- cross-posted to:
- technology@lemmy.world
- tech@pawb.social
- cross-posted to:
- technology@lemmy.world
- tech@pawb.social
Google sparks controversy after confirming AV1 will become the new default
Google sparks controversy after confirming AV1 will become the new default
This comment made me look up what sort of hardware one needs to decode AV1
https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2022/03/firefox-will-efficiently-play-av1-video-if-you-have-a-brand-new-gpu/
“For GPU-accelerated AV1 playback, you will need an Nvidia GeForce RTX 30 series card, an AMD Radeon RX 6000 series, or an 11th-gen Intel CPU with Iris Xe graphics.”
Yeah. This seems a bit quick given the adoption of hardware decoders. I would have thought they would have waited a while longer before actually changing the default.
The benefits are real, though. AV1 is extremely efficient and it looks markedly better than alternatives even at lower bitrates.
You obviously need an AV1 hardware decoder to do hardware decoding of AV1. The GPUs you listed are the only ones with a builtin AV1 hardware decoder on the PC, though that list is also out of date. There are also multiple smartphone SoCs from Mediatek and Qualcomm that have an integrated AV1 hardware decoder. This is also not in any way an indicator for the level of hardware needed to do software decoding of AV1.
Not everyone buys a new phone every 1 or 2 years, so there are still lots of phones in use without AV1 hardware decode.
I know. I’m not saying that this is a sound decision, just that quote doesn’t really represent the current situation.