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Would've been cool if Asus had really tried to optimize the Ally around the Z1 with faster RAM, higher GPU clocks, and better battery life instead of offering t

by ece 3y ago

Would've been cool if Asus had really tried to optimize the Ally around the Z1 with faster RAM, higher GPU clocks, and better battery life instead of offering the Z1 Extreme in an upsell. It's going for $400 now, which would've been real competition a year ago. Hard to recommend it now over the OLED Deck. Will be interesting to see AMD try this in consumer processors, with frame time graphs.

theshackleford 3y ago
Whilst in some ways I’d prefer OLED , the 120hz display with high nits output on the ally has been phenomenal for retro titles using BFI. In fact it’s been so good I don’t think I could give it up now. It’s a pity because in every other way, it’s not really that ideal for me. I’m a sucker for that motion resolution but. edited NITS not bits. My bad.
- stavros 3y ago
  Why do you need 120 Hz for retro titles? Also, what's BFI?
  - theshackleford 3y ago
    You need 120hz minimum to be able to do BFI for a title pumping out at 60hz. BFI stands for "Black Frame Insertion" and it enhances motion resolution in LCD/OLED/Sample and Hold displays by inserting a black frame or blackout between regular frames. This has the result of reducing motion blur by shortening the time each frame is visible, making fast-moving content appear sharper and clearer. It effectively mimics in a way older CRT monitors, improving the perception of motion. Which for me is huge, because I still game on CRT's on the regular and LCD's abysmal handling of motion is a major detriment to me of my enjoyment of such things, especially for titles that were designed and produced for displays that had much clearer motion. It's a niche use case i'll admit, and i'd never claim otherwise, and it's not for everybody. But its funny that without that capability, id trade it in for an OLED deck tomorrow.
    - adgjlsfhk1 3y ago
      how does LCD with bfi compare to OLED without? I'd think that the OLED might not need bfi since the pixel response is so much better, but I'm not sure.
      - theshackleford 3y ago
        It's night and day in BFI's favor. Though BFI + OLED is even better still! (I have a 240hz desktop OLED I use for the same thing hahah.) Sadly OLED is not able to escape the problems inherent to sample and hold displays when it comes to the blurring of motion. Old mate Mark from Blurbusters (An expert in the field) does a far better job of explaining why then I can: https://blurbusters.com/faq/oled-motion-blur/ https://blurbusters.com/faq/oled-motion-blur/
    - stavros 3y ago
      That's very interesting, thanks! How does an LCD with BFI compare to a CRT?
      - theshackleford 3y ago
        I think the best way to put it is that currently, despite their drawbacks, BFI/Display strobing is about as close as we can currently get, but it's not perfect. They both come with drawbacks. Especially with the BFI im using (which is built into retroarch.) It gets you really close, but not all the way to the motion clarity of a CRT. It's not at the point yet where I would remove my CRT's from my desk, but another few years of brightness increases and resolution increases in <27" and under OLED's, and I could be almost convinced to finally retire them. Funnily enough VR headsets might be some of the best displays for retro due to their ability to do really good low persistance strobing without something called crosstalk. Another drawback I forgot to mention is that if you couldnt perhaps tolerate 60hz on a CRT, you may find the same with BFI/strobing, so again, it rules it out for a lot of people.
    - kiririn 3y ago
      Software based BFI with equal 16ms on, 16ms off sounds horrible for flicker Normally it’s closer to 25% off and that is still uncomfortable to view compared to plasma or CRT, unless you are blessed with a golden visual system in your brain

by ece 3y ago

theshackleford 3y ago

Whilst in some ways I’d prefer OLED , the 120hz display with high nits output on the ally has been phenomenal for retro titles using BFI. In fact it’s been so good I don’t think I could give it up now. It’s a pity because in every other way, it’s not really that ideal for me. I’m a sucker for that motion resolution but. edited NITS not bits. My bad.

stavros 3y ago
Why do you need 120 Hz for retro titles? Also, what's BFI?
- theshackleford 3y ago
  You need 120hz minimum to be able to do BFI for a title pumping out at 60hz. BFI stands for "Black Frame Insertion" and it enhances motion resolution in LCD/OLED/Sample and Hold displays by inserting a black frame or blackout between regular frames. This has the result of reducing motion blur by shortening the time each frame is visible, making fast-moving content appear sharper and clearer. It effectively mimics in a way older CRT monitors, improving the perception of motion. Which for me is huge, because I still game on CRT's on the regular and LCD's abysmal handling of motion is a major detriment to me of my enjoyment of such things, especially for titles that were designed and produced for displays that had much clearer motion. It's a niche use case i'll admit, and i'd never claim otherwise, and it's not for everybody. But its funny that without that capability, id trade it in for an OLED deck tomorrow.
  - adgjlsfhk1 3y ago
    how does LCD with bfi compare to OLED without? I'd think that the OLED might not need bfi since the pixel response is so much better, but I'm not sure.
    - theshackleford 3y ago
      It's night and day in BFI's favor. Though BFI + OLED is even better still! (I have a 240hz desktop OLED I use for the same thing hahah.) Sadly OLED is not able to escape the problems inherent to sample and hold displays when it comes to the blurring of motion. Old mate Mark from Blurbusters (An expert in the field) does a far better job of explaining why then I can: https://blurbusters.com/faq/oled-motion-blur/ https://blurbusters.com/faq/oled-motion-blur/
  - stavros 3y ago
    That's very interesting, thanks! How does an LCD with BFI compare to a CRT?
    - theshackleford 3y ago
      I think the best way to put it is that currently, despite their drawbacks, BFI/Display strobing is about as close as we can currently get, but it's not perfect. They both come with drawbacks. Especially with the BFI im using (which is built into retroarch.) It gets you really close, but not all the way to the motion clarity of a CRT. It's not at the point yet where I would remove my CRT's from my desk, but another few years of brightness increases and resolution increases in <27" and under OLED's, and I could be almost convinced to finally retire them. Funnily enough VR headsets might be some of the best displays for retro due to their ability to do really good low persistance strobing without something called crosstalk. Another drawback I forgot to mention is that if you couldnt perhaps tolerate 60hz on a CRT, you may find the same with BFI/strobing, so again, it rules it out for a lot of people.
  - kiririn 3y ago
    Software based BFI with equal 16ms on, 16ms off sounds horrible for flicker Normally it’s closer to 25% off and that is still uncomfortable to view compared to plasma or CRT, unless you are blessed with a golden visual system in your brain