Outriders

The Intel Core i3-12100F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 presents a specific performance envelope in Outriders, one defined by the GPU's 4 GB memory capacity and the CPU's strong single-thread capabilities. The measured frame rates across resolutions reveal a system that is clearly bound by its graphics card at higher settings, yet capable of delivering playable results when settings are reduced. This analysis breaks down the collected data to explain where the bottleneck lies and what users can expect from this combination.

Resolution Scaling

The frame rate progression from 1080p to 4K shows a textbook case of GPU limitation. At 1920x1080 with High settings, the combo produces 55.5 FPS, but moving to 2560x1440 drops that to 33.2 FPS, and at 3840x2160 it falls to 16.6 FPS. This represents a 70% reduction in performance from 1080p to 4K at High settings, indicating that the rendering load scales almost linearly with pixel count. The GTX 1650's 128.1 GB/s memory bandwidth and 2.984 TFLOPS of FP32 compute are simply insufficient for the pixel throughput required at 4K.

The scaling pattern changes when looking at Low settings. At 1920x1080 Low, the system achieves 98.6 FPS, which is a highly playable result. Dropping to 2560x1440 Low yields 61.9 FPS, and 3840x2160 Low produces 32.6 FPS. The 4K Low figure is nearly double the 4K High result, showing that reducing graphical complexity helps, but the absolute ceiling is still constrained by the GPU's raw output. The data suggests that 4K is only viable at the lowest settings, and even then, the 32.6 FPS average is below the smoothness most players expect.

Looking at the Medium preset, the pattern continues: 69.3 FPS at 1080p, 46.3 FPS at 1440p, and 25.5 FPS at 4K. The Ultra preset is the most demanding, with 36.4 FPS at 1080p, 26.6 FPS at 1440p, and just 14.2 FPS at 4K. The fact that Ultra at 1080p produces a lower frame rate than High at 1440p (36.4 vs 33.2) highlights how much headroom the settings menu can reclaim. The limiting component is unequivocally the GPU, as the CPU's 4 cores and 8 threads are not the constraining factor at these resolutions.

How This Combo Ranks

In the database of tested combinations for Outriders, this pairing of the i3-12100F and GTX 1650 ranks 1635 out of 1693 total combos. This places it in the bottom 4% of all systems tested, which is a low position reflecting the GPU's age and memory limitations. The GTX 1650 sits at the 43rd percentile among all GPUs, meaning it outperforms less than half of the graphics cards in the database. This is a modest standing for a card that was already entry-level at its launch.

The CPU, however, tells a different story. The i3-12100F ranks at the 72nd percentile among all CPUs, which is a surprisingly strong position for a budget quad-core. Its average benchmark score of 13516 is nearly identical to the AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 3975WX, which scores 13534 and represents a delta of just -0.1%. Similarly, it sits within 0.4% of the Intel Core i7-1250U and 0.6% of the Intel Core i3-10105. This indicates that the processor is not the weak link in this combination; it is the GPU that drags the overall combo ranking down.

The disparity between the CPU's high percentile and the GPU's lower percentile creates an imbalanced system. In Outriders, this imbalance manifests as a situation where lowering resolution does not proportionally increase frame rates because the GPU remains the bottleneck. The combo rank of 1635 out of 1693 should be interpreted as a warning: this is a system for 1080p gaming at reduced settings, not for high-refresh or high-resolution play.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 is built on the Turing architecture using a TU117 chip manufactured on a 12 nm process at TSMC. It features 896 shading units, 56 texture mapping units, and 32 raster output units, which are modest numbers by modern standards. The card's memory configuration is its most significant limitation: 4 GB of GDDR5 on a 128-bit bus provides 128.1 GB/s of bandwidth. In a looter shooter like Outriders, which loads many assets during combat encounters, this memory capacity can become a constraint at higher resolutions and texture settings.

The clock speeds are set at a base of 1485 MHz and a boost of 1665 MHz, with memory running at 2001 MHz (8 Gbps effective). These clocks contribute to a pixel rate of 53.28 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 93.24 GTexel/s. The card's FP32 performance is 2.984 TFLOPS, which is adequate for 1080p gaming but struggles as resolution increases. The 75 W TDP and lack of power connectors make it an efficient card, but efficiency does not translate to raw performance.

The benchmark data shows the GTX 1650's relative standing. Its 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score is 305, and its Passmark G3D score is 7880, placing it at the 43rd percentile. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 A Mobile (delta of -0.4%) and the AMD Radeon 550X (delta of -0.4%), which are all within 0.5% of each other. This clustering indicates that the GTX 1650 is at the bottom of a performance tier, and users should not expect it to handle demanding titles beyond basic settings.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in Outriders?

A: The data shows that 1920x1080 is the only resolution where average FPS exceeds 60 on any preset. At Low settings, it reaches 98.6 FPS, and at Medium it achieves 69.3 FPS. Higher resolutions produce sub-60 FPS averages across all settings.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The i3-12100F has an average benchmark score of 13516, placing it at the 72nd percentile. It is within 0.1% of the AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 3975WX (13534), 0.4% of the Intel Core i7-1250U (13462), and 0.6% of the Intel Core i3-10105 (13430). Its single-thread performance is particularly strong, with a 3DMark single-thread score of 893.

Q: Is the GTX 1650's 4 GB VRAM sufficient for Outriders?

A: The measured FPS data indicates that 4 GB is not enough for high-resolution play. At 3840x2160 Ultra, the average FPS is just 14.2, and at 2560x1440 Ultra it is 26.6. Even at 1080p Ultra, the average drops to 36.4 FPS, suggesting the memory capacity limits texture loading at higher settings.

Q: What is the combo's overall rank in Outriders?

A: This combination ranks 1635 out of 1693 tested combos in Outriders. This places it in the bottom 4% of all systems, reflecting the GPU's low position at the 43rd percentile among all graphics cards.

Q: Does the CPU bottleneck the GPU in this game?

A: No, the data suggests the opposite. The CPU scores at the 72nd percentile among all processors, while the GPU sits at the 43rd percentile. The frame rate drops from 1080p to 4K follow a GPU-limited pattern, indicating the GTX 1650 is the primary constraint.

Q: What is the launch price of the CPU?

A: The Intel Core i3-12100F has a launch MSRP of $97. This is the only pricing information available in the data.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i3-12100F is a 4-core, 8-thread processor based on the Alder Lake architecture, manufactured on Intel's 10 nm process. It has a base clock of 3.30 GHz and a boost clock of 4.30 GHz, which explains its strong single-thread performance. The CPU's cache hierarchy includes 80 KB of L1 per core, 1.25 MB of L2 per core, and 12 MB of shared L3 cache. This configuration delivers a 3DMark single-thread score of 893 and a Cinebench R23 single-core score of 1681, both of which are respectable for a quad-core part.

In multi-threaded workloads, the CPU shows its limitations. Its Cinebench R23 multi-core score is 11912, and its Passmark multithread score is 14015. These numbers are adequate for gaming but not exceptional for productivity. The CPU supports DDR4 and DDR5 memory in dual-channel mode, though the memory bandwidth is not listed. Its PCIe Gen 5 interface with 16 lanes provides ample bandwidth for the GPU, but the GTX 1650 uses PCIe 3.0 x16, which is backward compatible.

The benchmark results place the i3-12100F at the 72nd percentile among all CPUs, with an average score of 13516. Its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 3975WX, scores 13534, a difference of just -0.1%. This proximity to a high-end workstation chip underscores how efficient the Alder Lake architecture is at this price point. However, in Outriders, the CPU's capabilities are not the limiting factor; the GPU's performance ceiling dictates the overall experience. The CPU's 4.30 GHz boost clock ensures it can feed frames to the GPU without becoming a bottleneck at the tested settings.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data provides clear guidance for optimal settings. At 1920x1080, the Low preset delivers 98.6 FPS, which is well above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay. The Medium preset at 69.3 FPS is also viable, offering a better visual experience without sacrificing playability. The High preset at 55.5 FPS is borderline, acceptable for less demanding players, while the Ultra preset at 36.4 FPS should be avoided for consistent performance.

At 2560x1440, the situation changes. The Low preset produces 61.9 FPS, which is just above the playable threshold, making it the only viable option at this resolution. The Medium preset at 46.3 FPS and High at 33.2 FPS are not recommended for action-heavy gameplay, and Ultra at 26.6 FPS is too low. For 4K, the data shows that even Low settings only achieve 32.6 FPS, which is below acceptable playability for a looter shooter.

The best experience per the measured rows is at 1920x1080 with Medium settings, balancing the 69.3 FPS average with improved visual fidelity over Low. Players seeking maximum smoothness should use Low at 1080p to get 98.6 FPS. The Ultra preset is not recommended at any resolution, as even at 1080p it drops to 36.4 FPS, and at 4K it falls to 14.2 FPS. Given the GPU's 4 GB memory and 43rd percentile ranking, medium-to-low settings at 1080p are the practical ceiling for this combination in Outriders.