Microsoft upscaling for games will be limited to Snapdragon X Elite CPUs at launch

The first notebooks equipped with Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite SoCs will be the only ones (initially) to deal with upscaling feature for games through Windows. The information comes from Microsoft itself.

Called Automatic Super Resolution (Auto SR), the Windows feature will be quite restricted, as it will not even work on the Snapdragon X Plus line, which is the line below Qualcomm’s Elite.

In a Microsoft FAQ, the company makes it clear that its upscaling technology will only work with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X Elite series SKUs, which have an NPU with enough power to handle the feature, as well as Copilot+.

The FAQ says the following:

“Auto Super Resolution (Auto SR) integrates seamlessly with Windows to automatically improve the frame rate of existing games in real time, while delivering detailed on-screen visuals as well, offering balance that exceeds what your computer’s hardware can handle. PC can deliver on its own.

At initial launch, this feature will be exclusive to Copilot+ PCs equipped with Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite processors and in select games.”

Gaming desktops and notebooks are left out

In other words, in addition to the fact that Microsoft’s upscaling through Windows is specific to Snapdragon X Elite SoCs initially, the feature can only be activated in certain games. The criteria for choosing these titles was not disclosed.

This is at least a strange decision on Microsoft’s part, since we are talking about PCs for AI, which deliver good general processing in applications that use artificial intelligence, but don’t even come close to a gaming notebook, much less a desktop, when we talk about gaming performance.

And this is important, since Microsoft’s Automatic Super Resolution is aimed at games, but it will only work on hardware that is good compared to previous generation APUs, but still falls far short of what dedicated gaming hardware can do.

Still in Microsoft’s FAQ, the company mentions that it will also be a partner with Qualcomm’s competitors, such as AMD Strix Point and Intel Lunar Lake, which arrive after the Snapdragon X Elite and which will also be capable of handling Auto SR, although they are not machines focused on games.

Via: Extreme Tech