Arm GPU unveils ASR, revolutionizing Snapdragon PCs 💻✨ Find out!

Nvidia, AMD, and Intel have all embraced AI-powered techniques to improve their graphics capabilities. Now, Arm is joining the fray with a new technology called Arm Accuracy Super Resolution (Arm ASR), which builds on a previous AMD development. 💻✨

Initially, Arm ASR was designed for mobile GPUs, not PCs. However, in a demo for Unreal 5, Arm showed how this technology works on a desktop renderer running on a mobile platformOverall, Arm ASR accelerated the rendering engine by 30%, suggesting that Arm customers, such as Qualcomm with its Snapdragon PCs, could use this. technology to eventually improve graphics on PCs. 🚀

Arm GPU introduces ASR – Bistro Scene courtesy of NVIDIA and published under Creative Commons CC-BY-4.0 license

Arm ASR, which was first announced a year ago, is launching today as a plugin for Unreal Engine. A Unity plugin will be available later this year. Arm also expressed its intention to expand Arm ASR to other platforms, though it didn't specify which ones or when they'll be available. 📅

Arm ASR se based on the previous AMD version, known as FidelityFX Super Resolution 2 (FSR 2), which takes lower-resolution images and upscales them, thereby improving frame rates through faster processing. (Later AMD versions, such as FSR 3 and FSR 4, also include frame generation.) However, Arm ASR uses temporal scaling, considered an improved version. 🔍

Arm GPU Introduces ASR – Arm introduced Arm ASR in its new demo video:

According to Arm, the developers of games only need to enable the ASR plugin, configure the project settings to use Temporal Anti-Aliasing, and verify the integration. “Prominent game studios, such as Enduring Games, Infold Games, and Sumo Digital, have integrated Arm ASR into their development processes, leading to an improvement in the game performance maintaining the same visual quality,” Arm assured. 🎮👍

At this point, it's unclear whether licensees like Qualcomm will have access to Arm ASR, given the unexpected IP-related litigation brewing between the two. Last week, Qualcomm announced it had filed two additional motions in its fight against Arm, which largely resolved in Qualcomm's favor after Arm unexpectedly attempted to terminate Qualcomm's IP license. These latest motions ask the court to rule against Arm on an unresolved claim in the IP lawsuit. The second motion supports Qualcomm's separate attempt to sue Arm for breach of contract.

In an emailed statement, Geraint North, vice president of developer platforms at Arm, declined to comment on whether Qualcomm would have access to ASR technology. “We do not comment on specific partners. However, Arm Accuracy Super Resolution (Arm ASR) is now open source and available to all developers who want to experience the benefits of Arm ASR in their mobile gaming and graphics projects,” he said. 🛠️

“To better support this community, we want to make Arm ASR “We want to be as efficient and portable as possible, maximizing the number of scaling options developers can choose from,” North added. “Arm ASR isn’t tied to any particular GPU implementation, and we test on a variety of devices to ensure a good experience.” 📱

However, it is true that the Windows platform on Arm has had difficulties run games, primarily due to compatibility issues. As Qualcomm and the Arm ecosystem continue to address this issue, Arm ASR will likely make Arm gaming more attractive to both developers and end customers. 🎉

This story was updated at 9:25 AM PT with additional comments from Arm.