Paul Morris on July 3, 2021, 8:57 pm

Windows 11 To Include Dynamic Refresh Rate Battery Saver Feature For Laptops

With Windows 11, Redmond-based Microsoft will introduce a brand new Dynamic Refresh Rate feature that is designed to save battery life on portable machines and provide a boost only when it’s really needed.

With the current iteration of Windows 10, machine owners are forced to choose between one of two choices, either a 60Hz or 120Hz refresh rate on a laptop.

Currently, that’s nothing more than a static choice with the device owner having to manually switch from one to the other if they want to choose a different refresh rate. With Windows 11, that will be offered as a dynamic option, with the operating system having the intelligence to dynamically switch, as explained by Ana Marta, Program Manager on the Graphics Team at Microsoft:

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.

In order for this new feature to work within Windows 11, the owner will need a laptop that offers a refresh rate of 120Hz or above and that actually supports the Dynamic Rate Refresh feature. When in operation, standard operations, such as writing emails or creating or viewing individual documents will run at the lower 60Hz refresh rate. When scrolling or doing other tasks within apps that support the feature, Microsoft’s new DRR feature will come into play.

It’s worth noting that this feature specifically applies to Windows apps and not games and there will be a requirement to have a laptop that offers a refresh rate of at least 120Hz and a new graphics driver.

Currently, there are no Microsoft Surface laptops that ship with a 120Hz refresh rate but this feature could definitely be an indication that one is on the way or is definitely in the works. For those Microsoft lovers out there, it could finally be a sign that Microsoft could soon have a laptop/tablet that is able to compete with Apple’s ProMotion displays.