WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:08.120 In this box is the Q9F, one of the highest end TVs that Samsung makes. 00:00:08.440 --> 00:00:17.460 This thing is 65 inches, 4K, it's got a quantum dot display, it's HDR, it's got Bixby voice. 00:00:18.080 --> 00:00:20.820 Basically, all the bells and whistles. 00:00:21.260 --> 00:00:23.260 Oh, and it's beautiful. 00:00:25.420 --> 00:00:29.020 But, that's not actually what we care about today. 00:00:29.020 --> 00:00:39.360 Okay, almost exactly a year ago, we made a video investigating the gaming experience on LG's NanoCell TV with a focus on input lag. 00:00:39.760 --> 00:00:43.800 But there's a lot more to a gaming display than just low input lag. 00:00:44.240 --> 00:00:46.440 Which brings us to this. 00:00:49.200 --> 00:00:56.900 This is the first TV to reach our lab with variable refresh rate support right out of the box. 00:00:56.900 --> 00:00:58.200 You guys heard me. 00:00:58.740 --> 00:01:00.900 This puppy right here has free... 00:01:00.940 --> 00:01:01.880 FreeSync. 00:01:01.880 --> 00:01:06.780 So, naturally, we wasted no time at all hooking it up to, uh... 00:01:07.620 --> 00:01:09.920 Yeah. 00:01:09.920 --> 00:01:11.560 Got you guys, there's nothing in there. 00:01:11.560 --> 00:01:21.440 I did say we wasted no time at all, so it's already hooked up to an Xbox One X and a Vega-equipped PC, so we could test it. 00:01:21.970 --> 00:01:24.250 Let's dive right in, shall we? 00:01:24.790 --> 00:01:30.130 After, we all dive into my pants, where I can show you my Mac Weld and Underwear. 00:01:30.150 --> 00:01:32.710 Yes, my friends, Mac Weld and Underwear is 00:01:32.790 --> 00:01:37.730 so comfortable, that if you don't like it, you can get a full refund with their try-on guarantee. 00:01:37.730 --> 00:01:41.370 Use offer code TECHTIPS at the link below to get 20% off. 00:01:41.370 --> 00:01:59.040 So, some of you are probably wondering, first of all, do I really have to spend over $3,000 on a fancy Q9F if I want FreeSync? 00:01:59.040 --> 00:02:11.240 And second, how did Samsung manage to deliver a variable refresh rate display to my living room before the NVIDIA Big Format gaming displays that we saw at CES 10 months ago? 00:02:11.560 --> 00:02:16.340 The answer to both of them has to do with how FreeSync is implemented. 00:02:16.340 --> 00:02:20.500 So, even though the announcement only came in late March of this year, 00:02:20.500 --> 00:02:30.020 Samsung was able to push FreeSync support to almost their entire 2018 lineup, including the $700, 49-inch NU8000. 00:02:30.020 --> 00:02:40.720 Because, unlike NVIDIA's G-Sync, FreeSync does not require a proprietary, not to mention pricey, hardware module to be included in the display. 00:02:41.620 --> 00:02:52.500 Instead, FreeSync relies on hardware that is already baked in to industry-standard VESA specifications like DisplayPort and, in this case, HDMI. 00:02:52.500 --> 00:03:00.260 Now, to be clear, HDMI 2.0 ports, like the ones found on the back of the Q9F's external One Connect box, 00:03:00.260 --> 00:03:10.500 weren't originally designed to include variable refresh rate the way that DisplayPort 1.2 and HDMI 2.1 ports were. 00:03:10.500 --> 00:03:11.380 But, 00:03:11.380 --> 00:03:23.860 HDMI 2.0 does allow vendor-specific extensions, which is exactly how Microsoft added FreeSync to their Xbox One S and Xbox One X back in April this year, 00:03:23.860 --> 00:03:29.860 giving AMD and Samsung a built-in audience of millions of gamers, 00:03:29.860 --> 00:03:36.740 and therefore, a strong incentive to tack FreeSync onto these TVs, improving the gaming experience. 00:03:36.740 --> 00:03:40.980 Now, the main benefit of FreeSync, and other variable refresh rate technologies, 00:03:40.980 --> 00:03:45.780 is that it synchronizes the frame rate of your game with the refresh rate of your display 00:03:45.780 --> 00:03:49.940 to combat stuttering or hitching during animations and tearing, 00:03:49.940 --> 00:03:54.580 a visual anomaly where the top and the bottom of the frame aren't aligned. 00:03:54.580 --> 00:04:02.740 In the real world, we've found that the main benefit is that it makes frame rate dips that occur during intense scenes less noticeable. 00:04:02.740 --> 00:04:06.500 That is, as long as the dips aren't too low. 00:04:06.500 --> 00:04:08.740 Bringing us to this important point. 00:04:08.740 --> 00:04:10.740 Just because a TV 00:04:10.740 --> 00:04:12.340 has FreeSync, 00:04:12.340 --> 00:04:14.260 doesn't mean that it's just like a 00:04:14.260 --> 00:04:16.020 make-everything-good button, 00:04:16.020 --> 00:04:18.900 or that it's even a good implementation of it. 00:04:18.900 --> 00:04:24.280 And the main factor here is something called the variable refresh rate range. 00:04:24.280 --> 00:04:25.240 So, 00:04:25.240 --> 00:04:29.160 any display has a limit to how fast it can go, 00:04:29.160 --> 00:04:29.800 but, 00:04:29.800 --> 00:04:36.440 this variable refresh rate range also specifies a limit to how slow it can refresh. 00:04:36.440 --> 00:04:37.080 So, 00:04:37.080 --> 00:04:39.320 like if you buy a 60Hz monitor, 00:04:39.320 --> 00:04:40.680 and you play CSGO on a 00:04:40.680 --> 00:04:43.800 high end PC that can push out 200 frames per second, 00:04:44.280 --> 00:04:49.000 turning on FreeSync isn't going to magically make your monitor refresh at 200Hz, 00:04:49.000 --> 00:04:52.280 your eye is still going to see 60 frames per second. 00:04:52.280 --> 00:04:55.640 Then, on the other end of the spectrum, 00:04:55.640 --> 00:05:00.520 if your game renders BELOW the lower limit of your FreeSync display, 00:05:00.520 --> 00:05:05.160 the display will be forced to repeat some of the frames it has received, 00:05:05.160 --> 00:05:07.800 and this introduces stuttering. 00:05:07.800 --> 00:05:09.800 So back to our TV now then. 00:05:09.800 --> 00:05:10.280 Samsung will be forced to repeat a lot of frames that it has received, and this introduces stuttering. So back to our TV now then. Samsung will be forced to repeat some of the frames it has received, and this introduces stuttering. So back to our TV now then. 00:05:10.280 --> 00:05:17.980 Samsung's FreeSync implementation has three different ranges to keep in the back of your mind. If you're PC gaming at 1080p, you got two options 00:05:18.620 --> 00:05:22.360 Basic with a range of 90 to 120 FPS and 00:05:23.160 --> 00:05:26.760 Ultimate with a range of 48 to 120 FPS 00:05:26.760 --> 00:05:32.220 And it should be noted that I'm using FPS and Hertz sort of interchangeably here because that's kind of the point 00:05:32.220 --> 00:05:35.800 As for if you're plugged into an Xbox One S or One X 00:05:35.800 --> 00:05:41.400 Basic won't even be an option. As for why anyone would even want to use basic 00:05:41.400 --> 00:05:47.540 Well, supposedly it can help resolve flickering issues that LCDs can sometimes run into at high frame rates. 00:05:48.080 --> 00:05:52.660 As for 4k gaming, well there you're gonna be left with a much narrower range 00:05:52.940 --> 00:05:58.780 It's pretty common for 4k monitors to offer a 40 to 60 FPS range 00:05:59.100 --> 00:06:04.840 But here on this TV, you only get 48 to 60 making the sweet spot 00:06:04.940 --> 00:06:05.780 just 00:06:05.780 --> 00:06:08.500 12 frames wide before you'll start to get 00:06:09.180 --> 00:06:11.700 stutters when the action gets intense. 00:06:12.740 --> 00:06:16.560 In fairness, this thing is mostly targeting console gamers 00:06:16.560 --> 00:06:20.120 which at the moment basically means it's for the Xbox One X and 00:06:20.820 --> 00:06:25.980 For the most part game developers work hard to optimize their games for a smooth experience 00:06:26.540 --> 00:06:32.200 Anyway, and in some cases they actually do such a good job that in Halo 5 Guardians 00:06:32.200 --> 00:06:35.720 For example, we didn't see any stuttering or tearing with 00:06:35.880 --> 00:06:37.300 Or without FreeSync on 00:06:38.360 --> 00:06:42.620 With that said, severe frame rate drops definitely do happen 00:06:42.620 --> 00:06:44.680 Especially when there's a lot going on at once 00:06:45.160 --> 00:06:50.280 And this implementation of FreeSync isn't going to help you with all of them 00:06:50.280 --> 00:06:54.700 Because even though the Xbox One S and One X support FreeSync 2 00:06:54.820 --> 00:06:58.040 Which includes low frame rate compensation 00:06:58.040 --> 00:07:01.500 This TV only supports a modified FreeSync 1 00:07:01.660 --> 00:07:04.780 So it's got HDR which is kind of a FreeSync 2 feature 00:07:05.060 --> 00:07:06.060 But it doesn't have that feature anywhere else. 00:07:06.060 --> 00:07:13.080 have LFC. So then, while having FreeSync on removed the frequent tearing during Call of Duty World War 00:07:13.080 --> 00:07:18.100 II's in-engine cutscenes, it didn't do much to combat the hitching that happens when you move 00:07:18.100 --> 00:07:23.340 into new areas of the map, or when Forza 7's trying to load up your car and character model 00:07:23.340 --> 00:07:29.680 before a race. So then, should you get a FreeSync TV like this one today? From just an overall 00:07:29.680 --> 00:07:34.660 experience standpoint, I don't, yeah, yeah, maybe. I mean, it's not like you're paying extra for it, 00:07:34.660 --> 00:07:39.240 and it looks great, and the input lag is even less than the ones we tested last time around. 00:07:39.840 --> 00:07:46.100 But if you are specifically after a robust variable refresh rate experience, 00:07:46.920 --> 00:07:53.020 well, then it gets a little bit tougher, because there is a lot coming in the next year or two 00:07:53.020 --> 00:07:59.600 that is going to change the landscape here. So G-Sync TVs from the likes of HP, ASUS, and Acer 00:07:59.600 --> 00:08:04.540 are going to be coming out in the, we hope, next few months here. And, 00:08:04.860 --> 00:08:11.300 I mean, this year, we might even see TVs from Samsung that are equipped with HDMI 2.1, 00:08:11.740 --> 00:08:20.420 which would mean, among other things, 4K at 120Hz and the real full-fat official variable refresh 00:08:20.420 --> 00:08:26.470 rate implementation. So if you desperately need a TV today, this is certainly better than not 00:08:26.470 --> 00:08:32.030 having it. But, as it always is with high technology, well, you could get it even better 00:08:32.030 --> 00:08:37.550 if you wait just a little bit. 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