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What is input lag,
and how can I reduce it?

Competitive gamers know that sometimes, victory is decided by a margin as thin as a fraction of a second. The winner is whoever shoots first or crosses the line first. And so one could argue that most, if not all of competitive gaming boils down to just two things: fast-twitch muscles and input lag.

The former, of course, is a matter of skill and practice. You’ve got to be fast, and the only way to be fast is to practice and get better.

But the latter is something that can be controlled, and is largely a matter of hardware and settings. Input lag is the delay between your physical input — that is, when you click or press — and the corresponding action registering in the game. Input lag is never zero; the laws of nature are such that there’s always just a little bit of delay. But competitive gamers make it a point to shave off as much of it as possible. That means addressing these key factors:

Insufficient processing power

If your computer or console just doesn’t live up to the game’s demands, it will take longer to process your input and render the visuals. The only way to reduce this without upgrading your hardware is to calibrate your game settings, reducing visual fidelity and prioritising frame rate. By putting all your processing power into faster frames rather than special effects, you might be able shave a few crucial split-seconds off of your lag.

Display response time

Network latency and processing power are the usual culprits of input lag. But when these aren’t problems, the only remaining suspect is your monitor or screen. It could be a screen set to a low refresh rate — the maximum number of images per second the monitor can display. Anything lower than 144hz could slow you down.

That’s why Samsung’s Odyssey Series of gaming monitors were designed to clock ultra-high refresh rates. The Odyssey Neo and Odyssey OLED, for example, go up to a hyper-fast 240hz. Also, in its “Extreme mode” setting, it can achieve a response time of just 1 millisecond (grey to grey). Suffice it to say that if you’re looking for a monitor that won’t ever stand between you and victory, you’d best look at a Samsung Odyssey.

But it’s not just monitors — it’s smartphones too, lest we forget that mobile gaming also has its competitive side. And that’s why every Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra is equipped with the Snapdragon® 8 Gen 3 Mobile Platform for Galaxy*. Optimised especially for Galaxy users, this chipset delivers remarkable NPU improvement for incredibly efficient AI processing. In all three Galaxy S24 models*, 1-120 Hz adaptive refresh rates also improve performance efficiency.

Pair your Galaxy S24 Ultra with the Samsung Galaxy Buds3 Pro, which are intelligently tailored with AI to automatically noise-adjust in any situation, so you can be truly and completely locked in wherever you’re playing.*

If you’re serious about winning (of course you are), then reducing input lag should be part of how you set yourself up for victory. Every edge counts, and a well-tuned system can be the difference between an embarrassing defeat and an epic victory.

  • *Snapdragon is a product of Qualcomm Technologies Inc. and/or its subsidiaries. Snapdragon is a trademark or registered trademark of Qualcomm Incorporated.
  • *In New Zealand, only S24 Ultra has the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor. Both S24 and S24+ have a Samsung Exynos 2400 processor.
  • *Samsung account login and Internet connection may be required for certain AI features. Galaxy AI feature availability and associated costs are subject to change post 2025. Different terms may apply for AI features provided by third parties. AI output reliability and accuracy not guaranteed. Actual UI may be differ.