TechPowerUp recently reviewed Nvidia’s new entry-level GeForce RTX 3050 6GB, and the results were not impressive. While the RTX 3050 6GB is the fastest GPU on the market that doesn’t require a dedicated supplementary power connector, its performance falls short compared to other GPUs.
Compared to its 8GB counterpart, the RTX 3050 6GB lags behind by a significant margin. TechPowerUp’s benchmarks reveal that the RTX 3050 8GB is, on average, 28% faster at 1080P, 30% quicker at 1440P, and 40% superior at 4K. The performance gap becomes even more embarrassing when the 3050 6GB is outpaced by Nvidia’s five-year-old GTX 1660 Ti in all three resolutions.
The heavily neutered specifications of the RTX 3050 6GB are the main reason for its underwhelming performance. With fewer CUDA cores and streaming multiprocessors (SMs), a lower boost clock, reduced memory bandwidth and capacity, and a significantly lower thermal design power (TDP), this card can be seen as closer to an “RTX 3040” than a true alternative to the RTX 3050 8GB.
TechPowerUp’s review also highlights the lackluster in-game performance of the RTX 3050 6GB. The GPU struggles to achieve 60FPS at 1080P in most games, even in titles released several years ago. While lowering in-game settings may help boost performance, these results are not impressive for a GPU launched in 2024.
The only area where the RTX 3050 6GB shows some competitiveness is in efficiency. It performs on par with Nvidia’s Ada Lovelace architecture and is just 3% less efficient than the RTX 4060. However, compared to the RTX 3050 8GB, it still falls short in terms of efficiency.
Overall, TechPowerUp’s review confirms that the RTX 3050 6GB’s performance is disappointing, making it one of the worst GPUs available in the entry-level market. Both AMD’s RX 6600 and Intel’s Arc A750 offer significantly better performance for a slightly higher price.
Despite its shortcomings, the RTX 3050 6GB does have a unique advantage. Its 75W power envelope allows it to be utilized in systems without a dedicated power cable, providing a somewhat limited option for those specific setups.
FAQ:
1. What are the key findings of TechPowerUp’s review of the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3050 6GB?
– The review found that the performance of the RTX 3050 6GB is underwhelming compared to other GPUs, including its 8GB counterpart and Nvidia’s older GTX 1660 Ti. The specifications of the 6GB version are heavily reduced, resulting in lower performance across different resolutions.
2. How does the RTX 3050 6GB compare to its 8GB counterpart in terms of performance?
– The RTX 3050 8GB is, on average, 28% faster at 1080P, 30% quicker at 1440P, and 40% superior at 4K compared to the 6GB version, according to TechPowerUp’s benchmarks.
3. What is the main reason for the underwhelming performance of the RTX 3050 6GB?
– The main reason for the underwhelming performance is the heavily reduced specifications of the card, including fewer CUDA cores and streaming multiprocessors, lower boost clock, reduced memory bandwidth and capacity, and lower thermal design power (TDP).
4. How does the RTX 3050 6GB compare to Nvidia’s older GTX 1660 Ti?
– The RTX 3050 6GB is outperformed by Nvidia’s five-year-old GTX 1660 Ti in all three resolutions, according to TechPowerUp’s benchmarks.
5. In what area does the RTX 3050 6GB show some competitiveness?
– The RTX 3050 6GB performs on par with Nvidia’s Ada Lovelace architecture in terms of efficiency. It is just 3% less efficient than the RTX 4060. However, compared to the RTX 3050 8GB, it falls short in terms of efficiency.
Definitions:
– GPU: Graphics Processing Unit; a specialized electronic circuit that accelerates the creation and rendering of images, videos, and animations.
– CUDA cores: Parallel computing processors within a GPU that handle complex calculations and data processing.
– Streaming multiprocessors (SMs): Units within a GPU that handle data parallelism and execution of multiple tasks simultaneously.
– Boost clock: The maximum frequency at which a GPU’s core can operate under optimal conditions.
– Memory bandwidth: The rate at which data can be read from or written to the GPU’s memory.
– Thermal design power (TDP): The maximum amount of heat a GPU is designed to dissipate under typical usage conditions.
Related links:
– https://www.nvidia.com
– https://www.amd.com
– https://www.intel.com
The source of the article is from the blog mgz.com.tw