Inside

Inside is a puzzle platformer from 2016, and the benchmark data for the Intel Core i7-14700F and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 combination reveals a system that is decisively limited by its graphics card. The CPU is a modern, high-core-count powerhouse, but the GTX 1650, an end-of-life entry-level GPU, acts as the primary bottleneck. The results show that while the game is perfectly playable at 1080p, higher resolutions and maximum settings push the GPU to its limits, leading to a significant drop in frame rates.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate data shows a steep and predictable decline as resolution increases, which is a classic indicator of GPU-bound performance. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo produces an average of 134 FPS. Moving to 1440p drops this to 97 FPS, and at 4K, the average falls to 61 FPS. This scaling pattern is direct: increasing the pixel count by roughly 1.8x from 1080p to 1440p results in a 28% performance drop, while the jump to 4K (which is 4x the pixels of 1080p) results in a 54% drop from the 1080p baseline. This is a textbook example of a GPU that is being saturated by the rendering workload.

The situation becomes more extreme when looking at the High and Ultra settings. At 1080p High, the average is 67 FPS. At 1440p High, it drops to 48 FPS, and at 4K High, it plummets to just 30 FPS. The transition from 1080p to 4K at High settings represents a 55% performance loss. The data indicates that the GTX 1650's 4 GB of VRAM and limited shader throughput are the limiting factors, not the CPU. The i7-14700F, with its 20 cores and 28 threads, is more than capable of feeding the GPU frames at any of these settings; the bottleneck is purely in the graphics processing pipeline.

Interestingly, the scaling between Low and Ultra settings at the same resolution is also significant. At 1080p, the difference between Low (134 FPS) and Ultra (64 FPS) is a 52% reduction in average frame rate. At 4K, the same comparison shows a 52% drop from 61 FPS to 29 FPS. This demonstrates that the game's graphical settings have a major impact on the GPU's workload, and the GTX 1650 is not powerful enough to maintain high frame rates at the top-end quality presets, especially at higher resolutions. The data clearly shows that this system is best suited for 1080p gaming, where it can deliver smooth performance on lower settings.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average frame rate this combo can achieve in Inside?

A: The highest recorded average frame rate is 134 FPS, which is achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings.

Q: Can this system handle 4K gaming in Inside?

A: Yes, but with significant compromises. At 4K with Low settings, it averages 61 FPS. However, at 4K with Ultra settings, the average drops to 29 FPS, which is below the threshold for smooth gameplay.

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

A: The GTX 1650 has an average benchmark score of 7472. It is 0.3% ahead of the AMD Radeon HD 8850M and 0.4% ahead of the Intel UHD Graphics 750. It is 0.6% ahead of the AMD Radeon R7 350 but 1% behind the Intel Arc A310.

Q: Is the Intel Core i7-14700F a high-performing CPU in general benchmarks?

A: Yes, the CPU's benchmark scores are strong. For example, it scores 35122 in Cinebench R23 multicore and 19620 in Geekbench multicore. It ranks in the 91st percentile of all CPUs tested.

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

A: At 2560x1440 resolution, the Medium preset yields an average of 77 FPS, while the Ultra preset yields an average of 46 FPS. This represents a 40% performance drop when moving from Medium to Ultra.

Q: What is the combo's overall rank among tested systems for this game?

A: This specific combination of the Intel Core i7-14700F and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 ranks 3575 out of 3716 tested combos for Inside, placing it in the bottom 4% of all systems tested.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 is the clear performance limiter in this configuration. Its specifications show a GPU designed for entry-level 1080p gaming, not high-resolution or high-detail workloads. The GPU has 4 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 128-bit bus, providing a memory bandwidth of 128.1 GB/s. This is a modest amount of memory and bandwidth by modern standards, and it is likely a contributing factor to the performance collapse at 4K resolution where memory capacity and bandwidth demands are highest.

The GPU's compute capabilities are also limited. It features 896 shading units, 56 texture mapping units, and 32 render output units. Its FP32 performance is rated at 2.984 TFLOPS. These numbers are low compared to more modern or higher-tier GPUs, and they directly translate to the frame rates seen in the game. The core clocks are listed as 1485 MHz base and 1665 MHz boost, which are reasonable for the architecture, but the sheer number of processing units is insufficient for demanding tasks.

The GTX 1650's benchmark scores confirm its position in the market. It has a percentile rank of 40 among all GPUs, meaning it performs better than only 40% of the GPUs in the database. Its Passmark G3D score is 7880, and its 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score is a very low 305. These scores place it in a performance tier that is adequate for older or less demanding games like Inside at lower settings, but it will struggle with newer titles or higher graphical presets. The data shows that in Inside, the GPU is the sole component dictating the performance ceiling, as the CPU has ample headroom.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a granular look at how the system performs across all combinations of resolution and quality settings. At 1920x1080, the system is at its best. With Low settings, it achieves an average of 134 FPS, which is excellent for a smooth experience. Medium settings reduce this to 107 FPS, with a minimum of 91 FPS and a maximum of 124 FPS. High settings yield 67 FPS, and Ultra settings drop to 64 FPS. All 1080p settings are playable, though the difference between Low and Ultra is substantial.

At 2560x1440, the strain on the GPU becomes more apparent. Low settings average 97 FPS, which is still very smooth. Medium settings drop to 77 FPS, with a minimum of 66 FPS and a maximum of 89 FPS. High settings average 48 FPS, and Ultra settings drop to 46 FPS. The 1440p results show that while the game is still playable at Medium and below, the High and Ultra presets start to feel less fluid.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is clearly overburdened. Low settings average 61 FPS, which is just at the edge of playability. Medium settings average 49 FPS, with a minimum of 41 FPS and a maximum of 56 FPS. High settings drop to 30 FPS, and Ultra settings average 29 FPS. The 4K results are not ideal for a smooth gaming experience, especially at the higher quality presets where the frame rate dips into the high 20s and low 30s. The data shows a consistent pattern: the GTX 1650 can handle the game at 1080p with ease, but struggles to maintain 60 FPS at 4K even on Low settings.

How This Combo Ranks

The overall ranking for this specific combination is poor. The combo is ranked 3575 out of 3716 tested combinations for Inside. This places it in the bottom 4% of all systems tested, which is a direct consequence of the weak GPU pairing with a powerful CPU. The CPU itself is a top-tier performer, but the GPU drags the entire system's gaming performance down.

The CPU's benchmark scores show it is a high-end part. It ranks in the 91st percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 53620. Its Cinebench R23 multicore score is 35122, and its Passmark multithread score is 41317. This is a CPU that can handle any modern workload with ease. The GPU, in contrast, is in the 40th percentile, with an average benchmark score of 7472. The massive disparity in performance class between the CPU and GPU is why the overall ranking is so low. The system is incredibly lopsided, and for gaming purposes, the GPU is a severe bottleneck.

The ranking indicates that for the game Inside, this combo is less capable than 96% of the other systems in the database. This is not a reflection of the game's optimization, but rather a clear indication that the GTX 1650 is not a suitable match for a high-end CPU like the i7-14700F for gaming. The data suggests that a more balanced system with a lower-tier CPU and a mid-range GPU would likely rank much higher and provide a significantly better gaming experience.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i7-14700F is a 14th-generation Raptor Lake processor with 20 cores and 28 threads. It has a base clock of 2.10 GHz and a boost clock of 5.40 GHz. This is a high-core-count, high-clock-speed CPU that is designed for heavy multitasking and productivity workloads. Its cache configuration includes 80 KB of L1 per core, 2 MB of L2 per core, and 33 MB of shared L3 cache. This is a large amount of cache, which helps with gaming performance by keeping frequently accessed data close to the cores.

In the context of Inside, the CPU's role is to handle the game's logic, physics, and draw calls. However, the benchmark data shows that the CPU is not the limiting factor at any resolution or setting. The frame rate scaling is entirely consistent with a GPU bottleneck. For example, at 1080p Low, the CPU can feed the GPU enough data to achieve 134 FPS. When the resolution is increased to 4K, the frame rate drops to 61 FPS at Low settings. If the CPU were the bottleneck, we would expect the frame rates to be more similar across resolutions, as the CPU's workload would not change significantly. Since the frame rate drops drastically with resolution, it confirms the GPU is the limiting component.

The CPU's synthetic benchmark scores reinforce this conclusion. Its Cinebench R23 single-core score is 4958, and its Passmark single-thread score is 4257. These are strong scores for single-threaded performance, which is often critical for gaming. With such a powerful CPU, the system has ample headroom for future GPU upgrades. If a user were to pair this CPU with a more powerful graphics card, the overall gaming performance would improve dramatically, as the CPU would be able to support much higher frame rates. However, with the current GTX 1650, the CPU's potential is entirely untapped in this gaming scenario.