[caption id="attachment_97467" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] Apple TV 4K - pretty good[/caption] Zwift + MyWhoosh the PERFECT Setup - and how I failed to achieve it. Imagine seeing water perfectly rendered, the creases in your lycra top perfectly visible as you cycle through the digital shadows in Watpoia. Imagine seeing the pimples on the faces of a multitudinous crowd cheering you on or the perfect details of the brickwork or pavement around the Glasgow crit. Then, notice the perfectly smooth motion of your legs gliding around at 100rpm. I did manage to get quite a bit of that, but not all. The only pimples I saw were my own. I had unreasonably high expectations of upgrading my indoor training setup to match or beat the reality of cycling around Surrey on bumpy roads on a cold winter's day. Here's what I did manage to achieve, which was still quite impressive. Or at least I thought so. This is what you get by reading on YouTube videos and links to source images of MyWhoosh/Zwift on various bits of hardware Comparisons of Zwift and Mywhoosh gameplay across various hardware platforms Probably the perfect setup My setup! Where do I go from here? TL;DR - Zwift is obviously the better overall platform and I managed to get the smoothest graphics with it. With caveats, MyWhoosh had better graphics on high-end hardware. Test Notes I cycled the same Glasgow Crit (Zwift) section using several hardware setups. I repeated the tests with the same hardware for the Heian route (Japan, MyWhoosh). I chose to capture imagery from a specific segment of each of those routes that seemed to present degrees of difficulty for quality renderings of the screen imagery. Here is the hardware I used, with the items in bold being those I usually use when indoor cycling. iPhone 15 Pro (2023, A17 Apple silicon, 4K @60fps) Apple TV 4K Ethernet (2022, A15 Apple silicon, 4K @60fps) PC AMD RYZEN 7 5700 G 3.80 GHz (2022, comparable to Intel Core i5-11400F but not a great gaming chip), Nvidia RTX 3080 graphics card 1440p @120fps (state of the art for 2020). M.2 SSD. 16Gb DDR4. LG OLED48C45LA (2024) 48-Inch OLED Evo UHD Smart TV, (α9 AI Processor Gen7, 4k @120fps, best 48" sub£1000 OLED TV) Samsung UE40H6400AKXXH (40" LCD, 1080p @50-60fps, 2014) iMAC (2019) - 6-Core i5, 3.1GHz, Retina 5K, 5120x2880 @60fps. (Intel silicon) Wired network connections 100Mbs or 1000Mbs, Cat6 cabling or above. Backup Google Mesh WiFi 5 (802.11ac) Fibre broadband in London (70-140Mbps, typical 9-11ms ping) Wahoo KICKR Move (2024) with Wahoo KICKR Direct Connect Data Gathering Each video is about 20-30 seconds long, recorded on the same segment of Zwift each time. It's worth pointing out that it is not possible to capture a TV 4K video directly. I had to use the MAC to connect to the TV4K with QuickTime Player and Airplay (LAN). QuickTime Player considers an Apple TV4K a camera, which I recorded at maximum quality. Zwift also creates logs for each session that confirm the profile used, resolution, frame rate, and other performance factors. Where possible, I also retrieved and analysed the log with the excellent Zwiftalayzer (thanks to Mike Hanney). It is not easy to get the Zwift logs from TV4K other than via Zwift support; I didn't do that. Another point with TV 4K is that Zwift will only assign a BASIC graphics profile. A profile is a behind-the-scenes setting in Zwift that differs from the available in-game settings. As its name implies, 'Basic' will not show high-resolution textures. AFAIK MyWhoosh has no such logs. In any case, the fps is capped to 30fps and, along with the ping, is displayed in the top right corner of the screen on most platforms. Results Interpretation Things I generally looked out for Smoothness of individual item movements Stuttering playback FPS stability where more riders are present Shadows or lack of them Texture effects like water movement and sun reflections on water - water is a good example; on lower performance platforms, the game pans across a water texture image, whereas on higher performance platforms, the ripples of water, flags in the wind and similar effects are generated in real-time. Texture details like leaves, road surfaces, and brickwork on the building Number of onscreen items like spectators Distance and speed at which new items 'spawned' into view Physics and motion artefacts - cycling through other objects/riders Effect of HUD overlays My General Experience Before The Tests Even before the COVID era, I occasionally used Zwift on an iPhone when running on a treadmill in the gym and found it a helpful distraction at times. For cycling, in years gone by, I did vast amounts of indoor training but was happy to look at the numbers or listen to a podcast. I eventually got bored with that kind of indoor training and avoided it for some years. The KICKR MOVE recently changed things for me as I find cycling on it very comfortable, so I can easily complete multi-hour indoor rides. Hence, my interest in Zwift and MyWhoosh returned in recent years. My pain cave doubles as a workspace (for the other business) and has lots of electronics for that business, plus the interference that comes with it. WiFi dropouts were often a fixable but annoying problem; KICKR Direct Connect eliminates my connectivity problems. The recent resurgence of my KICKR usage was enjoyed on the iMac, which happened to be the right computer in the right place at the right time. I could tell the gameplay and images were far from perfect, but they were more than good enough and didn't spoil the experience. However, in mid-2024, I finally got an apple TV 4K for the house (not the pain cave) but tested it out with Zwift/MyWhoosh for over a month, and there was a noticeable improvement in all-around quality. That was the inspiration for this article. I happen to have an Nvidia RTX 3080 lying around. I'm not a gamer, but with that graphics card and a rather nice 120fps OLED TV in the lounge, the stage was set for me to test to find the best Zwift/myWhoosh setup I could. Would it make a difference, and what would that entail if I upgraded my pain cave setup to the ideal solution? My Expectations Without too much thought, I expected gradual increases in quality from iPhone to iMAC, to Apple TV 4K to Windows PC+RTX3080. I also expected Zwift to be better than MyWhoosh. Test Results - Raw Data The quality appears compromised when uploading to YouTube, so I have linked to the originals in the Dropbox below. However, note that one of those 30-second clips is half a gigabyte. Also, the highest quality video shows 120fps and a high resolution that your monitor might be unable to do justice to. Here's a playlist of 8 videos; the first part of the title tells you what is live onscreen. Original Files: here [caption id="attachment_97456" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] Full Playlist - click to play[/caption] Let's start with the Zwift Tests. Test 1: Zwift on iPhone View Original: HERE 886×1920 @30fps Profile: Basic YouTube stats for nerds show this plays at 1920x866@30fps. You can pick fault with the image quality quickly enough in multiple places, but it's perfectly Ok, in my opinion. Maybe this would be better on an iPhone 15 Pro Max, but the non-Max version is too small for this except in exceptional circumstances. Simply navigating the menus on the Zwift app was tricky on such a small screen. [caption id="attachment_97453" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] click to view[/caption] Test 2: Zwift on iMAC (AMD Radeon PRO 5300) View Original: HERE 4096x2304 @53fps Profile: Medium [caption id="attachment_97454" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] click to view[/caption] Test 3: Zwift on TV 4K View Original: HERE 1920x1080p @25fps Profile: Basic Zwiftalyzer: Unavailable for Apple TV4K [caption id="attachment_97457" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] click to view[/caption] Test 4: Zwift on PC with RTX 3080 View Original: HERE 4096x2160 @120fps Profile: Ultra [caption id="attachment_97458" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] click to view[/caption] Test 5: MyWhoosh on iPhone View Original: HERE 886×1920 @30fps FPS: 30fps capped [caption id="attachment_97465" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] click to view[/caption] Test 6: MyWhoosh on iMAC (AMD Radeon PRO 5300) View Original: HERE 4096x2304 @54fps FPS: 30fps capped [caption id="attachment_97466" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] click to view[/caption] Test 7: MyWhoosh on TV 4K View Original: HERE 1920x1080p @30fps FPS: 30fps capped [caption id="attachment_97467" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] click to view[/caption] Test 8: MyWhoosh on PC with RTX 3080 View Original: HERE 4096x2160 @120fps FPS: 30fps capped Note: Oddly bright recording. I don't know why. I might have to redo this. I don't remember it being like this when cycling. [caption id="attachment_97468" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] click to view[/caption] Interpretation of Results I don't find either of the platforms visually 'realistic'. It was more about "Which cartoon do I prefer the most?" Neither cartoon matched the original Avatar movie from 2009, so we're not talking state-of-the-art tech gaming tech here. I guess that's not the point. Both platforms offer something to look at, with many interesting details and feedback through in-game stats presented on excellent transparent HUDs. I want to focus more on just the quality of the graphics and how much it varies between hardware platforms and games. The base comparison I was most familiar with from 2024 usage was MyWhoosh on the MAC. Looking back, the experience is perhaps like an old Western movie with tumbleweed and dust blowing down the main street. Everyone's inside and doesn't want to go out and get shot. Because of the ever-present danger from Clint Eastwood, you're too focused on what's happening immediately around you to see too far into the distance. Should you look to the horizon in MyWhoosh on a Mac, you'll probably see nothing much but as you get closer to a new building or detail, it will get blockily rendered over, say, a second or so. It's pretty noticeable, but it's kinda happening on your periphery, so it's no big deal. As you use better hardware, that effect disappears, and you might instead notice that it's a flower head that doesn't immediately appear - a much smaller screen detail than a hill or building. Getting out the big guns with the RTX3080, even those flower heads are already pre-rendered into memory before you turn the corner and can see them. Higher-end hardware adds realism. The people have mysteriously exited the saloon in large numbers and are on hand to encourage you, cheer, and wave flags. Like the creases on your lycra top, even the lanterns above your head are more colourful and detailed. There's more detail everywhere - on the road surface, buildings, and bamboo stems. The detail moves better in the wind and as you move round corners and up inclines. I have cycled through overhanging rocks at the roadside with MyWhoosh, and indeed, most MyWhoosh rides seem to involve cycling through another cyclist if you can find one, an experience that's generally less frequent in Zwift which definitely pays homage to your personal space! Odd movements will invariably happen in MyWhoosh when you are with 3 or 4 other cyclists; Zwift handles that much better, even in larger groups, but is not immune from unexpected lateral movement across the screen to place someone more conveniently. I could have chosen a busier Zwift route, but Scotland is new, and I assumed it would have the highest-quality graphics. General playback in all my scenarios was good to excellent, with only the occasional stutter. Zwift seems to have much more leeway on higher-spec machines with more riders. If you're plodding along at 120fps and encounter the peloton, Zwift can and does drop the frame rate - you can see that sort of effect evidenced in the Zwiftalayzer stats. With MyWhoosh capped at 30fps, it doesn't have a lot of leeway in those (rare) circumstances. Shadows are poorly rendered or nonexistent on lower-spec hardware, getting more detailed and precise on both platforms as the hardware improves. At the highest end, Zwift seems better, with higher contrast in the shadows and more detailed shadows. It almost replicates that annoying effect of real-world cycling on a bright sunny day when you suddenly go through a clump of darkly shaded trees. You would have thought Zwift edging it over MyWhoosh with shadows would apply to all other areas, but that's not so. When encountering dynamic textures like water, MyWhoosh is excellent and renders individually moving ripples rather than Zwift, which pans across a fixed water texture. Obviously, on lower-end hardware, you'll be lucky to get the right shade of blue, let alone a ripple. Some of the individual screenshots I have are over 17 MB each, and my site can't store those, so I've cut a few sections from them for the images below - note the ripples (which realistically move) and the details on my yellow top, the Geisha's outfit, and the sidewalk dirt. Take Out: MyWhoosh and Zwift are surprisingly improved by high-end hardware. Some but not all of the details on MyWhoosh are better, but Zwift is the king of smoothness and handling more significant numbers of riders. [gallery size="full" columns="2" ids="97470,97471"] Surprises The iPhone was probably better than the iMac. If I had hooked it up to my TV by cable, it might have been even better than the Apple TV 4K. Try your smartphone or iPad before you buy lots of new kit. Note you can get adapters that plug an RJ45 network cable into the USB-C port on your iPhone/iPad. They're a few dollars each and should eliminate some lags and interference; I think when plugged in, Bluetooth is disabled. So bear that in mind. MyWhoosh renders water textures excellently. Generally, its ability to use higher quality hardware than I previously owned surprised me - despite the 30fps refresh. A decently vibrant and sharp OLED TV is a notable boost over older LCD screen tech. Why I Failed to Get A Perfect Setup and What I Might Improve for My Actual Upgrade For a good Zwift/MyWhoosh compromise setup, get an Apple TV 4K with ethernet - it's great value and excellent for those vested in the Apple ecosystem. It will easily breathe new life into a 10-year-old TV for regular TV/streaming, plus the benefit of many new smart features. I was waiting for an improved version of the Apple TV 4K, but that does not appear to be happening soon, so I will probably buy an M4 MAC as my dedicated Zwift/MyWhoosh machine. However, that will NOT be the best hardware setup for those seeking the ultimate Zwift experience. The best hardware setup for Zwift & MyWhoosh will be a tweaked and improved version of the Windows PC I used in the testing. Do something along these lines to get the ultimate Zwift experience. Remember to buy something to handle future developments, and if you have other gaming needs, they might be better satisfied by even better hardware that Zwift/MyWhoosh can't take advantage of. I doubt Mywhoosh/Zwift will get significantly more complex from a graphics requirements perspective for the next three years. However, the number of people using the games might increase, meaning that more capable hardware will be useful. That said, Peak Zwift declines imply little growth in Zwift usage in the future, whereas MyWhoosh is likely to grow quite a bit as it is free! (Detailed MyWhoosh Review here) Windows 11 Zwift is less optimized for MAC, and Windows 10 will soon be de-supported I have a 500Gb M.2 SSD. A higher spec won't improve Zwift/Mywhoosh but might improve other games. Fast storage boosts load time of the game and in-game assets I need to fine-tune my LAN to ensure 1000Mbps at all times to the ONT (fibre modem) with proper Cat 7 ports and shielded cabling. I get a 10ms ping to 8.8.8.8 next to the ONT, but gameplay in the pain cave was 15ms (Effect: Minor). I used a great TV (LG OLED48C45LA 48-Inch OLED Evo 4K UHD Smart TV, (α9 AI Processor Gen7, 4k @120fps, G-SYNC). It is probably the best option, beating cheaper Hisense models and effectively matching the performance of more expensive Sony options. I have contacts I can't name in the OLED TV hardware industry who shouldn't recommend the LG but did! For a more immersive experience, I would get a bigger screen than the 48" one I chose (Effect: Psychological/Preference) Get Intel, not AMD - In this kind of gameplay, Intel has less thread/core redundancy than AMD. I used an AMD, equivalent to an Intel Core i5-11400F (11th Gen). A 12th, 13th or 14th gen Intel CPU will be better. The ultimate would be 2024's 15th Gen processor branded as Core Ultra. You would buy these superior processors to future-proof your setup and handle large peloton rides better. Those types of scenarios are where the CPU/processor helps. (Effect: Some) Zwift is CPU-limited; higher clock speeds are more important than the number of cores. You can get a second-hand Nvidia RTX3080 now for less than $500. RTX40xx or RTX50xx will be better specified, but I can't see them adding anything to Zwift and Mywhoosh except in massive group rides. I found an RTX3090 less reliable when I had one, and it was BIG and wouldn't fit into my current PC's case. Get an adequate power supply. (Effect: Some effect going beyond RTX3080) I have 16 GB DDR4 RAM. Get that as a minimum or up to 32Gb ddr5. (Effect: Some) RAM has some effect on better frame pacing Settings: According to Zwift Insider, enable triple buffering and threaded optimisation in the Nvidia Control Panel, and disable video screenshots in the Zwift settings menu. Probably only the first of those three would have slightly improved my tests. Direct cable connection from your smart trainer. Bluetooth communications over ANT+ if you have to. Your trainer and PC should be linked with good LAN cables to the same network switch at 1000Mbps Even better if your ISP's modem (router/switch) can be plugged directly into. Take Out Unsurprisingly, better and more expensive hardware usually improves gameplay. Few of you will buy or build a PC solely to maximise Zwift's performance. If you are buying the best PC for gaming, it will inevitably do an excellent job when you run Zwift. Just buy the best PC you can afford. Suppose you want to buy new hardware primarily for streaming/TV with occasional indoor cycling. In that case, my strong recommendation is to aim to support 4K resolutions at 120fps (120 Hz) - the game, card and TV/monitor all need to support that. Currently, MyWhoosh doesn't, nor does Apple TV 4K, nor do most streaming platforms, but they might soon. So, future-proof your hardware purchases as best you can. If you are going for a VERY large screen, you'll have to think about 8K hardware support, but I don't know much about that, so I will leave the comment dangling! End Please comment below if there are areas where I can add some more thoughts. There was quite a lot going on with all the various setups, and I struggled to restrict the scope of the content. I used CHILLBLAST when I bought my last high-end PC in the UK; they also do custom builds. A 10% discount on larger orders can be found with this link. Ping me if the discount has stopped.
