This year’s tech showcase felt different for Nvidia. While the buzz typically surrounds groundbreaking new graphics cards, the announcements were surprisingly subdued, focusing instead on refinements to existing technologies like GeForce Now and DLSS.
The core of the update is DLSS 4.5, a potentially game-changing advancement. It promises dramatically more realistic lighting, even without ray tracing, and introduces dynamic frame generation – intelligently adjusting AI-created frames to match your monitor’s capabilities. Initial demonstrations were genuinely impressive, enough to tempt even those who typically avoid upscaling technologies.
However, a troubling pattern quickly emerged. While DLSS 4.5 shines on Nvidia’s newest hardware, it appears to actively *harm* performance on older cards. Reports are flooding in from gamers experiencing significant frame rate drops, with some RTX 3080 Ti users seeing a 24% decrease in performance in demanding titles like Cyberpunk 2077.
This isn’t a minor issue. The RTX 3060 remains the most commonly used graphics card among Steam users, and it’s less powerful than the 3080 Ti. Even older RTX 2000-series cards, technically supported, are likely facing even more substantial setbacks.
The root of the problem seems to lie in the new AI transformer model powering DLSS 4.5, designed primarily with the RTX 40-series and upcoming RTX 50-series in mind. Utilizing it on older hardware feels like an unintended consequence, a strain on systems not built to handle the demands.
Fortunately, the situation isn’t irreversible. As DLSS 4.5 is currently in beta, users can revert to previous models within the Nvidia app, restoring normal performance. This workaround offers a temporary solution, but highlights a growing concern.
Nvidia’s focus is increasingly shifting towards its newest, most powerful hardware, potentially leaving a large segment of its customer base behind. This is particularly ironic considering upscaling technologies like DLSS are often employed to boost performance on less powerful systems.
Amidst this complexity, Nvidia also unveiled a native Linux client for GeForce Now, alongside a dedicated app for Amazon Fire TV. This expands the reach of their cloud gaming platform, offering a surprisingly affordable entry point to high-end gaming.
For under $20, it’s possible to experience games on a big screen using Nvidia’s latest GPUs, albeit with the inherent trade-offs of cloud gaming – latency and video compression. It’s a reminder that even local hardware solutions aren’t without their own challenges.
