Can you imagine a smart phone that plays the latest PC games? NVIDIA, a graphics cards company, recently made it possible using a platform called GRID. GRID uses cloud computing technology that allows its users to run accelerated desktops on their phones and laptops. By using these desktops, people can play games and run software with an enhanced speed, because the cloud handles the processing part.
cloud computing. source: ibm.com
For example, when users start GRID on their smart phones, the selected games or software will be operated on cloud servers; these cloud servers are far away from the users but high-performance. On the same time, the real-time display of the games/software will be transferred from the cloud servers to their phones via the Internet. The real-time inputs, such us keyboard and mouse inputs, will be transferred from the phones to the servers as well. This is not only how GRID works but also how cloud computing works.
cloud computing: gaming everywhere on any device. source: nvidia.co.uk
As a result, the users feel like the game/software is running on their phones， and the phones perform well. In fact, the mobile devices do not need to actually process since all the processing is done in the cloud. Similarly, users can use GRID to run any software on any device with an Internet access.
high-performance mobile devices are usually heavy and large. source: nextgengamingblog.com
In past decades, IT companies and scientists were trying to make mobile devices high-performance, especially when dealing with graphics. However, poor heat radiating and poor battery life are still big problems for mobile devices due to their small physical size. NVIDIA was facing the same problem, but they took a completely different approach to achieve the same goal. In terms of performance and convenience, they succeed.
cloud computing: work everywhere on any device. source: http://www.nvidia.com
NVIDIA GRID, and other similar services, gives small companies and low-income people an alternative way to use high-performance devices with an affordable price. For instance, a small company can save money on buying high-end PCs, and low-income people can play games on their low-priced laptops.
However, GRID still has the same lag problems as most online games have. In addition, users need to pay for this service by month or by year. Consequently, playing games and working with a desktop computer is still the best plan. However, if a person travels a lot, using GRID can be a good plan for him/her.
By Max Ma.
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