming Engine,” “Game Optimizer,” and the like. They

Samsung’s 49-inch G9 curved screen gaming monitor may not be something for movie viewing, but for gaming and business applications it is one pf the largest dedicated screens for this purpose.

For close-in game play, a game-centric monitor, such as this one from Viewsonic, may have higher spec features than a comparably sized consumer TV set.

offer different levels of picture control and adjustment, and for some brands they even have game-centric on-screen displays. Here, too, it isn’t as much a matter of which one I would recommend. Rather, check what your game wants and, if possible, “try it on” with demos of web animations. You wouldn’t buy a suit, dress, pants, or most other articles of clothing without seeing that it fits first. You certainly would not buy a vehicle without a test drive. The same rubric holds true here.

Keep in mind that even within the same brand, “game mode features” will differ as you move up or down the line. Good examples of this are frame rate, brightness, and HDR format. Don’t assume that something such 120Hz is available in all of a brand’s “game mode” packages. Look carefully, as the price may be higher for the exact feature needed, but for a game it is almost always worth the price.

Curved Screens Might Make Sense

Here’s one more thing to consider, but you have to promise that you won’t laugh: curved screens. Although a failure for consumer TVs, curved screens have their place when it comes to tabletop gaming and business monitors.

Particularly with a push during pandemic times for “work from home” situations, many have gravitated to a single monitor rather than the more traditional two-screen set up. The single monitor, often up to 32 inches or larger, focuses the user’s attention to the screen. A curved screen makes the viewing experience even more immersive and you don’t have to move your eyes, and certainly not your head to stay in the center of the action while having decent peripheral awareness to know if the aliens are sneaking up behind you to the left or right.

Again, more for dedicated monitors than large screen entertainment applications, but definitely a solution to consider. As an added benefit, dedicated gaming monitors, while smaller than traditional TVs, tend to have considerably faster response time. Where a consumer set may have a response time, which is to say the ability to switch from black to white and then back to white again, of around 10 milliseconds (ms), gaming monitors may be as fast as 1ms. That, my friends, is fast!

At the end of the day, it is certainly possible to connect a video game console to almost any flat panel display manufactured in the past few years and play a respectable game. However, as the gamer and the gaming gets more serious, one needs better gear, as it is with any sport of competition. By first looking at the kind of games being played, the demands of the gamer it will be much easier to look at the various brands, their model lines and the specs within those lines.

This type of careful look cannot guarantee that the gamer will win more races or kill more aliens but will certainly make game play more enjoyable and perhaps help them move to the top of the leaderboard. Oh, and in 99-percent of the cases, when the gamer needs to take a break and rest their eyes and brain, entertainment content will look better, as well! x