Many owners of modern smartphones are faced with an annoying problem: they have powerful hardware, but in games the picture jerks, and the frame counter hits an artificial ceiling. Manufacturers often limit screen refresh rates to 30 or 60 frames per second, even on displays that support 90Hz or 120Hz. This is done to save battery power and reduce heat generation, but for gamers this behavior of the system becomes a real stumbling block.
Unlocking frame rates allows you to unlock the potential of your device, making gameplay smooth and responsive. However, this process is not always straightforward and requires an understanding of how the operating system Android manages the resources of the processor and graphics accelerator. In this article, we will look in detail at legal configuration methods, working with hidden menus, and warn against actions that can lead to overheating or damage to the gadget.
Before taking radical measures, it is worth understanding the nature of the restrictions. Often the blocking occurs at the level of the game itself or video card drivers, and not just system settings. Therefore, the approach should be comprehensive: from checking the screen settings to using specialized software for power management.
Checking hardware capabilities and screen settings
The first step should always be to diagnose the display itself. There is no point in overclocking a game programmatically if the screen is physically unable to display more than 60 hertz. Go to the standard settings menu and find the Screen or Displaysection. There should be an item “Update frequency” or “Update speed”. If only 60 Hz is available there, then software hacks will not help - this is a hardware limitation of the matrix.
In some shells, such as MIUI from Xiaomi or OneUI from Samsung, there is a smart switching mode. The system itself decides when to raise the frequency to 90 or 120 Hz, and when to lower it to 60 to save energy. For games, this mode often works incorrectly, dropping the frequency at critical moments. Forced high frequency solves this problem by forcing the screen to work at maximum constantly.
Pay attention to the case temperature during normal load. If the phone heats up simply from watching a video or browser, then unlocking high FPS in heavy shooters will lead to instant throttling. The processor will reset the frequencies, and you will get an even worse picture than it was before the settings.
⚠️ Attention: Forcing the maximum screen refresh rate significantly speeds up battery drain. In 120 Hz mode, battery life may be reduced by 20-30% compared to the standard mode.
Activating the developer menu and system limits
The most accessible way to affect performance without root access is to use the developer menu. It is hidden by default, but is activated by a simple action: you need to quickly click on the build number in the section About phone7 times. After the “You have become a developer” notification appears, a new item will appear in the settings.
Inside this menu we are interested in several parameters. Look for the "Don't save activities" or "Background process limit" option. Set it to No Limit or Standard Limit. This will free up RAM for the game, although it has little direct impact on FPS. More important is the “Disable HW overlay” (or “Disable hardware overlay”) option. Enabling this option shifts the task of rendering the interface to the GPU, which in some older games can give an increase in smoothness.
It is also worth looking for settings related to animation. It is best to reduce the Window Animation, Transition Animation, and Animator Duration scales to 0.5x or turn them off completely. This will not increase the number of frames per second in the game itself, but it will make switching between menus and launching applications instantaneous, creating a feeling of overall responsiveness of the system.
Before changing settings in the developer menu, write down or take a photo of the initial values. Resetting them back can be difficult if you forget what the default was.
Remember that the developer menu is a debugging tool, not an overclocking tool. Changing rendering parameters, such as “4x MSAA” (anti-aliasing), can make the picture more beautiful, but the load on GPU will increase many times over, which will lead to a drop in FPS and strong heating.
Use of game modes and proprietary utilities
Modern smartphone manufacturers build special game centers. For Xiaomi it is Game Turbo, for Samsung - Game Launcher, for ASUS - Armoury Crate. These applications have deep access to the system and can legally remove some restrictions provided by the energy saving policy.
You can often find a performance profile in the settings of such utilities. Switch it to Performance or ESports mode. In this mode, the system allows the processor to consume more power and maintains high clock speeds for longer. There is also often a function to block notifications and disable swipes, which prevents accidental exits from the game.
Some advanced game modes allow you to manually adjust the touchscreen sensitivity and even unlock hidden graphics settings within specific games. For example, in PUBG Mobile or Call of Duty game tweaks sometimes open the 90 FPS option for devices that are not officially supported by the game developers.
| Brand | Utility name | Key function for FPS | Risk of overheating |
|---|---|---|---|
| Xiaomi / POCO | Game Turbo | Unlocking 90/120 FPS in games | Medium |
| Samsung | Game Launcher / Booster | Priority of resources for the game | Low |
| ASUS ROG | Armoury Crate | X-Mode (CPU/GPU overclocking) | High |
| OnePlus | Pro Gamer Mode | Disable throttling | Medium |
⚠️ Attention: The interface and names of functions in game centers may differ depending on the firmware version. If you do not find the option you need, check for updates for the “Games” system application in the application store.
Third-party applications for optimization and overclocking
If the built-in tools are not enough, users turn to third-party software. Apps like GFX Tool are popular for specific games such as PUBG or Free Fire. They allow you to change the game's configuration files, forcing the resolution to be lower than the native one and enabling a high frame rate.
Reducing the resolution is an effective method of increasing FPS. If your screen has a 2K resolution, and the game renders the image at 720p, the load on the video core drops significantly. As a result, the FPS counter increases. However, the picture can become soapy, especially on large screens. The balance between clarity and smoothness will have to be found empirically.
There are also universal boosters that clear RAM before starting the game and kill background processes. The effectiveness of such apps is often questioned, since the modern system Android it manages memory very well. Aggressive cleaning can even cause harm, forcing the system to reload necessary libraries, which will cause micro-freezes.
Why can GFX Tool be dangerous?
Using third-party tools to change game files can be considered cheating by an anti-cheat system. This threatens temporary or permanent account blocking. Use such utilities at your own peril and risk, preferably on secondary accounts.
For devices with superuser rights (Root), the range of possibilities expands. Applications like Kernel Adiutor allow you to directly control processor frequencies, disable throttling and change power governor parameters. This gives the maximum gain, but requires deep knowledge.
The influence of temperature and cooling system
The main enemy of high FPS is heat. As soon as the processor temperature reaches a critical point (usually about 45-50 degrees on the core), the protection system forcibly reduces the frequencies. This process is called throttling. No software settings will help if the phone overheats.
To maintain stable FPS, it is necessary to ensure heat dissipation. Remove the case while playing, especially if it is thick or rubber. Play in a cool room. Ideally, you can use external coolers for smartphones that are mounted on the back cover and actively cool the processor area.
There is a myth that placing the phone on a metal surface or ice will help. This should not be done due to the risk of condensation forming inside the case, which will lead to a short circuit. It is better to use passive radiators or special fans designed for gaming.
☑️ Preparing for a gaming session
Risks and possible consequences of unlocking
The pursuit of numbers in the FPS counter should not overshadow common sense. Constantly operating a smartphone at its maximum capacity leads to battery degradation. High discharge currents and heating accelerate the chemical aging of the battery, and after six months or a year you will notice that the phone holds its charge much worse.
In addition, unstable operation of an overclocked system can lead to game crashes, phone reboots, and even file system damage. If you notice artifacts on the screen (color stripes, flickering), immediately stop the session and return the settings to their original values. This is a sign that the graphics chip cannot cope with the load or is overheating.
It is also worth considering the warranty. If you used software methods, this usually does not affect your warranty. However, if you obtained root access and flashed the system kernel, the manufacturer may refuse a free repair if traces of interference in the software are detected.
⚠️ Attention: Long-term operation of the device in extreme performance mode without high-quality cooling can lead to irreversible damage to the processor solder (chip failure), especially on models with known overheating problems.
Stable 60 FPS is always better than jumping 90-120 FPS with constant drops to 30. Smoothness is more important than peak values.
Frequently asked questions (FAQ)
Is it safe use GFX Tool to unlock 90 FPS?
Using such tools carries the risk of account blocking in online games, as this is considered a modification of the client. For single-player games, the risk is minimal, but there is always the possibility of unstable operation of the application.
Why did the phone start to get very hot after unlocking the FPS?
This is a normal reaction. Increasing the number of frames per second requires more processing power from the processor and video card, which inevitably leads to an increase in power consumption and heat dissipation. Without external cooling it will not be possible to maintain a high frequency for a long time.
Is it possible to unlock 120 Hz on a screen that is physically 60 Hz?
No, it is impossible. Software cannot change the physical characteristics of the display matrix. If the screen only supports 60 updates per second, it will not be able to display more frames, no matter how much power the processor has.
Does battery charge affect the maximum FPS?
Yes, it does. Many smartphones, when their charge is low (less than 15-20%), automatically go into power saving mode, limiting processor performance. Also, when charging, some models may throttle due to additional heating from the power controller.
Do I need to get root access to unlock FPS?
Not necessary. In most cases, developer settings, game modes from the manufacturer, or third-party utilities that work without superuser rights are sufficient. Root is needed only for deep modification of the kernel and disabling system throttling.