Search Unity

Will Multithreaded Rendering generate more/less/the same amount of heat?

Discussion in 'Android' started by TobiasW, Jun 4, 2020.

  1. TobiasW

    TobiasW

    Joined:
    Jun 18, 2011
    Posts:
    91
    Hello,

    I'm currently working on an experience that should run on Android devices for multiple hours. As such, it's important that the device doesn't get too hot, so it doesn't start getting throttled. It's clear to me that this wouldn't work for the device I'm currently targeting if I run at a high framerate, so I'm setting the target framerate to 30 FPS.

    Knowing that my goal is a stable framerate and temperature - what are the implications of Multithreaded Rendering? Does using more processors generate more heat? Will it likely stay the same because it is just distributing the same amount of work? Does the distribution somehow result in less, or more even heat generation? Is it impossible to say and/or device-dependent?

    I'm usually pretty good with googling, but I couldn't find anything on that topic.

    (I'm also asking because I'm experiencing crashes that are hard to reproduce and seem to be tied to Multithreaded Rendering, so I'm wondering if it's even worth putting more time into this.)
     
    TobiasW, Jun 4, 2020
    #1

  2. JuliusM

    JuliusM

    Unity Technologies

    Joined:
    Apr 17, 2013
    Posts:
    835
    JuliusM, Jun 4, 2020
    #2

  3. florianpenzkofer

    florianpenzkofer

    Unity Technologies

    Joined:
    Sep 2, 2014
    Posts:
    479
    The answer is probably "depends". Multithreaded Rendering has some overhead.
    But running a single core at very high clock speed should use more power than using two cores at low clock speed. But all of this depends on the workload, SoC, scaling governor, ...
     
    florianpenzkofer, Jun 4, 2020
    #3

  4. TobiasW

    TobiasW

    Joined:
    Jun 18, 2011
    Posts:
    91
    Thanks - this might potentially be a better option than a strict framerate limit in the long run! (Right now we have just one specific device that we develop for due to the workshop nature of the product.)

    And thanks for confirming that it depends, florianpenzkofer, and isn't just a clear-cut win. Considering that it crashes for me anyway, I guess I shouldn't spend more time on it right now and see what else I can optimize.
     
    TobiasW, Jun 5, 2020
    #4