The Medium

The Medium is a demanding horror title that relies heavily on both CPU and GPU resources, and the combination of the Intel Core Ultra 5 245 with the Intel Arc B390 produces a very specific performance profile. The data shows that this setup is positioned at the lower end of the spectrum, ranking 2581 out of 2911 tested combos, which places it in the bottom tier for playability. The measured frame rates across all resolutions and settings are consistently low, indicating that this pairing is suitable only for the most minimal graphical configurations. This analysis breaks down the benchmark results to explain exactly what users can expect from this hardware pairing in The Medium.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution and settings combination for this hardware in The Medium?

A: The only configuration that achieves a playable frame rate is 1920x1080 with Low settings, which produces an average of 51 FPS. All other settings at this resolution, and all settings at higher resolutions, fall below 43 FPS, with most being far lower.

Q: How does the Intel Core Ultra 5 245 CPU perform relative to its nearest rivals?

A: The CPU's average benchmark score of 48995 is nearly identical to its closest competitors. It is 0.4% slower than the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5755G and 0.5% slower than the AMD Ryzen 9 7900, while being 0.6% faster than the Intel Xeon Gold 5318H and 0.8% faster than the Intel Core i5-14600K.

Q: The Intel Arc B390 GPU has a low percentile ranking. What does that signify?

A: The GPU's percentile ranking of 9 indicates that it performs better than only 9% of all tested graphics cards. Its benchmark score of 1482 is just 1.3% higher than the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX and 2.7% higher than the NVIDIA GeForce GT 710, confirming its entry-level performance class.

Q: How much of a frame rate difference is there between Low and Ultra settings at 1080p?

A: The difference is substantial. Moving from Low to Ultra settings at 1920x1080 drops the average frame rate from 51 FPS to 18 FPS, a decrease of 33 FPS. The Medium preset sits between these, offering an average of 32 FPS.

Q: Does the CPU's strong multi-threaded performance translate into high frame rates in The Medium?

A: No. Despite the CPU scoring 32924 in the Cinebench R23 multi-core test, the overall system performance is bottlenecked by the GPU. The frame rates in-game are consistently low regardless of resolution, indicating the GPU is the limiting factor.

Q: Is the frame rate at 4K with Medium settings stable?

A: The data shows an average of 21 FPS with a minimum of 18 FPS and a maximum of 24 FPS at 3840x2160 on Medium settings. This indicates the frame rate is not stable and hovers in a range that is not fluid for gameplay.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 245 is a 14-core, 14-thread processor based on the Arrow Lake architecture, built on a 3 nm process. Its base clock of 3.50 GHz can boost up to 5.10 GHz, and it includes 24 MB of shared L3 cache. The benchmark results from the FACT PACK show this is a capable processor for productivity tasks, with a Cinebench R23 multi-core score of 32924 and a single-core score of 4648. Its average benchmark score of 48995 places it in the 90th percentile of all CPUs, showing that it is a strong performer in general compute workloads.

However, the in-game data reveals a different story. The measured FPS in The Medium shows little variance between different resolutions, which is a classic sign of a GPU bottleneck. For example, at High settings, the average frame rate is 23 FPS at 1920x1080 and drops only to 19 FPS at 2560x1440. If the CPU were the limiting factor, the frame rate would remain nearly constant regardless of resolution, but the significant drop from 1080p to 4K (from 23 to 15 FPS at High settings) indicates that the GPU is struggling to render frames at higher resolutions.

The CPU's performance relative to its peers is marginal. It is effectively tied with the AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 5755G and AMD Ryzen 9 7900, with a deltaPct of -0.4% and -0.5% respectively. It also performs within 1% of the Intel Xeon Gold 5318H and Intel Core i5-14600K. This means that in a system with a more powerful GPU, this CPU would not be a significant limiting factor compared to its direct rivals. In this specific configuration, the CPU has ample headroom, but the Arc B390 GPU cannot utilize it effectively, leaving the processor largely idle while the graphics card struggles to keep up.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B390 is an integrated graphics processor based on the Xe3-LPG architecture, built on a 3 nm process. It has a base clock of 300 MHz and a boost clock of 2500 MHz, with 1536 shading units. Its memory configuration is "System Shared," meaning it relies on the system's DDR5 memory with bandwidth that is "System Dependent." This is a fundamental limitation for gaming performance, as the GPU must compete with the CPU for memory bandwidth. The GPU's single benchmark score in the FACT PACK is 1482 from the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test, which places it in the 9th percentile of all GPUs.

The performance data shows this GPU is the primary bottleneck in this system. Its nearest rivals are the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX and GeForce 800M, from which it is only 1.3% and 1.5% faster, respectively. This context is crucial; the Arc B390 is not competing with modern discrete graphics cards but rather with legacy entry-level mobile parts. The measured frame rates in The Medium reflect this. At 1080p Low settings, the average FPS is 51, which is the only playable result in the entire dataset. At 4K Ultra, the average FPS plummets to 12, a signal of the GPU's inability to handle high resolutions and graphical loads.

The GPU's clock speed of 2500 MHz is relatively high, but it cannot compensate for the shared memory architecture and low compute throughput. The pixel rate of 60.00 GPixel/s and texture rate of 120.0 GTexel/s are insufficient for the demands of a game like The Medium at higher settings. The data shows a clear pattern: every step up in resolution or settings leads to a significant drop in frame rate, confirming that the Arc B390 is the definitive performance limiter. The game's horror atmosphere and fixed camera angles require consistent frame pacing, but the measured minimums, such as the 18 FPS at 4K Medium, show that this GPU cannot provide a stable experience.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core Ultra 5 245 and Intel Arc B390 ranks 2581 out of 2911 tested combos for The Medium. This places it in the bottom 12% of all tested systems, indicating that it is one of the weakest configurations for this specific title. The ranking is heavily influenced by the GPU's poor performance, as the CPU's percentile rank of 90 is in stark contrast to the GPU's rank of 9.

The disparity between the CPU and GPU performance creates an imbalanced system. The CPU is a modern, high-performance part that can handle complex game logic and physics, but the GPU is a low-end integrated solution. The benchmark results show that this pairing does not scale well. As the resolution increases from 1920x1080 to 3840x2160, the average FPS at Medium settings drops from 32 to 21. This suggests that the system is not entirely GPU-bound at lower resolutions, but the GPU quickly becomes overwhelmed as the pixel count increases.

In the context of the 2911 combos tested, this rank of 2581 signifies that users with this hardware will have a subpar experience in The Medium. The data indicates that this combo is not suited for the game's default graphical presets. While the CPU is more than capable, the GPU's limitations define the overall performance, relegating this system to the lower echelons of the benchmark database. The frame rates are consistently below the threshold for smooth, responsive gameplay, making this a configuration best suited for low-resolution and low-detail settings.

Settings Recommendations

Based on the measured FPS data, the only viable settings for a playable experience are at 1920x1080 with the Low preset, which yields an average of 51 FPS. This is the only configuration that approaches standard playability. The Medium preset at 1080p drops to 32 FPS, which is playable but may feel less fluid during intense scenes. All other settings and resolutions result in average frame rates below 30 FPS, which is generally considered the minimum for a playable game, and many are below 20 FPS.

The data does not support using higher resolutions. At 2560x1440, even the Low preset only achieves 43 FPS, and at 3840x2160, the Low preset drops to 34 FPS. For users who prioritize visual fidelity over frame rate, the Medium preset at 1920x1080 is the highest recommended setting, as it provides a balance between some graphical improvements and a playable frame rate. The High and Ultra presets are not recommended, as they produce average frame rates of 23 and 18 FPS respectively at 1080p, which will result in a sluggish and unresponsive experience. The minimum FPS data for the Medium preset (27 FPS at 1080p, 23 FPS at 1440p, and 18 FPS at 4K) shows that even this preset can have noticeable dips, so the Low preset remains the safest choice for consistent performance.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The following data is taken directly from the benchmark results for The Medium.

3840x2160 (4K)

• Ultra: Average 12 FPS.
• High: Average 15 FPS.
• Medium: Average 21 FPS, with a minimum of 18 FPS and a maximum of 24 FPS.
• Low: Average 34 FPS.

2560x1440 (1440p)

• Ultra: Average 15 FPS.
• High: Average 19 FPS.
• Medium: Average 27 FPS, with a minimum of 23 FPS and a maximum of 31 FPS.
• Low: Average 43 FPS.

1920x1080 (1080p)

• Ultra: Average 18 FPS.
• High: Average 23 FPS.
• Medium: Average 32 FPS, with a minimum of 27 FPS and a maximum of 37 FPS.
• Low: Average 51 FPS.

The data shows a clear linear progression. At 1080p, the jump from Low to Medium costs 19 FPS, and the jump from Medium to High costs another 9 FPS. At 1440p, the same transitions cost 16 FPS and 8 FPS respectively. The pattern repeats at 4K, where the Low to Medium transition costs 13 FPS. The scaling from 1080p to 1440p at Low settings (51 to 43 FPS) is an 8 FPS drop, and from 1440p to 4K (43 to 34 FPS) is a 9 FPS drop. This consistent degradation across resolutions confirms that the GPU's rendering capabilities are the primary constraint, with the Arc B390 unable to maintain acceptable performance beyond the most basic settings. The minimum FPS values for the Medium preset highlight the frame pacing issues, with all three resolutions dipping below their averages, making the experience feel less stable than the average numbers suggest.