Inside

The AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 395 paired with the AMD Radeon RX 7900M delivers a strikingly powerful performance profile for Inside, a puzzle platformer that is clearly not demanding by modern standards. The measured data shows this combination ranking at 998th place out of 2,887 tested combos, placing it in the top 35 percent of all systems. This ranking is somewhat surprising given the absolute frame rates on display—the combo produces over 377 FPS at 1080p on Low settings—but it likely reflects the fact that many other combinations with higher-end desktop GPUs or more aggressive overclocks dominate the top of the list. For a mobile-focused pairing, the numbers are exceptional, and the percentile data for both components supports that: the CPU sits in the 95th percentile of all processors, while the GPU rests in the 94th percentile of all graphics cards.

How This Combo Ranks

The comboRankInGame of 998 out of 2,887 places this pairing in the upper-middle tier of all tested configurations, but the raw performance suggests it punches well above that positional weight. The data shows that this system is not bottlenecked in any meaningful way for Inside, as even the most demanding preset at 4K Ultra yields an average of 81 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. The ranking is influenced by the fact that Inside is a lightweight title where even mid-range hardware can achieve high frame rates, so the field is crowded. However, when compared to the component-level averages, the combo's performance aligns closely with what the hardware is capable of.

The CPU's nearest rivals provide context for its positioning. The AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 9945WX edges it out by 1.6 percent in average benchmark score, while the Intel Core i9-14900K is 1.7 percent ahead. This means the Ryzen AI Max+ 395 is essentially trading blows with top-tier desktop processors from the previous generation, despite being a mobile part. The GPU's rival list shows a similar story: the AMD Radeon Pro VII is 0.4 percent slower, and the NVIDIA Quadro RTX 6000 is 4.3 percent faster. The Radeon RX 7900M holds its own against workstation-class cards, and its 94th percentile ranking confirms it is a high-end mobile GPU. In the context of Inside, this hardware combination is overkill for most resolutions, but the ranking reflects the competitive landscape where many other systems are also overkill.

FAQ

*Q: What is the best resolution to play Inside with this combo for maximum frame rates?*

A: The data shows that at 1920x1080 with Low settings, the average FPS reaches 377, which is the highest measured value across all configurations. This resolution provides the best opportunity to maximize frame rates, though even 4K Ultra averages 81 FPS, which is playable.

Q: How does the CPU's single-threaded performance compare to its multi-threaded performance?

A: The CPU's Geekbench single-core score is 2,464, while its multi-core score is 20,992. This indicates strong single-thread performance for a 16-core part, which is relevant for Inside since puzzle platformers often rely on a primary game thread, though the game's simplicity means this is rarely a bottleneck.

Q: Is the GPU the limiting factor at 4K resolution?

A: The measured data shows that moving from 1440p High (136 FPS) to 4K High (85 FPS) results in a 37.5 percent drop in performance. This indicates the GPU is the primary constraint at higher resolutions, as the CPU has ample headroom with its 16 cores and 32 threads.

Q: What is the difference in performance between Medium and Ultra settings at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440, Medium settings yield an average of 217 FPS, while Ultra settings drop to 129 FPS. This represents a 40.6 percent reduction in frame rate when moving from Medium to Ultra, suggesting that Ultra's visual enhancements come at a significant cost.

Q: How does this combo's CPU compare to the Intel Core i9-14900K?

A: According to the nearest rivals data, the Intel Core i9-14900K has an average benchmark score that is 1.7 percent higher than the AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 395. This places the two processors in the same performance tier, despite the AMD part being a mobile chip.

Q: Does the game benefit from the CPU's high core count?

A: Inside is a puzzle platformer from 2016, and the measured frame rates suggest it does not heavily utilize multi-threading. The CPU's 16 cores and 32 threads provide massive headroom, but the game's performance is more likely constrained by the GPU at higher resolutions, as evidenced by the resolution scaling data.

Resolution Scaling

The resolution scaling data reveals a clear pattern: the GPU becomes the bottleneck as resolution increases, while the CPU remains underutilized. Moving from 1080p to 1440p at High settings, the average FPS drops from 189 to 136, a 28 percent reduction. This is a substantial drop, but it is consistent with what one would expect from a GPU-bound scenario. The more dramatic drop occurs when going from 1440p to 4K at High settings, where the average FPS falls from 136 to 85, a 37.5 percent reduction. This steeper decline at higher resolutions indicates that the Radeon RX 7900M's memory bandwidth and pixel throughput are being taxed.

At Low settings, the scaling is even more pronounced. The 1080p Low average is 377 FPS, which drops to 271 FPS at 1440p (a 28.1 percent reduction) and then to 170 FPS at 4K (a 37.3 percent reduction from 1440p). The fact that the percentage drop from 1440p to 4K is similar across Low and High settings suggests that the GPU's raw compute capabilities, rather than memory bandwidth, are the limiting factor at 4K. The GPU's 16 GB of GDDR6 memory and 576.0 GB/s bandwidth are more than sufficient for Inside, so the bottleneck lies in the 4608 shading units and 38.52 TFLOPS of FP32 performance. The CPU, with its 64 MB of shared L3 cache and 256.0 GB/s memory bandwidth, is never the constraint, as evidenced by the fact that even the lowest 1080p setting exceeds 370 FPS, which would require a very fast processor to feed.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive view of the combo's performance across three resolutions and four settings presets. At 1920x1080, the lowest preset (Low) delivers an average of 377 FPS, which is the absolute maximum recorded. Medium settings reduce this to 302 FPS, with a minimum of 257 and a maximum of 347, indicating some frame time variance but still maintaining a rock-solid experience. High settings at 1080p yield 189 FPS, and Ultra drops to 180 FPS. The gap between High and Ultra is minimal at this resolution (9 FPS), suggesting that the Ultra preset's additional effects have a negligible impact on the CPU or GPU at 1080p.

Moving to 2560x1440, the numbers scale down predictably. Low settings average 271 FPS, Medium averages 217 FPS (with a minimum of 184 and maximum of 250), High averages 136 FPS, and Ultra averages 129 FPS. The delta between High and Ultra at 1440p is just 7 FPS, which is even smaller than at 1080p. This suggests that the Ultra preset's extra visual features are not heavily taxing the GPU at this resolution, and the system has enough headroom to absorb them. At 4K (3840x2160), the performance is still impressive but shows the GPU's limits. Low settings average 170 FPS, Medium averages 136 FPS (with a minimum of 116 and maximum of 157), High averages 85 FPS, and Ultra averages 81 FPS. The gap between High and Ultra at 4K shrinks to just 4 FPS, indicating that the GPU is so saturated at this resolution that the difference between these two presets becomes almost negligible.

Settings Recommendations

Given the measured data, the optimal settings depend entirely on the user's display and preference for frame rate versus visual fidelity. For a 1080p display, the Ultra preset at 180 FPS is the best choice, as it provides the highest visual quality while maintaining a frame rate that is far above any refresh rate currently available on consumer monitors. The data shows that dropping to High only gains 9 FPS, which is not worth the visual downgrade. For 1440p, the Ultra preset at 129 FPS is also recommended, as it represents a 7 FPS improvement over High while offering better visuals. The Medium preset at 217 FPS is a viable alternative for users with 240 Hz displays, but the visual sacrifice is significant.

For 4K, the recommendation is more nuanced. The Ultra preset averages 81 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS target for most displays, but it offers only a 4 FPS advantage over High (85 FPS). The data suggests that the High preset is the sweet spot at 4K, as it provides nearly identical performance to Ultra while potentially offering more stable frame times. The Medium preset at 136 FPS is the best choice for users with high-refresh-rate 4K displays (e.g., 144 Hz), as it halves the visual quality reduction compared to Low while still delivering a very smooth experience. The Low preset at 170 FPS is only recommended for competitive play or for users who prioritize frame rate above all else, as the visual downgrade is substantial.

CPU Role

The AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 395 is a 16-core, 32-thread processor based on the Zen 5 architecture, codenamed Strix Halo. It has a base clock of 3.00 GHz and a boost clock of 5.10 GHz, with a TDP of 55 W. The CPU's cache hierarchy includes 80 KB of L1 per core, 1 MB of L2 per core, and 64 MB of shared L3 cache. This configuration is extraordinarily powerful for a mobile part, and its benchmark scores reflect that. The Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 35,314 and single-core score of 2,044 place it in the top tier of processors, with its average benchmark score of 77,740 ranking it in the 95th percentile of all CPUs.

In the context of Inside, the CPU's role is minimal because the game is not computationally demanding. The measured frame rates at 1080p Low (377 FPS) and 1440p High (136 FPS) indicate that the GPU is the primary driver of performance, and the CPU is never the bottleneck. However, the CPU's high single-thread performance (Geekbench single-core of 2,464) ensures that even at extremely high frame rates, the game's logic and physics updates are processed without stutter. The 16 cores and 32 threads provide massive headroom for background tasks, but they do not directly contribute to higher frame rates in Inside because the game is not designed to utilize more than a few threads. The CPU's memory bandwidth of 256.0 GB/s and quad-channel LPDDR5X support are more than adequate to feed the GPU's 576.0 GB/s bandwidth, ensuring no data starvation occurs. The benchmark results show the CPU is 1.6 percent behind the AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 9945WX and 2 percent ahead of the AMD Ryzen 9 8945HX, but in this specific game, the difference between these CPUs is irrelevant due to the GPU-bound nature of the workload.