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Everything you should know about HDR in the world of gaming and beyond
HDR, or "High Dynamic Range," significantly enhances video quality by boosting the contrast between bright and dark areas, as well as broadening the color range and bit depth. HDR delivers a more vibrant, lifelike image. But the question remains: is it beneficial for gaming? This article from Mytour provides all the answers.
Is HDR a good fit for gaming?
HDR can be a great choice for gamers who appreciate stunning, cinematic visuals. However, if you're more into competitive gaming, or playing titles that lack HDR support, or if you don’t have a monitor that fully supports HDR, it might not be worth the investment.
Steps
Is HDR suitable for gaming?
The value of HDR depends on what you're seeking from your gaming experience. The decision to use HDR comes down to a few key considerations. Here are some factors to think about when incorporating HDR into your gaming setup:
- High-quality visuals: If you're into AAA titles with cinematic-level graphics, HDR could be a great choice. It brings stunning visuals to life. However, if you prefer competitive gaming, HDR might not be as essential.
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Game compatibility:
Whether or not HDR is worthwhile depends on the games you enjoy. Many older titles (pre-2017) don’t support HDR, and retro-style games like Undertale and Minecraft don’t require HDR, as they focus on a different aesthetic.
- Required equipment: To fully enjoy HDR, you'll need a capable PC with a compatible graphics card and CPU or a console that supports HDR. Additionally, you'll need a monitor or TV that’s HDR-compatible. Not all HDR displays are created equal—budget monitors might not deliver the same image quality as premium HDR models with more advanced features.
What exactly is HDR?
HDR is a video technology that enhances brightness and color range. At its core, HDR increases brightness and darkness levels (luminance). OLED and LCD screens with local dimming zones can adjust brightness in specific areas or completely turn off some parts of the display, creating deeper contrasts. For instance, in a nighttime scene, HDR can make the sky incredibly dark (no backlighting) while making stars stand out vividly. Some HDR formats also expand the color range, allowing for richer shades and smoother color transitions. There are several HDR formats to consider:
- HDR10: HDR10 is one of the main standards for HDR content. It's widely supported across HDR displays and streaming services. An open standard, it uses "static metadata," which means the brightness and color settings stay the same across all content.
- HDR10+: HDR10+ was developed by Samsung and is also an open standard. Unlike HDR10, it uses "dynamic metadata," adjusting the brightness and color profile for each scene, allowing for more nuanced detail in both bright and dark scenes.
- Dolby Vision: Dolby Vision, created by Dolby, also utilizes dynamic metadata for adjusting brightness and color on a per-scene or even per-frame basis. It can adapt to your display's capabilities in real-time. Unlike HDR10 and HDR10+, Dolby Vision isn’t an open standard, and content creators need a license to use it.
- HGL: Hybrid Log Gamma (HGL) was developed by the BBC and Japan’s NHK. It doesn’t use metadata but expands on the standard gamma curve used by SDR TVs, making it backward-compatible with SDR displays. While it’s an open standard, it’s not as widely used and doesn’t offer the same depth in dark scenes as other HDR formats.
What equipment do you need for HDR gaming?
A game console with HDR support. The latest gaming consoles come with HDR compatibility, including the PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X and S, as well as Xbox One X and S. However, the Nintendo Switch does not support HDR.
A PC equipped with at least a 7th-generation Intel Core processor. For PC gamers, a 7th-generation Intel Core processor or newer is required. This includes Intel Xeon, Celeron, and processors such as the Intel i3 7101, i5 7500, and i7 7700 or higher.
A graphics card that supports HDR. You’ll also need a video card that can handle HDR. Compatible HDR graphics cards include NVIDIA GTX 10 series or better, NVIDIA RTX 20 series or better, or AMD Radeon 5 series or higher.
An HDR-capable display (monitor or TV). The key to enjoying HDR gaming is having an HDR-ready monitor or TV. However, not all HDR displays are created equally. Factors like brightness, color range, and frame rate can vary significantly across models. Here are some features to consider when shopping for an HDR display:
- Support for multiple HDR formats: A good HDR monitor or TV should support at least HDR10 and Dolby Vision. Bonus points for HDR10+ and HGL support, but note that supporting a format doesn’t guarantee that the monitor can fully utilize its potential.
- Peak brightness: The brightness of a monitor is measured in nits or cd/m2. A quality HDR display should hit a peak brightness of 600 cd/m2 or higher.
- Black levels: Black levels refer to how dark a screen can get. For instance, Dolby recommends black levels around 0.005 nits or less, while Intel suggests a minimum of 0.44 nits per millimeter.
- Color depth: While standard monitors offer an 8-bit color depth (16.7 million colors), true 10-bit monitors can display up to 1.07 billion colors. Many monitors marketed as 10-bit are actually 8-bit+2-bit (dithered), offering better quality than regular 8-bit monitors but not true 10-bit.
- Color space: Color space refers to the range of colors a display can show. While standard monitors use sRGB, HDR monitors typically use the broader DCI-P3 color space. A top-tier HDR display should cover at least 90% of the DCI-P3 space.
- OLED vs. LED with local dimming: While LED-backlit monitors are common, OLED screens offer superior contrast as each pixel lights up independently, eliminating the need for backlighting. Local dimming zones on LED monitors help achieve better contrast in dark scenes by dimming or turning off specific backlight areas.
- Refresh rate: Refresh rate affects motion smoothness in games. Most new consoles run at 60 Hz, but PC gamers often aim for 144 Hz or higher for faster frame rates. However, high-refresh HDR displays are expensive, often costing two to three times more than their standard counterparts.
