SDL_GPUPresentMode(3type)

✨ SDL_GPUPresentMode ✨

okay bestie, welcome to the datatype page for SDL_GPUPresentMode 💅 it's a lil enum from the SDL3 datatypes squad and it lives in SDL3/SDL_gpu.h, so let's get into it 🫶

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🌸 NAME 🌸

SDL_GPUPresentMode — the vibe-setter that says which timing gets used when you present swapchain textures to the OS. it's giving "when do we show the frame, bestie" 😌

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🎀 SYNOPSIS 🎀

#include <SDL3/SDL_gpu.h>

typedef enum SDL_GPUPresentMode
{
    SDL_GPU_PRESENTMODE_VSYNC,
    SDL_GPU_PRESENTMODE_IMMEDIATE,
    SDL_GPU_PRESENTMODE_MAILBOX
} SDL_GPUPresentMode;

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💖 DESCRIPTION 💖

so here's the tea ☕ — VSYNC mode is always supported, no cap. but IMMEDIATE and MAILBOX? they may not be supported on certain systems 😭 so don't just assume, okay?

🫶 real talk: if you wanna switch the present mode to IMMEDIATE or MAILBOX, it's recommended that you query SDL_WindowSupportsGPUPresentMode after claiming the window. do the vibe check first, bestie, before you commit 💀

and now the three modes, one by one, no skips ✨

• SDL_GPU_PRESENTMODE_VSYNC — waits for vblank before presenting. no tearing is possible 🎀 if there's a pending image to present, the new image gets enqueued for presentation. it disallows tearing, but the cost is visual latency (yes that's the tradeoff, it's giving compromise 💅).
• SDL_GPU_PRESENTMODE_IMMEDIATE — presents immediately. lowest latency option, periodt ⚡ but tearing may occur 😬 so like... choose wisely.
• SDL_GPU_PRESENTMODE_MAILBOX — waits for vblank before presenting. no tearing is possible 🦋 if there's a pending image to present, the pending image gets replaced by the new image 👑 similar to VSYNC, but with reduced visual latency. lowkey the best of both worlds ngl.

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🌈 AVAILABILITY 🌈

this enum has been available since SDL 3.2.0 ⭐ so it's been iconic for a minute.

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🔥 SEE ALSO 🔥

• SDL_SetGPUSwapchainParameters(3)
• SDL_WindowSupportsGPUPresentMode(3)
• SDL_WaitAndAcquireGPUSwapchainTexture(3)

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and that's the whole page, bestie!! this lil writeup came to you courtesy of Simple Directmedia Layer 🫶, and it's from SDL 3.4.18, so if you're reading a different version... iykyk, go check that one 💜 mwah, go present some frames ✨💅🎀