Inside

The Intel Core Ultra 7 155H and AMD Radeon RX 7800M combination delivers a compelling, high-refresh-rate experience in Inside, a puzzle platformer from 2016. The data shows this pairing is capable of pushing the game’s simple 2D visuals to extreme frame rates, with the primary bottleneck shifting from the CPU to the GPU as resolution increases. This analysis breaks down the measured performance across three resolutions and four quality presets, contextualizes the results against rival hardware, and provides actionable settings guidance.

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

The Intel Core Ultra 7 155H is a 16-core, 22-thread mobile processor based on the Meteor Lake architecture, built on Intel’s 7 nm process. It features a base clock of 3.80 GHz and a boost clock of 4.80 GHz, with a 28 W TDP. The cache hierarchy is substantial: 112 KB of L1 per core, 2 MB of L2 per core, and 24 MB of shared L3 cache. For a game like Inside, which is a side-scrolling puzzle platformer with relatively simple physics and AI, the CPU is unlikely to be a limiting factor at most settings. The game’s workload is modest compared to the processor’s multi-threaded capabilities, which are better showcased in synthetic benchmarks like Cinebench R23, where it scores 15028 multi-core and 1743 single-core.

In this specific game, the CPU’s role is to maintain a stable frame delivery pipeline, ensuring that the GPU is fed with draw calls without stuttering. The Core Ultra 7 155H’s high single-thread score of 3468 in Passmark and its 83rd percentile ranking among all CPUs suggest it has ample headroom for the game’s logic. The nearest rivals, such as the Intel Core i5-14600T (avg score 32707, delta 0%) and the AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 360 (avg score 32662, delta 0.1%), indicate that the 155H’s average benchmark score of 32697 places it in a tightly contested performance tier. However, the game’s frame rates at 1080p and 1440p are so high (up to 286 FPS at Low) that even a slower CPU would likely allow the GPU to perform near its maximum. The processor’s 22 threads and 24 MB of L3 cache are overkill for this title, but they ensure that any potential CPU-bound scenario—such as complex scenes with many interactive objects—is handled with ease.

The measured FPS data supports this interpretation. At 1080p Low, the combo achieves 286 FPS, which is nearly triple the Ultra preset’s 136 FPS at the same resolution. This scaling is characteristic of a GPU-bound scenario at higher settings, while the CPU remains capable of pushing well beyond 300 FPS if the GPU could keep up. The Core Ultra 7 155H’s memory bandwidth of 89.6 GB/s and dual-channel DDR5 support further reduce any potential data-fetch bottlenecks, though the game’s small asset sizes make this less critical. Overall, the CPU role here is one of quiet competence: it never becomes the limiting component, allowing the RX 7800M to dictate performance.

FAQ — 4-6 Q&A pairs answerable from FACT PACK data

*Q: What is the highest average FPS achievable with this combo in Inside?*

A: The highest measured average FPS is 286, achieved at 1920x1080 with the Low preset. This is nearly double the 1440p Low result of 206 FPS, indicating that the GPU has significant headroom at lower resolutions.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rivals in overall benchmark score?

A: The Intel Core Ultra 7 155H has an average benchmark score of 32697, which is virtually identical to the Intel Core i5-14600T (32707, delta 0%) and the AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 360 (32662, delta 0.1%). It sits slightly above the AMD Ryzen 5 7400F (32750, delta -0.2%) and the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850H (32812, delta -0.4%), placing it in the 83rd percentile of all CPUs.

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

A: At 2560x1440, the Medium preset delivers an average FPS of 164, while the Ultra preset drops to 98 FPS. This represents a 40% reduction in frame rate when moving from Medium to Ultra, suggesting a significant increase in GPU load.

Q: Is the GPU more powerful than its closest competitor in terms of average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 7800M has an average benchmark score of 27883, which places it just above the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 20 (27839, delta 0.2%) and slightly below the AMD Radeon Pro W5500X (27973, delta -0.3%) and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980 Ti (28020, delta -0.5%). It ranks in the 73rd percentile of all GPUs.

Q: Does the combo achieve 60 FPS at 4K with all settings maxed out?

A: Yes, at 3840x2160 with the Ultra preset, the combo achieves an average of 61 FPS. The High preset at the same resolution yields 65 FPS, while Medium reaches 103 FPS, showing that 4K Ultra is barely playable, while dropping to High provides a small safety margin.

Q: How much faster is the 1080p Low preset compared to the 4K Ultra preset?

A: The 1080p Low preset achieves 286 FPS, which is 4.69 times higher than the 4K Ultra’s 61 FPS. This dramatic scaling highlights the GPU’s sensitivity to resolution and settings, with the CPU maintaining consistent performance across the board.

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

The resolution scaling data for this combo reveals a clear GPU-bound profile. At 1080p Low, the average FPS is 286, which drops to 206 at 1440p Low (a 28% reduction) and further to 129 at 4K Low (a 55% reduction from 1080p). This pattern is consistent with the RX 7800M being the primary limiting factor: as pixel count increases, the GPU must process more fragments, directly reducing frame rate. The CPU’s role remains static, as evidenced by the fact that the FPS drop between 1080p and 1440p is proportionally larger than the increase in pixel count (1.78x pixels for a 1.39x FPS drop), which is typical for a GPU that is already near its fill-rate limit.

Moving to higher settings exacerbates this trend. At High preset, the FPS drops from 143 at 1080p to 103 at 1440p (a 28% reduction) and then to 65 at 4K (a 55% reduction from 1080p). The Ultra preset shows a similar pattern: 136 FPS at 1080p, 98 at 1440p, and 61 at 4K. The consistency of these percentage drops across settings—roughly 28% from 1080p to 1440p and 55% from 1080p to 4K—indicates that the rendering load scales predictably with resolution, and the GPU’s memory bandwidth of 432.0 GB/s becomes a more significant constraint at 4K. The 12 GB GDDR6 frame buffer is sufficient, but the 192-bit bus width limits the data throughput needed for 4K textures and shaders.

The fact that the FPS at 4K Ultra (61) is so close to the 4K High (65) suggests that the highest settings are hitting a hard performance ceiling, likely due to the GPU’s compute throughput (35.87 TFLOPS) and pixel rate (224.2 GPixel/s). The CPU, with its 24 MB of cache and high single-thread performance, does not exhibit any resolution-dependent slowdown, confirming that it is not a bottleneck. For users targeting 4K, the data shows that dropping from Ultra to High only gains 4 FPS, while dropping to Medium gains 38 FPS, indicating that the Medium preset is the sweet spot for 4K playability.

How This Combo Ranks — use comboRankInGame vs other tested combos

In the database of tested hardware combinations for Inside, this pairing of the Intel Core Ultra 7 155H and AMD Radeon RX 7800M ranks 1877 out of 2887 combos. This places it in the lower-middle tier of all tested systems, which is surprising given the high absolute FPS numbers. The rank is likely influenced by the fact that Inside is a very light game, and many older or less powerful GPUs can achieve playable frame rates, making the ranking highly competitive. The combo’s 73rd percentile GPU ranking and 83rd percentile CPU ranking suggest that while the individual components are above average, the game’s low requirements mean that even mid-range hardware can match or exceed these results in terms of raw FPS.

The rank of 1877 indicates that approximately 35% of tested combos perform better than this one. This could be due to other systems having higher-end GPUs (e.g., desktop parts) or CPUs with higher boost clocks that reduce any minor frame pacing issues. However, the data shows that this combo still delivers excellent playability, with even the 4K Ultra preset achieving 61 FPS, which is above the 60 FPS threshold. The nearest GPU rivals, such as the GTX 980 Ti, have similar average benchmark scores, suggesting that this mobile GPU is competitive with high-end desktop parts from previous generations. The CPU’s rank against rivals (all within 0.4% delta) means that the choice of processor is unlikely to cause significant variance in this game’s performance, reinforcing that the GPU is the determining factor for the combo’s overall rank.

It’s also worth remembering the combo’s rank is not a reflection of poor performance, but rather a signal of how well Inside scales on modest hardware. Many users with older systems may be running the game at lower resolutions and settings, achieving 60+ FPS with ease, which pushes the percentile down. For this specific combo, the rank suggests that while it is not in the top tier for this game, it offers a well-balanced experience that can handle any settings at 1080p and 1440p, and remains playable at 4K.

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

Based on the measured FPS data, the optimal settings preset depends heavily on the target resolution. At 1920x1080, all presets deliver well above 60 FPS, with even the Ultra preset achieving 136 FPS. For a 120 Hz or 144 Hz display, the High preset (143 FPS) or Medium preset (229 FPS) are both excellent choices, with Medium offering a 60% FPS increase over Ultra while likely maintaining visual fidelity that is indistinguishable in a dark, atmospheric puzzle game. The Low preset at 286 FPS is only useful for competitive play or if the user has a 240 Hz monitor, as the visual trade-offs are significant.

At 2560x1440, the Medium preset provides the best balance, achieving 164 FPS with minimums of 140 FPS and maximums of 189 FPS. This ensures smooth gameplay on high-refresh-rate monitors without the frame dips that might occur on the High preset (103 FPS) or Ultra (98 FPS). The High preset is still playable, but it cuts the frame rate nearly in half compared to Medium, which is a poor trade for a game with simple visuals. The Low preset at 206 FPS is overkill for most displays and sacrifices too much visual quality.

At 3840x2160, the Medium preset is the recommended choice, delivering 103 FPS with minimums of 88 FPS and maximums of 119 FPS. This is the only 4K preset that provides a comfortable margin above 60 FPS, making it ideal for 4K 60 Hz displays or even 100 Hz panels. The High preset (65 FPS) is technically playable but leaves little headroom for frame drops, while the Ultra preset (61 FPS) sits right at the edge of playability. The Low preset (129 FPS) is viable for 4K 120 Hz displays but again sacrifices visual quality. Overall, the Medium preset is the best default across all resolutions, offering a strong balance of frame rate and visual fidelity.

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

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive view of this combo’s performance across all three standard resolutions. At 1920x1080, the Low preset achieves an average of 286 FPS, the Medium preset 229 FPS (with a minimum of 194 and maximum of 263), the High preset 143 FPS, and the Ultra preset 136 FPS. The scaling from Low to Ultra is a 52% reduction in FPS, which is modest compared to the settings’ visual impact. At 2560x1440, the Low preset averages 206 FPS, the Medium preset 164 FPS (with minimums of 140 and maximums of 189), the High preset 103 FPS, and the Ultra preset 98 FPS. The gap between High and Ultra narrows to just 5 FPS at this resolution, suggesting that Ultra is not worth the performance cost.

At 3840x2160, the Low preset averages 129 FPS, the Medium preset 103 FPS (with minimums of 88 and maximums of 119), the High preset 65 FPS, and the Ultra preset 61 FPS. The minimum FPS data for Medium at 4K (88 FPS) is notably high, indicating that the frame pacing is stable even under load. The absence of minimum FPS data for other presets suggests that they may have more variance, but the averages are consistent with the expected GPU scaling. The data shows that this combo can handle Inside at 4K Medium with ease, while higher settings push the GPU to its limits. For users who prioritize frame rate, the Medium preset at any resolution provides the best measured experience, with the 1080p Medium offering the highest minimum FPS (194) of any preset.

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

The AMD Radeon RX 7800M is a high-end mobile GPU based on the RDNA 3.0 architecture, featuring the Navi 32 chip built on a 5 nm process. It has 3840 shading units, 240 TMUs, and 96 ROPs, with 60 ray-tracing cores. The GPU operates at a base clock of 1295 MHz, a game clock of 2145 MHz, and a boost clock of 2335 MHz. Its 12 GB of GDDR6 memory runs at 2250 MHz (18 Gbps effective) across a 192-bit bus, providing 432.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The GPU’s FP32 performance is rated at 35.87 TFLOPS, and its pixel rate is 224.2 GPixel/s. These specifications are more than sufficient for Inside, which is a 2D side-scroller with limited texture detail and no ray-traced effects.

In this game, the GPU’s role is to render the game’s minimalist art style at high resolution and frame rates. The 12 GB VRAM is never a limiting factor, as the game’s texture sets are small. The memory bandwidth of 432.0 GB/s is also sufficient, as evidenced by the smooth scaling from 1080p to 4K. The GPU’s benchmark scores support its performance: it scores 17613 in Passmark G3D, 120778 in Geekbench OpenCL, and 126668 in Geekbench Vulkan. These scores place it in the 73rd percentile of all GPUs, with nearest rivals including the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 20 (avg score 27839) and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980 Ti (avg score 28020). The RX 7800M’s average score of 27883 is within 0.5% of these rivals, indicating that it offers performance comparable to a high-end desktop GPU from several generations ago.

The measured FPS in Inside reflects this GPU’s strengths. At 1080p, the GPU is not fully utilized, as the CPU and game logic allow it to reach 286 FPS at Low settings. At 4K Ultra, the GPU’s fill rate and shader throughput become the limiting factor, capping the frame rate at 61 FPS. The GPU’s 96 ROPs and 224.2 GPixel/s pixel rate are sufficient for the game’s 2D rendering, but the 4K resolution pushes the pixel fill requirements to the edge of its capability. The boost clock of 2335 MHz ensures that the GPU maintains high performance under sustained load, and the 180 W TDP indicates that this is a power-hungry mobile part that requires adequate cooling. Overall, the RX 7800M is the dominant component in this pairing, determining the frame rate at higher resolutions and settings, while the CPU provides ample support without becoming a bottleneck.