Question Input Lag and Response Time: How Important Are They in Gaming Monitors for Unity?

Hi everyone,

I'm currently working on a Unity game and I'm looking to upgrade my gaming monitor. I've been doing some research and I keep seeing terms like "input lag" and "response time" thrown around. I'm not entirely sure what they mean or how important they are for gaming monitors.

I've found some information online, but I'm still a bit confused. Some sources say that input lag is the delay between when you press a button and when the action appears onscreen, while response time is the time it takes for a pixel to change from one color to another. Others say that input lag is the time it takes for the monitor to process the image before displaying it, while response time is the time it takes for a pixel to change from black to white and back to black again.

So, I have a few questions:

What exactly is input lag and response time?

How important are they for gaming monitors?

Should I be looking for low input lag or low response time when choosing a monitor for Unity?

Are there any specific monitors that you would recommend for Unity development?

I would appreciate any insights or recommendations that you can provide. Thank you!

 

Most of these can be found online. (https://www.rtings.com/monitor/tests/inputs/input-lag)

What exactly is input lag and response time?

From my understanding is input lag the time it takes for an input to reach output. This can be an input from a mouse, or simply starting and outputting a frame. Rendering etc also plays a part in this.
Response time is the time it takes for 1 pixel to change color, and there are different measurements for this, most often GTG (gray to gray). Generally the lower the better.


How important are they for gaming monitors?

The main benefit is that the display is more responsive, as long as the PC can keep up as well (if you push 30fps on PC, having a 240hz monitor won't do that much). More refresh rate usually is lower input lag and lower response time.

This is very important for esports games, where every millisecond matters. For slower pace games this matters less. When developing this matters even less in my opinion. Then I would prioritize color accuracy over response time.


Should I be looking for low input lag or low response time when choosing a monitor for Unity?

They kinda go hand in hand. Look for reviews and benchmarks on monitors and pick the best in your budget. For professional use I would look for a 60fps 4K display, with a decent response time (under 5ms). If you want to focus on fast games, maybe a 1440p (or 4K if you can afford this) 120/144hz screen, as these display smoother graphics and usually have lower latency

Are there any specific monitors that you would recommend for Unity development?

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