Minimum

Minimum, a 2014 third-person shooter, presents a clear picture of how the Intel Core Ultra 7 265HX and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 Mobile interact under varying graphical loads. The measured frames per second across three resolutions and four quality presets reveal a component pairing where the GPU becomes the decisive factor as resolution climbs, while the substantial 20-core processor ensures headroom at lower settings. This analysis walks through the data point by point, interpreting what the numbers mean for the system's overall performance profile in this specific title.

Resolution Scaling

The transition from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160 causes a dramatic and consistent drop in average frame rates across all settings, firmly indicating that the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 Mobile is the limiting component at higher resolutions. At the Low preset, the average FPS falls from 148 at 1080p to 96 at 2560x1440, a reduction of 52 frames, and then further down to 52 at 4K. This pattern is not linear; the jump from 1440p to 4K at Low settings represents a 45.8% decrease in performance, while the jump from 1080p to 1440p is a 35.1% decrease. The growing penalty per resolution step is a hallmark of a GPU that is running out of pixel throughput.

Looking at the High preset, the scaling is similar but with lower absolute numbers. The system delivers 95 FPS at 1080p, drops to 61 FPS at 1440p, and finally bottoms out at 33 FPS at 4K. The relative performance loss from 1080p to 1440p is 35.7%, and from 1440p to 4K it is 45.9%. These percentages are remarkably close to those observed at Low settings, suggesting that the relative cost of increasing resolution is independent of the quality preset. This is a strong indicator that the bottleneck is purely pixel-fill-rate and memory bandwidth related, rather than shader or texture processing.

The Ultra preset shows the most severe scaling, with averages of 73 FPS at 1080p, 47 FPS at 1440p, and a barely playable 25 FPS at 4K. The drop from 1440p to 4K at Ultra is a 46.8% reduction in average FPS. The data suggests that at 4K, even the Medium preset, which averages 39 FPS with a minimum of 34 FPS, struggles to maintain a smooth experience, and the Ultra preset at 25 FPS is effectively unplayable for a shooter. The scaling behavior across all presets points to the RTX 5050 Mobile's 128-bit memory interface and 8 GB of GDDR7 as the primary constraints, as the workload becomes increasingly bandwidth-bound at higher pixel counts.

The difference between the Medium and Low presets at each resolution is also telling. At 1080p, the gap is 34 FPS (148 vs 114), at 1440p it is 23 FPS (96 vs 73), and at 4K it is 13 FPS (52 vs 39). As resolution increases, the performance gap between presets narrows. This convergence further supports the conclusion that the GPU's execution units are not the limiting factor at 4K; instead, the memory subsystem and ROP throughput are saturated, making the quality preset less impactful than the sheer number of pixels being rendered.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 Mobile is characterized by its 8 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 128-bit bus, yielding a bandwidth of 384.0 GB/s. This memory configuration is the single most important spec for understanding Minimum's 4K performance. The clock speeds, with a base of 1020 MHz and a boost of 1500 MHz, are relatively modest for the 50-series, but the architecture's efficiency is evident in the 1440p results. The data shows that at 2560x1440, the GPU can handle High settings at 61 FPS, which is a solid result for a demanding resolution.

The GPU's compute capabilities, while not the primary bottleneck at 4K, are sufficient for 1080p gaming. The 2560 shading units and 80 TMUs deliver a texture rate of 120.0 GTexel/s, which is more than enough for a game from 2014. The FP32 performance of 7.680 TFLOPS suggests that the shader workload at 1080p is well within the GPU's capacity, as evidenced by the 148 FPS average at Low settings. This indicates that the RTX 5050 Mobile is not a weak GPU in absolute terms, but rather one that is intentionally balanced for 1080p and 1440p, with 4K being a stretch goal.

The GPU's 32 ROPs, which handle pixel output, are a likely culprit for the 4K performance cliff. With a pixel rate of 48.00 GPixel/s, the GPU is limited in how many pixels it can write to the framebuffer per second. At 3840x2160, there are over 8 million pixels to process, and the combination of fill-rate limits and memory bandwidth constraints explains why the average FPS at High settings drops to 33. The RTX 5050 Mobile's performance at 4K can be contrasted with its nearest rivals in general benchmarks, where it shows a deltaPct of 0.0 against the NVIDIA Quadro M6000 24 GB and -0.9 against the GeForce RTX 4090 Mobile, but these are aggregate scores, not game-specific.

The VRAM capacity of 8 GB is sufficient for Minimum, as even at Ultra settings, the game's 2014-era textures are unlikely to exceed that allocation. The data does not show any signs of texture thrashing or stuttering that would indicate a VRAM capacity issue. The bottleneck at 4K is purely throughput. The GDDR7 memory runs at an effective speed of 24 Gbps, which is high, but the 128-bit bus width halves the total bandwidth compared to wider-bus cards. This makes the RTX 5050 Mobile a textbook example of a GPU where bandwidth, not compute, dictates high-resolution scaling.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average frame rate achieved at 1920x1080?

A: The highest average frame rate at 1920x1080 is 148 FPS, which is achieved with the Low settings preset.

Q: Does the system maintain a playable frame rate at 3840x2160 on Ultra settings?

A: No. The measured average FPS at 3840x2160 on Ultra settings is 25 FPS, which is below the threshold for a smooth third-person shooter experience.

Q: How much faster is the 2560x1440 High preset compared to the 2560x1440 Ultra preset?

A: The 2560x1440 High preset averages 61 FPS, while the Ultra preset averages 47 FPS. The High preset is 14 FPS faster on average.

Q: What is the minimum FPS recorded at 1920x1080 on Medium settings?

A: The minimum FPS recorded at 1920x1080 on Medium settings is 97 FPS, with a maximum of 131 FPS.

Q: Which resolution and settings combination provides the highest maximum FPS in the data?

A: The highest maximum FPS is 131, which is recorded at 1920x1080 on Medium settings. Note that the Low preset has a higher average (148) but its maximum is not listed.

Q: Is the performance difference between 2560x1440 and 3840x2160 larger at Low or High settings?

A: The absolute FPS drop going from 1440p to 4K is larger at Low settings (44 FPS drop, from 96 to 52) than at High settings (28 FPS drop, from 61 to 33). However, the percentage drop is similar, at 45.8% for Low and 45.9% for High.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the system demonstrates strong performance across all presets. Low settings deliver an average of 148 FPS, making it the fastest configuration in the entire dataset. Medium settings average 114 FPS, with a recorded minimum of 97 FPS and a maximum of 131 FPS. High settings average 95 FPS, and Ultra settings average 73 FPS. All of these figures are well above the 60 FPS threshold, indicating that the RTX 5050 Mobile is never the limiting factor at this resolution, and the CPU is providing ample headroom.

Moving to 2560x1440, the average FPS figures show a clear step down. Low settings average 96 FPS, which is still very smooth. Medium settings average 73 FPS, with a minimum of 62 FPS and a maximum of 84 FPS. High settings average 61 FPS, which is right at the edge of ideal smoothness for many players. Ultra settings drop to an average of 47 FPS, which may introduce noticeable judder in fast-paced scenes. This resolution represents the sweet spot for balancing visual quality and performance, with High settings being the most demanding preset that still clears the 60 FPS bar.

At 3840x2160, the GPU is clearly struggling. Low settings are the only preset that achieves an average above 50 FPS, hitting 52 FPS. Medium settings average 39 FPS, with a minimum of 34 FPS and a maximum of 45 FPS. High settings drop to 33 FPS, and Ultra settings fall to 25 FPS. None of the 4K presets provide a consistently smooth experience for a shooter, where frame pacing and response time are critical. The data suggests that 4K is not a viable resolution for this GPU in Minimum, regardless of the quality settings chosen.

The Medium preset is the only one in the dataset that includes min and max FPS figures for every resolution. At 1080p, the range is 97-131 FPS, at 1440p it is 62-84 FPS, and at 4K it is 34-45 FPS. This data reveals that the frame time consistency degrades as resolution increases. The variance at 4K, while not extreme, is more impactful because the average FPS is already low. The consistent 20-30 FPS spread between minimum and maximum across all resolutions suggests that the game's engine has predictable performance spikes, but the impact of those spikes is magnified at lower average frame rates.

How This Combo Ranks

The Intel Core Ultra 7 265HX and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 Mobile combination is ranked 2973 out of 3712 tested combos in Minimum. This places the system in the bottom 20% of all configurations tested for this specific game. The rank is a direct result of the GPU's performance ceiling at higher resolutions, as the CPU is a high-end part with a 93rd percentile ranking among all CPUs. The discrepancy between the CPU's strong standing and the combo's poor ranking highlights the GPU bottleneck in this title.

This ranking of 2973rd out of 3712 combos indicates that most other system configurations deliver higher average frame rates in Minimum. The RTX 5050 Mobile's general benchmark percentile is 83, and its average benchmark score of 43268 puts it in the same ballpark as the NVIDIA Quadro M6000 24 GB and the GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER, with deltaPct values of 0.0 and 0.1 respectively. However, in this specific game, the GPU's performance is not sufficient to push the combo ranking higher.

The low rank is not a reflection of the CPU's capability. The Intel Core Ultra 7 265HX has an average benchmark score of 63173, which is nearly identical to its nearest rivals, such as the Intel Core i7-13790F (deltaPct 0.1) and the AMD Ryzen AI 7 450G (deltaPct -0.2). In Minimum, the CPU is not the limiting factor, as evidenced by the high frame rates at 1080p. The combo's rank is dragged down entirely by the GPU's inability to maintain high frame rates at 1440p and 4K, where most other combos in the database likely feature more powerful graphics cards.

The data shows that for a game like Minimum, the GPU choice is paramount for the overall system ranking. A powerful CPU like the Core Ultra 7 265HX cannot compensate for a GPU that is bandwidth-limited at high resolutions. The combo rank of 2973/3712 serves as a warning that this specific pairing is optimized for 1080p gaming, and users seeking higher-resolution performance would need to look at a system with a more robust GPU.

Settings Recommendations

For 1920x1080, the Ultra preset is the only configuration that offers a fully featured visual experience without sacrificing playability, averaging 73 FPS. However, for players who prioritize maximum frame rates, the Low preset at 148 FPS or the Medium preset at 114 FPS are excellent choices. The data shows that at 1080p, all presets are viable, and the choice should be based on whether the user prefers higher visual fidelity or higher refresh rates. The Medium preset offers a balanced experience with a 97 FPS minimum, ensuring no major dips.

At 2560x1440, the High preset is the recommended choice for a quality experience, as it is the most demanding setting that still maintains an average of 61 FPS. The Medium preset provides more headroom with an average of 73 FPS and a minimum of 62 FPS, making it the safest option for ensuring consistent smoothness. The Ultra preset, at 47 FPS, is not recommended for a third-person shooter where quick camera movements can make low frame rates feel stuttery. Low settings, while offering 96 FPS, sacrifice too much visual detail for the performance gain.

At 3840x2160, the data suggests that all presets provide a suboptimal experience. The Low preset, at 52 FPS, is the only one that approaches playability, but it may still feel inconsistent. The Medium preset, with an average of 39 FPS and a minimum of 34 FPS, is likely to be too choppy for most users. High and Ultra presets, at 33 FPS and 25 FPS respectively, are not recommended for gameplay. For 4K, users would be better served by lowering the resolution to 1440p and using High settings for a far superior experience.

The overall recommendation based on the measured data is to target a 60+ FPS average for this shooter. This is achievable at 1080p on all presets, and at 1440p on Low, Medium, and High presets. The best balance of visual quality and performance is the 2560x1440 High preset, which provides 61 FPS. For users with 4K displays, the RTX 5050 Mobile is not powerful enough to provide a smooth experience in Minimum, and the resolution should be scaled down to 1440p for optimal results.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 7 265HX is a 20-core, 20-thread processor based on the Arrow Lake architecture, with a base clock of 2.60 GHz and a boost clock of 5.30 GHz. In Minimum, this CPU is never the bottleneck. The evidence for this is the substantial frame rate scaling with resolution. At 1080p Low settings, the system produces 148 FPS, which is a high frame rate that would stress a weaker CPU. The fact that the frame rate drops to 52 FPS at 4K Low settings demonstrates that the GPU, not the CPU, is the limiting factor.

The CPU's benchmark scores support its capability. A Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 40642 and a single-core score of 5737 place it in the top 7% of all CPUs (93rd percentile). The PassMark multi-thread score of 47985 and single-thread score of 4500 further confirm its strength. In a 2014 game like Minimum, which is not known for being heavily multi-threaded, the single-core performance is more critical, and the 5.30 GHz boost clock ensures that the CPU can handle any game logic or physics calculations without issue.

The 30 MB of shared L3 cache and the dual-channel DDR5 memory support with a bandwidth of 102.4 GB/s provide ample data throughput for the CPU. This is important for feeding the GPU at high frame rates. The data shows that at 1080p, where the GPU is less stressed, the CPU is able to maintain high FPS without any signs of stutter or frame drops that would indicate a CPU limitation. The minimum FPS at 1080p Medium is 97 FPS, which is still very high and shows consistent frame delivery.

The CPU's role in this combo is to provide a stable platform that does not hinder the GPU. Its 93rd percentile ranking among all CPUs means it is a top-tier mobile processor. The fact that the combo ranks in the bottom 20% for Minimum is entirely due to the GPU's performance characteristics. If the system were paired with a more powerful GPU, the Core Ultra 7 265HX would easily support higher frame rates. The data confirms that for Minimum, the CPU is a high-performance component that is effectively waiting for the GPU to catch up.