Please Don't Buy This
TLDRNvidia's GeForce Now has received a significant upgrade, now supporting variable refresh rate for a smoother gaming experience. This feature is initially available to users with modern Nvidia GPUs, but also extends to Macs with Apple or AMD GPUs and older Intel B Max CPUs. The service offers two tiers: Premium at $10/month for up to 1080p resolution and 60 FPS, and Ultimate at $20/month for 4K resolution, 120 FPS, and longer session lengths. Nvidia has also introduced a priority day pass for $4, aiming to provide a low entry barrier for users to try the service, though the pricing strategy has raised some questions.
Takeaways
- 🚀 GeForce Now has received a significant upgrade, now supporting variable refresh rate (VRR).
- 🤔 VRR on GeForce Now is currently limited to users with modern Nvidia GPUs, raising questions about the necessity of the service for those already owning capable GPUs.
- 💡 The support for VRR on non-Nvidia hardware like Macs and older Intel chips suggests that Nvidia may be selectively limiting the feature on Windows users without GeForce GPUs.
- 📈 Nvidia's market share in the discrete GPU market is very high, despite AMD's competitive lineup in traditional gaming performance.
- 💰 GeForce Now's pricing structure offers a premium tier at $10/month with RTX support and up to 1080p resolution, 60 FPS, and 6-hour session lengths.
- 🏆 The Ultimate tier is available for $2/month, providing an RTX 480 rig, up to 4K resolution, 120 FPS, and 8-hour session lengths.
- 🕒 The session length differentiation raises questions about the practicality of offering different lengths for gaming sessions.
- 📋 Limitations around VRR support include its incompatibility with multi-monitor setups.
- 🎮 Nvidia's priority day passes are introduced, allowing users to pay $4 for a day of access to the service.
- 💸 The pricing strategy for the day passes is questioned, with suggestions that it should be cheaper or contribute towards a first-month subscription.
- 🔄 The discussion touches on the general dislike for subscription models that require credit card information upfront, preferring transparent and easy cancellation policies.
Q & A
What is the significant upgrade to GeForce Now?
-The significant upgrade to GeForce Now is the support for variable refresh rate.
How does variable refresh rate work with GeForce Now considering it's a streaming service?
-The implementation of variable refresh rate in GeForce Now is not entirely clear, but it seems to involve Nvidia's own drivers and is currently limited to users with modern Nvidia GPUs, as well as support for Apple GPUs and certain AMD GPUs on Macs.
What are the implications of the variable refresh rate support on non-Nvidia GPUs?
-The support for variable refresh rate on non-Nvidia GPUs suggests that Nvidia might be enabling this feature through software optimization rather than hardware requirements, allowing users with Apple and AMD GPUs to benefit from the feature as well.
What are the different pricing tiers for GeForce Now?
-There are two main pricing tiers for GeForce Now: the premium tier at $10 a month, which offers an RTX rig with up to 1080p resolution, 60 FPS, and 6-hour session length; and the ultimate tier at $20 a month, providing an RTX 480 rig with up to 4K resolution, 120 FPS, and 8-hour session lengths.
What is the purpose of the 6-hour session length limit on the premium tier?
-The 6-hour session length limit on the premium tier is likely a measure to prevent excessive use of resources, such as in cases where a user might leave the service running for an extended period without actively using it.
What are the limitations of the variable refresh rate support in GeForce Now?
-One of the limitations of the variable refresh rate support is that it does not work with multi-monitor setups.
What is the concept of priority day passes in GeForce Now?
-Priority day passes allow users to pay $4 for a single day of access to the service, presumably for the ultimate tier, instead of committing to a monthly subscription.
What is the criticism regarding the pricing of the priority day pass?
-The criticism is that the $4 price for a single day pass is too high compared to the full monthly cost, and it's unclear what Nvidia aims to achieve with this pricing strategy. It's suggested that it should be cheaper or contribute towards the first month's subscription.
How does the market share of Nvidia affect the adoption of GeForce Now?
-Nvidia's high market share in the discrete GPU space means that many users already have Nvidia GPUs, which raises the question of why they would need GeForce Now in the first place. However, the service also supports non-Nvidia GPUs, expanding its potential user base.
What is the speaker's opinion on free trials and credit card requirements?
-The speaker is not a fan of free trials that require a credit card, as they believe it should be easy to cancel and transparent. They prefer services that offer real access during the trial period and suggest that a shorter trial or a full month trial might be more appropriate.
What is the speaker's suggestion for improving the priority day pass?
-The speaker suggests that the priority day pass should be cheaper or contribute towards the first month's subscription. They also mention the possibility of a free trial or a partial refund if a user is not satisfied with the service.
Outlines
🚀 GeForce Now Upgrades and Pricing
The paragraph discusses the recent upgrade to GeForce Now, which now supports variable refresh rate (VRR). The speaker admits to not being briefed on this feature by Nvidia and questions how it works, given that VRR typically requires communication between the monitor and GPU. The feature is currently limited to users with modern Nvidia GPUs, leading to a debate on the value of GeForce Now for those with capable GPUs. The speaker also mentions the support for VRR on Mac with Apple and AMD GPUs, as well as older Intel processors, suggesting that Nvidia might be restricting non-GeForce users on Windows to a fixed refresh rate. The market share of Nvidia in the discrete GPU market is highlighted, along with the competitive lineup of AMD. The pricing for GeForce Now is detailed, with the premium tier at $10 per month and the ultimate tier at $2 per month, offering different resolutions, FPS, and session lengths. Limitations of VRR support are mentioned, and the introduction of priority day passes for $4 is critiqued for its seemingly arbitrary pricing.
💳 Nvidia's Subscription Model and Day Pass
This paragraph focuses on Nvidia's subscription model for GeForce Now, particularly the introduction of the priority day pass. The speaker expresses skepticism about the $4 cost for a day pass, questioning its value compared to the full month's subscription. The discussion includes the potential reasons behind Nvidia's pricing strategy, the high costs of running the service, and the company's reluctance to offer free trials. The speaker suggests that a lower price or a contribution towards the first month's subscription would be more acceptable. The paragraph also touches on the idea of a free trial and the challenges of implementing one for the service discussed.
🎮 Gaming Experience and Service Evaluation
The speaker reflects on the gaming experience with GeForce Now, considering the practicality of the day pass and its potential use cases, such as vacation gaming binges. The idea of a week-long pass for the price of a day pass is floated as a more appealing option. The speaker advocates for a lower price point for the day pass and expresses confusion over Nvidia's pricing strategy. The conversation then shifts to the possibility of a day pass for another service, Float Plane, and the challenges associated with offering trials for digital services. The speaker concludes with a lighthearted anecdote about forgetting about a scheduled gaming session and the associated apprehension.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡GeForce Now
💡Variable Refresh Rate
💡Nvidia GPUs
💡Mac and Apple GPUs
💡AMD GPUs
💡Intel B Max
💡Market Share
💡Ray Tracing
💡Free Trial
💡Priority Day Pass
💡Session Length
Highlights
GeForce Now receives a significant upgrade, now supporting variable refresh rate.
Variable refresh rate works over streaming, which is a novel feature since it usually requires direct communication between the GPU and the monitor.
The new feature is limited to modern Nvidia GPUs, raising questions about the necessity of GeForce Now for those who already own capable GPUs.
Support for variable refresh rate on non-Nvidia hardware, such as Macs with Apple or AMD GPUs, and older Intel B Max CPUs, suggests that the feature might not be tied to Nvidia's hardware.
Nvidia's market share in the discrete GPU space is very high, which might explain the limited variable refresh rate support for non-Nvidia users on GeForce Now.
GeForce Now's pricing is $10 a month for a premium rig with RTX, offering up to 1080p resolution, 60 FPS, and a 6-hour session length.
The Ultimate tier is $2 a month, providing an RTX 480 rig, up to 4K resolution, 120 FPS, and 8-hour session lengths.
The 6-hour session length for the premium tier raises questions about the necessity of such a limit.
Variable refresh rate support has some limitations, such as not working with multi-monitor setups.
Nvidia's priority day passes are now available for $4, which is a departure from the typical free trial or subscription model.
The discussion questions the value proposition of a $4 day pass compared to the full month's subscription price.
The idea of a day pass is appreciated, but the pricing structure is confusing and seems counterintuitive.
Nvidia's high costs for running GeForce Now are acknowledged, which is why they might be cautious about offering free trials or low-cost day passes.
The conversation suggests that a free trial or a more affordable day pass might be more appealing and could contribute towards the first month's subscription.
The discussion also touches on the challenges of offering trials for services like Float Plane, which may not be as straightforward as for other types of services.
The potential usefulness of a day pass is acknowledged, especially for short-term gaming binges or during vacations.
The conversation concludes with a suggestion that the day pass price should be lower to better align with the value provided.
