Nvidia’s new ultra-low motion blur tech lets PC gamers have high refresh rates, too

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Nvidia is updating its Ultra Low Motion Blur (ULMB) technology, which could make gaming even smoother on high-end monitors. In an announcement on Sunday, Nvidia says its upgraded ULMB 2 feature is capable of providing over 1,000Hz of effective motion clarity with “practically zero” crosstalk — but only on 1440p 360Hz G-Sync monitors for now.

This means you no longer have to choose between having a more responsive refresh rate or reducing motion blur, both of which affect gameplay. Now Nvidia says the effective motion rate for a 360Hz monitor with ULMB 2 enabled is 1440Hz. “That means in order to obtain the same level of motion clarity without ULMB 2, gamers would need a classic panel capable of 1440 Hz,” Nvidia notes. You still can’t use it with variable refresh rate, though.

If you’re curious about how this all works, HotHardware has a great write-up detailing some of the technical aspects behind motion blurring and ULMB 2. Basically, since LCD and OLED monitors are “sample and hold” displays that only show static images until it refreshes, this leads your brain to see a blur attached to whatever your eyes are tracking across your screen, similar to the way that fast-moving objects appear blurry in real life.

There are already a couple of methods LCD and OLED monitors use to reduce motion blur, but neither does a perfect job. Some monitors quickly flash a backlight at the same time it refreshes an image, mimicking good ol’ CRT monitors, while other displays build