Not sure about that. I'm guessing that G-Sync is just an extension of the research Nvidia did with Adaptive VSync, and I'm also guessing that Tegra chips aren't all that expensive (I'm also certain that Nvidia loved the chance to offload them and create another batch of "design wins"). I'm also guessing that the monitor OEMs are shouldering the greatest financial burden since their inventory needs to move before the VESA specced monitors gain traction.
As for spanking....All in all, I'd say that G-Sync has probably paid for itself in marketing. Reviews and user feedback have been positive with the only downside being the added cost of ownership. It is also extremely short sighted to think that this came as ANY surprise to Nvidia - You do realise that the
Nvidia's Display Technical Marketing Manager, Pablo Ortega, is on the VESA board of directors ?
It constantly amazes me that the tech industry seems to be viewed by otherwise intelligent people as some kind of real life version of a hybrid Looney Tunes- Keystone Cops mashup.