Add an in-video toggle to enable/disable NVIDIA Video Super Resolution (VSR)

[Tatsuna]

NVIDIA Video Super Resolution (VSR) is a great feature that enhances the quality of streamed videos through AI-based upscaling. However, its current integration in Firefox presents significant usability limitations.

At the moment, enabling or disabling VSR requires changing hidden preferences in about:config and restarting the browser. This makes the feature cumbersome to control and effectively unusable in many real-world scenarios.

VSR often activates automatically even when it is not desired, leading to:

• unnecessary GPU usage, with multiple videos getting upscaled even at the same time, which can deprive the GPU of resources that could be used elsewhere;

• increased power consumption (especially on laptops);

• higher system temperatures and fan noise;

In Chromium-based browsers, this issue is mitigated by a convenient in-video toggle, similar to the Picture-in-Picture button, which allows users to enable or disable VSR instantly on a per-video basis.

I propose adding a visible, user-accessible toggle directly on video players in Firefox, allowing users to enable or disable VSR in real time, without having to go through the tedious process of changing flags in about:config and, most of all, avoiding browser restarts. This would also help with thermals and energy consumption, of course. At the moment, I feel like NVIDIA VSR is genuinely practical feature that is hindered by a hidden, all-or-nothing setting.

[Jon]

Thanks for submitting an idea to the Mozilla Connect community! Your idea is now open to votes (aka kudos) and comments.

[Tatsuna]

Thank you!

I would like to clarify that this kind of in-video toggle would not be limited to NVIDIA users. I was not aware of it before publishing the idea, but it has come to my attention that even AMD and Intel have developed their own video upscaling and enhancement technologies, which are likewise designed to improve the quality of streamed or low-resolution video content.

As these technologies share similar characteristics, like the automatic activation once the function is recognized by the browser, increased GPU usage, and potential impact on power consumption and thermals, users across all three major GPU vendors would benefit from a unified, user-facing control in Firefox.

[Spectro]

Very good idea, would love to see this implemented on the browser so if you don't want it you can disable it instead of dwelving into about:config searching for the option. It would give much better control to users if they want to use said feature or not, for it to be visible in the settings as an option makes more sense IMHO

[firedogtrash]

cool

can you fix the memory leaks tho? lol

no feature you add will be better than fixing all the memory leaks.

[Tatsuna]

Memory leaks tied to VSR or in general?

[Sky_Fire]

would firefox be able to tell if theres no Nvidia gpu present?

[Tatsuna]

Yes. It already does. I have received feedback from users on Reddit, and the equivalent feature from AMD and Intel already works, albeit with the same caveats.

Supposedly, if they do implement the toggle and options in the settings, it will work for all vendors-specific features.