Applies to: A player or PC connected to a display that reports input refresh; reference clips have independently known frame rates.
The useful distinctions
- Windows reports current display resolution and refresh rate.
- SHIELD may convert content to the selected display rate.
- Diagnostic inference to test: Two different-rate sources can share the same fixed output readout.
Keep two measurements separate
Use one entry for the reference’s documented frame rate and another for the active display output. This distinction prevents a common report error: calling every programme 60 fps because the TV announces a 60 Hz input. The input announcement is still useful, but its scope is the timing received by the display at that moment.
Use a two-reference demonstration
Choose references whose original rates are known independently of the display. Keep output fixed and compare their movement and the input readout. The unchanged readout demonstrates why it cannot identify each source rate. It does not prove which conversion the player used internally or reveal duplicate, dropped or interpolated frames without additional analysis.
Use the distinction in support reports
Write both values when known, and write “source rate unknown” when appropriate. If a matching feature changes the output, record that separately from any improvement in motion. More precise language makes a future comparison reproducible and avoids inventing content specifications for an app, channel or service that has not published them. This also prevents output upscaling from being described as proof of native source resolution.
A focused way to proceed
- Record the display’s fixed output rate.
- Play two lawful references with known different source frame rates.
- Check whether the display readout stays the same for both.
- If supported, compare content matching and observe the new output.
- Record source provenance and output timing in separate fields.
Worked example · synthetic
Hypothetical example: known 24 fps and 50 fps reference clips both produce a 60 Hz TV readout under fixed output. The user records “60 Hz output; different known source rates” and stops using the input readout as a source-quality badge.
When to stop or ask for help
A refresh readout alone cannot certify original frame rate, resolution or quality. Consult reference metadata or the legitimate publisher for provenance.