About a year and a half after launch, PlayStation 5 is finally getting the promised VRR (Variable Refresh Rate) feature for smoother gameplay with lower lag.
Update: The VRR features and settings are now available on PS5. It does not require a system update. Restart your console and check under screen and video settings after a few minutes. It should appear automatically.
Sony has confirmed that VRR will arrive through a software update this week, more specifically "over the next few days".
- "We’re excited to announce that Variable Refresh Rate (VRR) support will start rolling out globally to PS5 players this week. On HDMI 2.1 VRR-compatible TVs and PC monitors, VRR dynamically syncs the refresh rate of the display to the PS5 console’s graphical output. This enhances visual performance for PS5 games by minimizing or eliminating visual artifacts, such as frame pacing issues and screen tearing. Gameplay in many PS5 titles feels smoother as scenes render seamlessly, graphics look crisper, and input lag is reduced," said Hideaki Nishino, Senior Vice President, Platform Experience, SIE
However, VRR can also cause issues on many TVs. FlatpanelsHD will test the feature once the update is live.
VRR will automatically be enabled for supported games (full list here). At this time, only a handful of games are supported but players can also apply VRR to unsupported games through a menu option under 'Screen and Video', as seen below. This may result "in any unexpected visual effects", said Sony.
Also read: Review: PlayStation 5
To benefit from VRR your PlayStation 5 console must be connected to a HDMI 2.1 VRR compatible TV or PC monitor. See which TVs support HDMI 2.1 VRR in FlatpanelsHD's TV Database. Sony has not implemented support for AMD FreeSync or Nvidia G-Sync.
Xbox Series X has supported VRR since launch.
PS5's new VRR menu
