Evolve

FAQ

Q: What is the overall rank of this CPU/GPU combination for Evolve?

A: The Intel Core i3-12100F plus NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 combination ranks 1630 out of 1695 tested combinations for Evolve. This places it in the bottom 4% of all tested hardware pairings, indicating that this is a low-performing setup for this specific game.

Q: How does the GTX 1650 compare to its closest rivals in average benchmark score?

A: The GTX 1650 has an average benchmark score of 8713. Its nearest rival, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 A Mobile, scores 8746, which is 0.4% higher. The AMD Radeon Pro WX 5100 scores 8761, also 0.4% higher. The NVIDIA Quadro P2200 scores 8671, which is 0.5% lower than the GTX 1650.

Q: What is the GPU's percentile ranking among all GPUs?

A: The GTX 1650 sits at the 43rd percentile among all GPUs. This means it outperforms roughly 43% of all GPUs in the database, placing it in the lower-middle tier of graphics cards overall.

Q: What is the CPU's percentile ranking and how does it compare to the Intel Core i7-7700K?

A: The Intel Core i3-12100F is at the 72nd percentile among all CPUs. Its average benchmark score is 13516, which is 1.8% higher than the Intel Core i7-7700K's score of 13280. This indicates the i3-12100F edges out the older i7-7700K in overall CPU performance.

Q: What are the memory specifications of the GTX 1650?

A: The GTX 1650 features 4 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 128-bit bus, providing a memory bandwidth of 128.1 GB/s. The memory clock runs at 2001 MHz with 8 Gbps effective speed.

Q: What is the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score for the GTX 1650?

A: The GTX 1650 achieves a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 305. This is a modern DirectX 12 benchmark result that shows the card's capability under recent API workloads.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 is built on the Turing architecture using the TU117 chip, manufactured on a 12 nm process by TSMC. The card contains 4,700 million transistors on a 200 mm² die. Its shading units number 896, paired with 56 texture mapping units and 32 render output units. The base clock runs at 1485 MHz with a boost clock of 1665 MHz.

The GPU's memory configuration is critical for Evolve's performance. With 4 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 128-bit bus, bandwidth is capped at 128.1 GB/s. The pixel rate reaches 53.28 GPixel/s, and the texture rate is 93.24 GTexel/s. Floating-point performance is rated at 2.984 TFLOPS for FP32 operations.

The GTX 1650's benchmark scores reveal its capabilities. The PassMark G3D score is 7880, while the PassMark G2D score is 561. DirectX 11 performance shows a PassMark score of 58, while DirectX 12 drops to 35. DirectX 9 performance is notably higher at 124, and DirectX 10 scores 39. The GPU compute benchmark yields 3048.

The graphics card's 75 W TDP and dual-slot design with no power connectors suggest a modest power footprint. The card supports PCIe 3.0 x16 interface and offers display outputs including 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 2.0, and 1x DisplayPort 1.4a. API support includes DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4.

The data shows that the GTX 1650's 4 GB VRAM capacity is a limiting factor in Evolve at higher resolutions and settings. At 4K Ultra, average FPS drops to 10.8, while at 1080p Low it reaches 77.5. The gap between Low and Ultra settings becomes more pronounced at higher resolutions, indicating the GPU is struggling with memory bandwidth and capacity constraints.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i3-12100F is a 4-core, 8-thread processor based on the Alder Lake architecture, manufactured on Intel's 10 nm process. The base clock is 3.30 GHz with a boost clock of 4.30 GHz. The TDP is rated at 58 W, and it uses the Intel Socket 1700. The die size is 163 mm².

Cache configuration includes 80 KB of L1 cache per core, 1.25 MB of L2 cache per core, and 12 MB of shared L3 cache. Memory support includes both DDR4 and DDR5 in dual-channel configuration. The processor supports PCIe Gen 5 with 16 lanes (CPU only). The launch MSRP is $97.

The CPU's benchmark results show strong single-threaded performance relative to its multi-threaded capability. Cinebench R23 scores are 1681 for single-core and 11912 for multi-core. Geekbench scores are 2224 single-core and 7413 multi-core. The 3DMark tests show scores of 893 for single-thread, 1659 for 2-threads, 2859 for 4-threads, and 4026 for 8-threads.

PassMark results indicate the i3-12100F's strengths and weaknesses. Single-thread performance is 3444, while multithread is 14015. Integer math scores 40978, floating-point math scores 31977, and extended instructions score 10842. Data compression scores 160452, data encryption scores 8071, and physics scores 985.

In Evolve, the CPU's role appears secondary to the GPU. The 4-core/8-thread configuration with high single-thread performance is adequate for the game's CPU demands. However, at lower resolutions where the GPU is less stressed, the CPU's capabilities become more relevant. At 1080p Low, the combination achieves 77.5 FPS, suggesting the CPU can feed the GPU sufficiently. The CPU's 72nd percentile ranking among all CPUs indicates it is not the primary bottleneck in most scenarios.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1080p, the measured results show a clear progression across settings. Low settings produce an average of 77.5 FPS, Medium yields 59.7 FPS, High delivers 45.5 FPS, and Ultra drops to 35 FPS. The step from Low to Medium costs 17.8 FPS, while the step from High to Ultra costs 10.5 FPS.

Moving to 1440p, the averages decrease noticeably. Low settings produce 48.6 FPS, Medium yields 40.9 FPS, High delivers 32.7 FPS, and Ultra drops to 23.8 FPS. The gap between Low and Ultra at 1440p is 24.8 FPS, showing that setting changes have significant impact.

At 4K, the numbers become marginal. Low settings produce 29.2 FPS, Medium yields 25.9 FPS, High delivers 15.9 FPS, and Ultra drops to 10.8 FPS. Only Low settings come close to providing a playable experience at this resolution.

The data shows that 1080p is the only resolution where all settings exceed 30 FPS. At 1440p, Ultra falls below 24 FPS, and at 4K, even Medium struggles to reach 26 FPS. The GTX 1650's 4 GB VRAM appears insufficient for higher resolutions with increased settings, as the frame rate drops accelerate at 4K.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS drop from 1080p to 4K is substantial across all settings. At Low settings, the drop from 77.5 FPS at 1080p to 29.2 FPS at 4K represents a reduction to 37.7% of the original performance. At Medium settings, the drop from 59.7 to 25.9 FPS leaves 43.4% of the original. High settings drop from 45.5 to 15.9 FPS, retaining only 34.9%. Ultra settings fall from 35 to 10.8 FPS, retaining just 30.9%.

The scaling pattern reveals the limiting component. From 1080p to 1440p, the average FPS retention across settings is roughly 63.5%. From 1440p to 4K, retention drops to roughly 53.6%. This accelerating degradation as resolution increases points to the GPU as the primary bottleneck, specifically its memory bandwidth and 4 GB VRAM capacity.

The GTX 1650's 128.1 GB/s bandwidth becomes increasingly insufficient as pixel count quadruples from 1080p to 4K. The 2.984 TFLOPS FP32 performance also struggles with the increased shading workload. The CPU's performance does not degrade with resolution, so its contribution to the bottleneck diminishes as resolution increases.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured data, the optimal balance of visual quality and playability is found at 1080p Medium settings, delivering 59.7 FPS. This provides a comfortable margin above the 30 FPS threshold while offering better visual fidelity than Low settings. The step from Medium to High costs 14.2 FPS, which is a significant penalty for modest visual gains.

At 1440p, Low settings at 48.6 FPS is the only configuration that maintains consistent smoothness. Medium at 40.9 FPS is playable for most users, but High at 32.7 FPS approaches the minimum acceptable threshold. Ultra at 23.8 FPS is not recommended for competitive play.

At 4K, no settings configuration provides a consistently playable experience. Low at 29.2 FPS is the only option approaching playability, and even that falls below 30 FPS. Users targeting 4K should consider this hardware combination insufficient for Evolve.

For users prioritizing frame rate over visual quality, 1080p Low at 77.5 FPS provides the highest performance headroom. For users prioritizing visual quality while maintaining playability, 1080p Medium at 59.7 FPS is the recommended balance. The data clearly indicates that 1080p is the target resolution for this hardware combination, with Medium settings offering the best experience per the measured rows.