According to the latest news, Microsoft will introduce a new Dynamic Refresh Rate (DRR) feature in Windows 11. The feature is specially designed to save laptop battery life and boost refresh rates when needed.
Currently, more laptops are shipping with 120 Hz or beyond displays making Windows feel a lot smoother across scrolling, animations, and inking. There is no doubt that the refresh rate adds to smoothness but it also takes its toll on battery life.
In Windows 10 laptops, users have the option to choose between refresh rate of 60 Hz and 120 Hz. Microsoft’s built in DRR in Windows 11 will allow a laptop to dynamically adjust its refresh rate.
Ana Marta, a program manager currently working with the graphics team of Microsoft said, “This means that Windows 11 will seamlessly switch between a lower refresh rate and a higher refresh rate based on what you’re doing on your PC.”.
Here, you will require a laptop supporting DRR and a refresh rate of 120 Hz or above. The feature will let the laptop do tasks like writing emails and documents at 60 Hz. However, as soon as you scroll, it will hit 120 Hz.
In the Windows 11 preview, it seemed DRR is limited to just the Office suite. Some of the apps that will support DDR are Office, Microsoft Edge, Microsoft Whiteboard, Microsoft Photos, Snip & Sketch, Drawboard PDF, Microsoft Sticky Notes, Adobe Acrobat, Adobe Illustrator, Microsoft To Do, and Inkodo.
Note that users should not confuse DRR with VRR because DRR doesn’t apply to games and is focused purely on Windows apps. For DDR, users will require a new graphics driver, WDDM 3.0. Microsoft said it is currently working with its graphics display partners to enable DRR on a variety of devices running Windows 11 preview.
