Inside

The Intel Core Ultra 5 245 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 pairing delivers a performance profile that is decisively GPU-bound at higher resolutions, yet remarkably capable at 1080p in Inside. The measured data reveals a component duo that comfortably exceeds the demands of this puzzle platformer, with the CPU’s strong single-thread performance ensuring that even the lowest settings at 4K produce triple-digit frame rates. This analysis breaks down the specific roles of each component, scaling behavior, and optimal settings based strictly on the benchmark results.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 is built on the Ada Lovelace architecture, featuring a 5 nm process node and 18,900 million transistors on a 159 mm² die. Its boost clock reaches 2460 MHz, with a base clock of 1830 MHz, and it operates within a 115 W TDP. The card carries 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, yielding a bandwidth of 272.0 GB/s. These specifications position the GPU at the 61st percentile among all GPUs, according to the average benchmark score of 17639.

In Inside, the GPU’s role becomes increasingly dominant as resolution scales upward, but the data shows it is never a bottleneck that prevents smooth gameplay. At 4K with High settings, the average FPS is 75, which is fully playable. The card’s 8 GB frame buffer is sufficient for this game’s visual complexity, as evidenced by the fact that Ultra settings at 4K still produce an average of 72 FPS. The GPU’s memory bandwidth of 272.0 GB/s appears adequate for the texture and lighting workloads, given that the frame rate drop from High to Ultra at 4K is only 3 FPS (from 75 to 72).

The RTX 4060’s nearest rivals in the benchmark database—the AMD Radeon HD 7790, AMD Radeon 780M, AMD Radeon Pro 560, and AMD Radeon Pro 460—are all within a 0.7% delta of its average score. This indicates the RTX 4060 sits in a tightly contested performance tier, yet its real-world results in Inside demonstrate that game-specific optimization allows it to far exceed what those raw average scores might suggest. The card’s DirectX 12 Ultimate support and Vulkan 1.4 API compatibility ensure it can fully utilize the game’s rendering paths, contributing to the high frame rates observed.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The measured data across three resolutions—1920x1080, 2560x1440, and 3840x2160—reveals a clear scaling pattern that identifies the GPU as the primary limiting factor at higher resolutions, while the CPU remains capable throughout. At Low settings, the average FPS drops from 333 at 1080p to 239 at 1440p (a 28% reduction), and then to 150 at 4K (a 37% reduction from 1440p). This steep decline with resolution is the classic signature of a GPU-bound scenario, as pixel count increases exponentially while the CPU workload remains relatively constant.

The scaling behavior is consistent across all settings presets. At Medium settings, the average FPS falls from 266 at 1080p to 192 at 1440p (a 28% drop), and further to 120 at 4K (a 37.5% drop from 1440p). High settings show a similar pattern: 167 FPS at 1080p, 120 FPS at 1440p (a 28% drop), and 75 FPS at 4K (a 37.5% drop). Ultra settings follow suit, with 159 FPS at 1080p, 114 FPS at 1440p (a 28% drop), and 72 FPS at 4K (a 37% drop). The consistency of these percentage drops across all presets strongly indicates that the RTX 4060 is the limiting component, as the CPU would show a more variable impact if it were the constraint.

Notably, the frame rate reduction from 1440p to 4K is consistently larger than the reduction from 1080p to 1440p, which is expected given the pixel count jump from 3.7 million to 8.3 million (a 2.25x increase) versus the jump from 2.1 million to 3.7 million (a 1.78x increase). The fact that 4K Low still produces 150 FPS average demonstrates that even at the most demanding resolution, the GPU retains substantial headroom. The data suggests that the RTX 4060’s 2460 MHz boost clock and 272.0 GB/s bandwidth are well-matched to this game’s engine, allowing for smooth performance even when the GPU is the bottleneck.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Intel Core Ultra 5 245 is a 14-core, 14-thread processor from the Core Ultra Series 2, based on the Arrow Lake architecture on a 3 nm TSMC process. Its base clock is 3.50 GHz, boosting up to 5.10 GHz, with a 65 W TDP. The processor includes 24 MB of shared L3 cache and supports DDR5 memory with a dual-channel bus and 102.4 GB/s bandwidth. This CPU ranks in the 90th percentile among all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 48995.

For Inside, the CPU’s role is primarily to feed the GPU with draw calls and handle game logic. The measured FPS data shows that even at the lowest settings and highest resolution (4K Low, 150 FPS average), the CPU never becomes the limiting factor. The high boost clock of 5.10 GHz is particularly relevant for this game, as puzzle platformers often rely on single-thread performance for physics and collision detection. The Cinebench R23 single-core score of 4648 confirms this processor’s strength in lightly-threaded workloads.

The 14 cores and 14 threads provide ample parallel processing capability, but the data indicates that Inside does not heavily utilize multi-threading. The Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 32924 shows the CPU’s raw throughput, yet the frame rates at 1080p Low (333 FPS) suggest the game is not CPU-limited even at extreme frame rates. The processor’s nearest rivals—the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5755G, AMD Ryzen 9 7900, Intel Xeon Gold 5318H, and Intel Core i5-14600K—are all within a 0.8% delta of its average score, placing it in a competitive performance tier. The 245’s 3.50 GHz base clock ensures consistent minimum frame rates, as evidenced by the Medium settings data showing 102 FPS minimum at 4K, which aligns with the GPU’s behavior rather than CPU stutter.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

Within the benchmark database’s tested combinations, this pairing of the Intel Core Ultra 5 245 with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 achieves a rank of 1411 out of 2887 total combos in Inside. This places it in the 51st percentile of all tested configurations, meaning it outperforms roughly half of the combinations in the database while trailing the other half. The rank reflects the balanced nature of this pairing—neither component is a flagship, but together they deliver solid, consistent performance.

The combo’s ranking is particularly informative when considering the GPU’s individual percentile (61st) and CPU’s percentile (90th). The fact that the combo ranks lower than the CPU’s individual percentile suggests that the RTX 4060 is the performance ceiling in this pairing, as the CPU’s high single-core and multi-core scores are not fully utilized by the GPU at higher resolutions. Conversely, the combo ranks higher than the GPU’s individual percentile, indicating that the strong CPU helps maintain frame rates in scenarios where the game’s logic might otherwise bottleneck a weaker processor.

At 1440p Ultra, the combo produces 114 FPS average, which is above the 60 FPS threshold that many games target for smooth gameplay. The rank of 1411 out of 2887 suggests that while there are more powerful combinations available, this pairing offers a well-rounded experience for Inside across all tested settings and resolutions. The data shows that the combo’s performance is consistent, with no anomalous dips that would indicate a mismatch between the CPU and GPU capabilities.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings preset depends on the target resolution and desired frame rate. At 1080p, all presets deliver excellent performance, with even Ultra settings producing 159 FPS average. The Medium preset offers 266 FPS average with a minimum of 226 FPS, which is exceptionally smooth for fast-paced platforming. However, the High preset at 167 FPS average provides a better visual quality-to-performance ratio, as the jump from High to Ultra only yields a 8 FPS reduction (from 167 to 159) while presumably improving visual fidelity.

At 1440p, the High preset at 120 FPS average represents the sweet spot. The Medium preset achieves 192 FPS average, but the visual upgrade to High is worth the 72 FPS reduction for most players, as 120 FPS is already far above the 60 FPS threshold. The Ultra preset at 114 FPS average is nearly identical to High, making the extra visual settings essentially free in terms of performance. For players with 144 Hz displays, the Medium preset at 192 FPS average is the recommended choice, as it comfortably exceeds the refresh rate.

At 4K, the Medium preset at 120 FPS average is the best option, as it provides the highest frame rate above 100 FPS while maintaining reasonable visual quality. The Low preset at 150 FPS average is unnecessarily sacrificing visual fidelity for frame rates that exceed most display refresh rates. The High preset at 75 FPS average and Ultra at 72 FPS average are both playable, but they drop below the 100 FPS threshold that many players prefer for responsive gameplay. The Medium preset’s minimum FPS of 102 ensures no significant frame drops, making it the most consistent choice for 4K gaming on this hardware.

Measured FPS Breakdown — resolution by resolution, settings by settings, exact numbers

The complete measured FPS data for this combination in Inside is as follows:

1920x1080 (1080p):

• Low: 333 FPS average
• Medium: 266 FPS average, 226 FPS minimum, 306 FPS maximum
• High: 167 FPS average
• Ultra: 159 FPS average

2560x1440 (1440p):

• Low: 239 FPS average
• Medium: 192 FPS average, 163 FPS minimum, 220 FPS maximum
• High: 120 FPS average
• Ultra: 114 FPS average

3840x2160 (4K):

• Low: 150 FPS average
• Medium: 120 FPS average, 102 FPS minimum, 138 FPS maximum
• High: 75 FPS average
• Ultra: 72 FPS average

The data shows that the Medium preset is the only one with recorded minimum and maximum FPS values across all resolutions, indicating it may be the most thoroughly tested setting. At 1080p, the difference between Low and Medium is 67 FPS (from 333 to 266), while the difference between High and Ultra is only 8 FPS (from 167 to 159). This suggests that the visual quality gains from High to Ultra are minimal in terms of performance cost, making Ultra a viable choice at 1080p if players want maximum fidelity without sacrificing smoothness.

At 1440p, the scaling is more pronounced: Low to Medium drops 47 FPS (from 239 to 192), Medium to High drops 72 FPS (from 192 to 120), and High to Ultra drops only 6 FPS (from 120 to 114). The minimal drop between High and Ultra at 1440p mirrors the 1080p behavior, reinforcing that Ultra settings are not prohibitively expensive at these resolutions. At 4K, the Low to Medium drop is 30 FPS (from 150 to 120), Medium to High drops 45 FPS (from 120 to 75), and High to Ultra drops only 3 FPS (from 75 to 72). The 4K data reveals that the GPU is heavily taxed at High and Ultra settings, but the Medium preset maintains a playable 120 FPS average with a 102 FPS minimum, making it the only 4K setting that guarantees no drops below 100 FPS.