3 ms·

You think 2x M2 chips could play a AAA game at 6k res (3k per eye) and 90+ fps?

by prng2021 3y ago

danpalmer 3y ago
A single M2 chip is able to play a recent-ish AAA game and decent-ish settings, on ~2k at >30fps, while also running the whole game itself and macOS. So for VR, foveated rendering could mean the difference between ~2k and 3k is a wash. And AAA games designed for VR tend to be a little more conservative on the graphics. And the chip will only theoretically have to handle half the other game work and no full macOS. Combine that with Apple's continued Metal development, which is very capable if you're willing to do the leg work to take advantage of it, and yeah I think it'll get close.
- oblio 3y ago
  > A single M2 chip is able to play a recent-ish AAA game and decent-ish settings, on ~2k at >30fps, while also running the whole game itself and macOS. Doing the math to the OPs numbers. 6k vs 2k = 3x. 90 fps vs 30 fps = 3x. That an extra 900% performance difference right there. Reality, out the window.
  - danpalmer 3y ago
    3k (there's supposedly an M2 per eye). 2k->3k = +125%. If foveated rendering can half the necessary pixel count, that's pretty much a wash. FPS alone is +200%, but games are running above 30fps already so it's less than that. Add a reduction in system load due to not running the full OS, potentially framework improvements as we usually see at WWDC, and slightly reduced graphical fidelity that is typical for VR games, and we're back to the same ballpark.
    - mlajtos 3y ago
      Also, there is MetalFX for faster rendering time. Render at low-res, upscale to high-res. https://developer.apple.com/documentation/metalfx https://developer.apple.com/documentation/metalfx
    - prng2021 3y ago
      https://www.tomsguide.com/news/macbook-air-m2-vs-macbook-pro-m2-benchmarks-how-the-new-air-stacks-up https://www.tomsguide.com/news/macbook-air-m2-vs-macbook-pro... The M2 doesn't even hit 30fps at 1080p. You also have to consider the power draw limits they set on these 2 chips placed near your eyes compared to a M2 running in a laptop with lots of heat dissipation.
dmix 3y ago
There's a new OS (xrOS) [1] listed in the article in addition to talk about Apple's full hardware team working on a new chip for the headset. I'm not sure what value there is on speculating at this level. We have no idea what sort of gaming content they are planning for it in addition to the AR stuff. At that price point it's hard to tell what the market or usecases with be. 1. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-12-01/apple-mixed-reality-headset-rivaling-meta-set-to-run-xros-operating-system https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-12-01/apple-mix...
KaiserPro 3y ago
I mean they can, but at what power? You can't have 2x m2s next to your face each kicking out 6o degree heat at 20 watts.

You think 2x M2 chips could play a AAA game at 6k res (3k per eye) and 90+ fps?

A single M2 chip is able to play a recent-ish AAA game and decent-ish settings, on ~2k at >30fps, while also running the whole game itself and macOS. So for VR, foveated rendering could mean the difference between ~2k and 3k is a wash. And AAA games designed for VR tend to be a little more conservative on the graphics. And the chip will only theoretically have to handle half the other game work and no full macOS. Combine that with Apple's continued Metal development, which is very capable if you're willing to do the leg work to take advantage of it, and yeah I think it'll get close.

oblio 3y ago
> A single M2 chip is able to play a recent-ish AAA game and decent-ish settings, on ~2k at >30fps, while also running the whole game itself and macOS. Doing the math to the OPs numbers. 6k vs 2k = 3x. 90 fps vs 30 fps = 3x. That an extra 900% performance difference right there. Reality, out the window.
- danpalmer 3y ago
  3k (there's supposedly an M2 per eye). 2k->3k = +125%. If foveated rendering can half the necessary pixel count, that's pretty much a wash. FPS alone is +200%, but games are running above 30fps already so it's less than that. Add a reduction in system load due to not running the full OS, potentially framework improvements as we usually see at WWDC, and slightly reduced graphical fidelity that is typical for VR games, and we're back to the same ballpark.
  - mlajtos 3y ago
    Also, there is MetalFX for faster rendering time. Render at low-res, upscale to high-res. https://developer.apple.com/documentation/metalfx https://developer.apple.com/documentation/metalfx
  - prng2021 3y ago
    https://www.tomsguide.com/news/macbook-air-m2-vs-macbook-pro-m2-benchmarks-how-the-new-air-stacks-up https://www.tomsguide.com/news/macbook-air-m2-vs-macbook-pro... The M2 doesn't even hit 30fps at 1080p. You also have to consider the power draw limits they set on these 2 chips placed near your eyes compared to a M2 running in a laptop with lots of heat dissipation.

dmix 3y ago

There's a new OS (xrOS) [1] listed in the article in addition to talk about Apple's full hardware team working on a new chip for the headset. I'm not sure what value there is on speculating at this level. We have no idea what sort of gaming content they are planning for it in addition to the AR stuff. At that price point it's hard to tell what the market or usecases with be. 1. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-12-01/apple-mixed-reality-headset-rivaling-meta-set-to-run-xros-operating-system https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-12-01/apple-mix...

KaiserPro 3y ago

I mean they can, but at what power? You can't have 2x m2s next to your face each kicking out 6o degree heat at 20 watts.