Intel introduces XeSS 1.3 upscaler with better images and new presets

Intel releases version 1.3 of its XeSS upscaler. According to the company, this offers higher image quality when upscaling difficult images. The new version also includes new quality presets, including a mode that renders games at their native resolution.

According to Intel, XeSS 1.3 contains an improved AI model, which has been further optimized thanks to additional training. The chipmaker says that this version of its upscaler can handle difficult scenes better. For example, XeSS 1.3 is more stable and the new version offers better antialiasing and less ghosting, where pixels from previous frames remain in the image.

According to Intel, the new update also offers higher frame rates. In its own benchmarks with an Arc A750 GPU, the company claims frame rate improvements of an average of ten percent compared to 'a previous version' of XeSS. The company used Performance mode for this. It should be noted that Intel has adjusted the resolution scaling of its presets in XeSS 1.3. Where Performance mode previously increased the render resolution by 2.0x, this is now 2.3x. The performance improvements are therefore mainly due to a lower render resolution and not to actual better performance of the XeSS model.

In addition, XeSS 1.3 introduces some new quality presets. For example, Intel comes with a Native Anti-Aliasing mode. The game is rendered at native resolution and then further scaled up by the XeSS-AI model. This does not lead to higher frame rates, but only to higher image quality. Furthermore, an Ultra Performance mode will appear, which increases the render resolution by 3.0x.

Intel released its XeSS upscaler in 2022. It is a competitor for technologies such as Nvidia DLSS and AMD FSR 2.0. The game uses an AI model to render games at a lower resolution and then scale up to a higher resolution. That should result in higher frame rates without much loss of quality. In addition to Intel GPUs, XeSS also works on modern video cards from AMD and Nvidia. Tweakers previously wrote a background article about the operation of Intel :fill(white):strip_exif()/i/2006611074.png?f=thumblarge” />