It seems NVIDIA, the dominant player in the graphics processing unit (GPU) market, is calling dibs on Cloud gaming, as they have somehow proven that the streaming platform can eventually replace high-end computers.
NVIDIA's Windows version for the GeForce Now, the name for the Cloud streaming service, has been tested and has shown that gaming on another computer using a streaming service is possible. Granted, the GeForce Now is still in its beta phase. Nevertheless, the testers were able to play "Rainbow Six: Siege" and "PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds" (PUBG) on $200 laptops which are only fit for browsing and light tasks. Both games are notably moderately demanding and require at least a $600 to $1000 gaming PC to play smoothly.
This opens up possibilities for people who have no budget for gaming PCs, though it should be noted that this streaming platform requires an excellent internet connection due to it being a Cloud application. Last year, the Mac OS version of GeForce Now showed similar levels of success as well, meaning it could only be a matter of time and internet connection until the streaming technology allows bare minimum budget gaming for the most demanding games.
For those unfamiliar to GeForce Now, the streaming technology basically allows users to tap into the power of an expensive gaming PC using another presumably less powerful PC such as cheap laptops. This was made possible using NVIDIA's own Tesla-generation GPUs utilized by remote Cloud servers. These GPUs as on similar levels to NVIDIA's GTX 1080 consumer graphics cards, which means that most modern AAA game titles are not much of a challenge for the hardware.
As for the minimum hardware specifications required for users to be able to utilize GeForce Now, a modest Intel Core i3 processor and 4-gigabyte (GB) memory, along with either Intel HD 2000, GeForce 600 series or Radeon HD 3000 graphics are necessary. Most modern cheap laptops have the said specifications or the equivalent, though, at the moment, the technology is still not complete and requires at least a 25 Megabits per second (Mbps) internet connection. Still, developments for it are being made fast, so it might soon be ready for consumer use.
