Mobile Gaming Revival Possible with ARM's New Neural Upscaler for Enhanced Graphics Performance
ARM, the renowned chip designer, is set to change the landscape of mobile gaming with its latest innovation, Neural Super Sampling (NSS) technology. This groundbreaking technology promises to bring desktop-class graphics performance to smartphones, all while improving energy efficiency.
NSS uses dedicated AI neural accelerators integrated into ARM's Mali and Immortalis lineups of GPUs. This technology transforms low-resolution frames into high-resolution outputs within about 4 milliseconds per frame, similar to Nvidia’s DLSS technology but optimized for mobile devices.
One of the key benefits of NSS is the reduction in GPU workload. By rendering graphics internally at a lower resolution and upscaling via AI, NSS cuts the GPU workload by up to 50%. This means the GPU can deliver the appearance of high-res graphics with roughly half the computational cost, substantially reducing energy use and heat output.
This reduction in GPU workload and efficient AI-driven processing lead to power savings, extending battery life during graphically intensive mobile gaming sessions without sacrificing visual fidelity.
ARM provides developers with a Neural Graphics Development Kit including Vulkan support, Unreal Engine plugins, and profiling tools to integrate NSS seamlessly into games. Major partners like Tencent and Epic Games are already collaborating with ARM on this technology, indicating broad industry backing.
ARM plans to expand NSS with features like Neural Super Sampling Denoising and Neural Frame Rate Upscaling starting in 2026, which will further enhance graphical quality and smoothness on mobile devices.
However, it's important to note that the technology is not expected to be available for at least another year, if not more. While today's super sampling technology, including DLSS 4 and AMD's FidelityFX Super Resolution 4 (FSR), is so close to native rendering that some games set upscaling on by default, NSS is expected to push the boundaries even further.
Mobile gaming, which is more popular than PC and console gaming, with millions of players worldwide, stands to benefit significantly from this technology. Games like Honkai Star Rail and PUBG Mobile can run on most modern smartphones without issues, but big-budget AAA games are currently challenging to run on smartphones due to their small form factor.
For instance, Resident Evil 4 on an iPhone 16 Pro shows noticeable lack of detail, muddy textures, and jagged lines compared to the same game on a moderately powerful laptop. With NSS, we may finally play big-name titles right from our smartphones.
However, as with any new technology, there are potential drawbacks. Upscalers can introduce latency into a game due to the time it takes for the hardware to process the upscaled frame, potentially creating a sense of lag. Developers need to test the performance uplift they could get from NSS and determine if it's worth adding compatibility for the technology.
In the past, early examples of super sampling technology could introduce graphical glitches that would hinder the gaming experience despite the better performance. ARM promises that NSS will maintain visual quality, running on trained AI models that help generate the majority of the pixels from an image rendered at 540p and upscaled to 1080p, creating visuals with minimal softened edges or muddy textures.
In conclusion, ARM’s NSS technology combines AI acceleration, efficient hardware design, and developer tools to enable desktop-class graphics performance on mobile devices with improved energy efficiency, transforming the user experience by balancing stunning visuals with longer playtime on a single charge.
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