NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 A Mobile vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4050 Mobile Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The recorded data shows a clean sweep for the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4050 Mobile across every benchmark in the database, with the RTX 3050 A Mobile failing to secure a single victory. The most significant gap appears in Geekbench OpenCL, where the RTX 4050 Mobile scores 74,748 against 52,998 for the RTX 3050 A Mobile, a 29.1% deficit. This substantial margin indicates a fundamental performance advantage in general-purpose compute workloads.

DirectX 11 performance tells a similar story. The RTX 4050 Mobile posts a Passmark score of 130, while the RTX 3050 A Mobile manages 94, a 27.7% difference. DirectX 10 results show the RTX 4050 Mobile at 79 versus 61, a 22.8% gap. The smallest margin in the entire comparison appears in DirectX 12, where the RTX 4050 Mobile leads 61 to 55, a narrower 9.8% difference. This suggests that the newer architecture's advantage shrinks in modern API workloads, though it still holds the lead.

The Passmark G3D test, often used as a general gaming performance indicator, shows the RTX 4050 Mobile at 14,423 against 11,664 for the RTX 3050 A Mobile, a 19.1% advantage. Compute performance follows a similar pattern, with the RTX 4050 Mobile scoring 5,947 in Passmark GPU Compute versus 4,419 for the RTX 3050 A Mobile, a 25.7% gap. Older DirectX 9 titles show the RTX 4050 Mobile ahead at 184 versus 152, a 17.4% difference, while the 2D performance test shows 633 versus 526, a 16.9% gap.

The average benchmark scores in the database reinforce this hierarchy. The RTX 3050 A Mobile averages 8,746 points across all recorded tests, placing it in the 44th percentile of all GPUs. The RTX 4050 Mobile averages 19,049 points, placing it in the 63rd percentile. That is a 117.8% higher average score. The RTX 3050 A Mobile's nearest rivals in the database include the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460 v2 at 8,743 (0% delta), the Quadro P2200 at 8,686 (0.7% ahead), and the AMD Radeon R9 M265X at 8,851 (1.2% behind). The RTX 4050 Mobile, by contrast, trades blows with the AMD Radeon RX 6600 at 19,036 (0.1% delta), the Quadro K6000 at 19,030 (0.1% ahead), and the Tesla K20m at 19,089 (0.2% behind). These rival clusters show that the RTX 4050 Mobile operates in a completely different performance tier.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU wins the most benchmark comparisons?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4050 Mobile wins all 8 head-to-head benchmark comparisons in the database. The RTX 3050 A Mobile records zero wins.

Q: What is the largest performance difference between the two?

A: The largest gap is in Geekbench OpenCL, where the RTX 4050 Mobile leads by 29.1%. The RTX 3050 A Mobile scores 52,998 while the RTX 4050 Mobile scores 74,748.

Q: What is the smallest performance difference between the two?

A: The smallest gap is in Passmark DirectX 12, where the RTX 4050 Mobile leads by only 9.8%. The RTX 3050 A Mobile scores 55 while the RTX 4050 Mobile scores 61.

Q: How do the average benchmark scores compare?

A: The RTX 3050 A Mobile has an average benchmark score of 8,746, while the RTX 4050 Mobile averages 19,049. The RTX 4050 Mobile's average is more than double the RTX 3050 A Mobile's average.

Q: What percentile ranking does each GPU hold?

A: The RTX 3050 A Mobile sits in the 44th percentile of all GPUs, while the RTX 4050 Mobile sits in the 63rd percentile.

Q: Which GPU shows a larger advantage in compute workloads?

A: The Passmark GPU Compute test shows the RTX 4050 Mobile at 5,947 versus 4,419 for the RTX 3050 A Mobile, a 25.7% lead. The Geekbench OpenCL test shows an even larger 29.1% lead.

The Verdict

The data presents an unambiguous picture. The RTX 4050 Mobile is the faster GPU in every single recorded benchmark, with margins ranging from 9.8% in DirectX 12 to 29.1% in Geekbench OpenCL. The average score difference of 19,049 versus 8,746 places the two GPUs in different performance classes entirely.

The RTX 3050 A Mobile's nearest rivals in the database include the GTX 460 v2, Quadro P2200, and the Radeon R9 M265X, all of which score within 1.3% of its average. The RTX 4050 Mobile's nearest rivals include the Radeon RX 6600, Quadro K6000, and Tesla K20m, all within 0.5% of its average. These rival clusters confirm that the RTX 4050 Mobile competes in a substantially higher performance bracket.

For users tracking legacy DirectX performance, the RTX 4050 Mobile still holds a 17.4% lead in DirectX 9 and a 22.8% lead in DirectX 10. The narrowest margin appears in DirectX 12, suggesting that the RTX 3050 A Mobile's Ampere architecture remains relatively competitive in modern API scenarios, but it still trails. The RTX 4050 Mobile also delivers superior 2D performance, scoring 633 versus 526 in Passmark G2D.

The production status differs as well. The RTX 3050 A Mobile is listed as end-of-life, while the RTX 4050 Mobile remains active. The RTX 4050 Mobile also has a listed successor, the GeForce 50 Mobile, whereas the RTX 3050 A Mobile has no successor listed. The RTX 3050 A Mobile's predecessor is the GeForce 20 Mobile, while the RTX 4050 Mobile's predecessor is the GeForce 30 Mobile, which includes the RTX 3050 A Mobile itself.

Specification Differences

The two GPUs differ across nearly every core specification. The RTX 3050 A Mobile features 1,792 shading units, 56 texture mapping units, and 32 ROPs. The RTX 4050 Mobile features 2,560 shading units, 80 texture mapping units, and 48 ROPs. The RTX 4050 Mobile also carries more ray tracing cores, 20 versus 14, and more tensor cores, 80 versus 56.

Clock speeds show a clear separation. The RTX 3050 A Mobile runs at a base clock of 1065 MHz and a boost clock of 1343 MHz. The RTX 4050 Mobile runs at a base clock of 1455 MHz and a boost clock of 1755 MHz. Memory clocks also differ: the RTX 3050 A Mobile operates at 1500 MHz with 12 Gbps effective speed, while the RTX 4050 Mobile operates at 2000 MHz with 16 Gbps effective speed.

Memory configuration diverges significantly. The RTX 3050 A Mobile uses 4 GB of GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus, while the RTX 4050 Mobile uses 6 GB of GDDR6 on a 96-bit bus. Interestingly, both deliver identical memory bandwidth at 192.0 GB/s. The RTX 4050 Mobile achieves this with a narrower bus but higher memory clock.

Pixel and texture rates reflect the performance gap. The RTX 3050 A Mobile delivers 42.98 GPixel/s and 75.21 GTexel/s. The RTX 4050 Mobile delivers 84.24 GPixel/s and 140.4 GTexel/s. Floating point performance follows: the RTX 3050 A Mobile delivers 4.813 TFLOPS in both FP32 and FP16, while the RTX 4050 Mobile delivers 8.986 TFLOPS in both.

Power consumption differs modestly. The RTX 3050 A Mobile has a TDP of 45 W, while the RTX 4050 Mobile has a TDP of 50 W. Both use integrated graphics processors with no power connectors required. Both use PCIe 4.0 x8 interfaces and support DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4.

Architecture Differences

The architectural divide is generational. The RTX 3050 A Mobile uses the GA106 chip based on Ampere architecture, fabricated by Samsung on an 8 nm process. The RTX 4050 Mobile uses the AD107 chip based on Ada Lovelace architecture, fabricated by TSMC on a 5 nm process. The process shrink from 8 nm to 5 nm enables a substantial increase in transistor density.

Transistor counts tell the story. The RTX 3050 A Mobile packs 12,000 million transistors on a 276 mm² die, yielding a density of 43.5 million transistors per square millimeter. The RTX 4050 Mobile packs 18,900 million transistors on a 159 mm² die, yielding a density of 118.9 million transistors per square millimeter. The RTX 4050 Mobile fits 57.5% more transistors into a 42.4% smaller die.

The shading architecture scales accordingly. The RTX 4050 Mobile uses 2,560 shading units, which is 42.9% more than the RTX 3050 A Mobile's 1,792. Texture mapping units increase from 56 to 80, and ROPs increase from 32 to 48. Ray tracing cores jump from 14 to 20, and tensor cores from 56 to 80. The FP32 compute capability nearly doubles from 4.813 TFLOPS to 8.986 TFLOPS.

Both GPUs share the same API support, including DirectX 12 Ultimate with feature level 12_2, OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. Both are classified as integrated graphics processors with portable device dependent display outputs. The release timeline differs: the RTX 3050 A Mobile was released on December 31, 2023, while the RTX 4050 Mobile was released on January 2, 2023, roughly a year earlier.

The architectural improvements in Ada Lovelace deliver measurable gains across all benchmark categories. The largest advantage appears in compute-heavy workloads, with the RTX 4050 Mobile leading by 25.7% to 29.1% in Passmark GPU Compute and Geekbench OpenCL. The smallest advantage appears in DirectX 12 at 9.8%, indicating that the older Ampere architecture retains some competitiveness in modern API paths. The combined evidence from the database shows that the newer 5 nm process, higher transistor density, and expanded execution resources give the RTX 4050 Mobile a decisive, across-the-board performance lead.