Low-quality online videos will be improved by Microsoft Edge.

 

Video Super Resolution (VSR), most important feature unveiled at CES 2023, will be available to a limited number of Microsoft Edge Canary users, according to Neowin.

By upscaling the resolution and removing block compression artefacts, VSR utilises Microsoft Research's AI technology to improve video quality inside the browser. Starting today, this functionality can be tested on various streaming services by 50% of Microsoft Edge Canary users.

According to Microsoft's own statistics, "one out of three videos in Edge is played at 480p or lower," so this functionality can be very useful. Users who must continue with low-quality streaming due to limited network bandwidth will especially benefit from it.However, before you can use this function, a few requirements must be satisfied. For instance, VSR needs an AMD or Nvidia dedicated graphics device (RTX 20-series and newer) (RX 5700 and newer).

Microsoft has said it will soon make an upgrade available that allows for automatic switching between iGPU and dGPU. Additionally, the function is inaccessible when your laptop is unplugged or when watching DRM-protected videos.

Since AI closely resembles Nvidia's own effort, known as RTX Video Super Resolution, it appears that AI is the future of video upscaling in general. A statement given to PC Gamer claims that this feature allows upscaling video to resolutions higher than 1080p, supporting native resolutions between 360p and 1440p and video with a frame rate of up to 144Hz.

Its compatibility with Chrome and Edge browsers ensures that Chrome users are not ignored, which is a benefit. This feature, however, only works with RTX GPUs from the 3000- or 4000-series, but it allows upscaling of videos to 4K resolution in return.

We'll have to wait and see if other platforms like Safari, Opera, or Firefox will follow suit in the near future.