Thief

Intel Core Ultra 5 235 paired with Intel Arc B390 is a combination that lands near the bottom of the benchmark charts for Thief. With a combo rank of 2534 out of 2851 tested configurations, this system is positioned in the 11th percentile of all measured setups. The data shows a platform that is heavily constrained by its integrated graphics solution, resulting in frame rates that are playable only at lower resolutions and settings.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data reveals a clear hierarchy across the four available presets. At 1080p, the Low preset delivers an average of 86 FPS, which is the only configuration in the entire dataset that approaches high-refresh-rate territory. This drops to 66 FPS at Medium, 50 FPS at High, and 48 FPS at Ultra. The step from Low to Medium costs 20 FPS, while the jump from High to Ultra costs only 2 FPS, indicating diminishing returns at the top end.

At 1440p, the pattern shifts downward significantly. Low produces 59 FPS average, which is still technically playable, but Medium falls to 45 FPS and both High and Ultra sit at 34 and 33 FPS respectively. The 4K results are uniformly poor: Low manages 35 FPS, Medium 26 FPS, High 20 FPS, and Ultra 19 FPS. No 4K preset reaches the 30 FPS threshold except Low, and even that is marginal.

The best experience for this combo is the Low preset at 1080p. It is the only measured configuration that provides a comfortable margin above 60 FPS. The Medium preset at 1080p offers 66 FPS and is a reasonable compromise if visual fidelity matters, but the 20 FPS penalty compared to Low is substantial for a stealth game where smooth camera movement aids awareness. At higher resolutions, the Low preset remains the only viable option, though players should expect frame rates below 60 FPS at 1440p and below 40 FPS at 4K.

Ultra settings are not recommended under any resolution. The 48 FPS at 1080p and 33 FPS at 1440p are playable but inconsistent, and the 19 FPS at 4K is a slideshow. The data indicates that this integrated GPU lacks the headroom for maximum quality presets, making Low the default choice and Medium a secondary option only at 1080p.

GPU Role

The Intel Arc B390 is an integrated graphics processor based on the Xe3-LPG architecture, built on Intel's 3 nm process. It features 1536 shading units, 48 texture mapping units, and 24 raster operation pipelines. The GPU operates with a base clock of 300 MHz and a boost clock of 2500 MHz, producing a pixel rate of 60.00 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 120.0 GTexel/s. Its FP32 performance is rated at 7.680 TFLOPS.

The most significant limitation of this GPU is its memory configuration. The Arc B390 uses System Shared memory, meaning it draws from the system's DDR5 RAM rather than dedicated VRAM. The memory bus width is also listed as System Shared, and bandwidth is System Dependent. This architecture means performance is tied directly to the host system's memory speed and configuration, which in this case is the Core Ultra 5 235's dual-channel DDR5 with 102.4 GB/s bandwidth.

The benchmark results reflect this constraint. In 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, the Arc B390 scores 1482 points, placing it in the 9th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX at 1463 points (1.3% slower), the NVIDIA GeForce 800M at 1460 points (1.5% slower), the NVIDIA GeForce GT 625 OEM at 1446 points (2.5% slower), and the NVIDIA GeForce GT 710 at 1443 points (2.7% slower). These are all entry-level discrete GPUs from over a decade ago, underscoring how far behind modern integrated solutions this part sits.

In Thief specifically, the GPU is the clear bottleneck at every resolution. The frame rate scaling from 1080p to 4K shows a consistent drop that aligns with pixel-count increases rather than CPU limitations. The 1080p Low result of 86 FPS falls to 35 FPS at 4K Low, a 59% reduction that tracks closely with the 4x pixel count difference. The GPU's 24 ROPs and shared memory bandwidth simply cannot feed the framebuffer fast enough at higher resolutions.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 5 235 is a 14-core, 14-thread processor based on the Arrow Lake architecture, manufactured on TSMC's 3 nm process. It has a base clock of 3.40 GHz and a boost clock of 5.00 GHz. The cache hierarchy includes 192 KB of L1 per core, 3 MB of L2 per core, and 24 MB of shared L3 cache. The CPU supports DDR5 memory in dual-channel configuration with a theoretical bandwidth of 102.4 GB/s.

In synthetic benchmarks, the Core Ultra 5 235 demonstrates solid mid-range performance. Its Cinebench R23 multi-core score is 14769, with a single-core score of 2085. PassMark results show a multi-thread score of 37816 and a single-thread score of 4516. The processor ranks in the 89th percentile of all CPUs, with an average benchmark score of 46062. Its nearest rivals are the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 375 at 46030 points (0.1% faster), the Intel Core i9-13900HX at 46098 points (0.1% faster), the AMD EPYC 4364P at 45970 points (0.2% slower), and the AMD EPYC 7303 at 45960 points (0.2% slower).

The CPU's performance in Thief is largely irrelevant because the GPU bottlenecks so severely. At 1080p Low, the system achieves 86 FPS, which is likely near the CPU's frame generation limit for this game given its single-threaded nature. However, at higher settings and resolutions, the frame rate drops are entirely attributable to the GPU. The CPU's 5.00 GHz boost clock and strong single-thread score of 2085 in Cinebench R23 suggest it could push higher frame rates if paired with a more capable GPU.

The 14 threads are more than sufficient for Thief, a 2014 title that does not scale beyond a handful of cores. The CPU's percentile rank of 89 versus the GPU's percentile rank of 9 highlights the massive imbalance in this pairing. The processor is a modern mid-range part that would be competitive in contemporary games, but it is hamstrung by the integrated graphics solution.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of Intel Core Ultra 5 235 and Intel Arc B390 ranks 2534 out of 2851 tested combos in Thief. This places the system in the bottom 11% of all configurations, a position that reflects the GPU's limitations rather than the CPU's capabilities. The data shows that this combo sits below the vast majority of tested systems, including those with older discrete GPUs.

The gap between this combo and higher-ranked configurations is substantial. The GPU's nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks are all legacy discrete parts from the GT 700 series or earlier, and none of these would be considered gaming-capable by modern standards. In Thief, this translates to frame rates that are playable only at 1080p Low, while most other tested systems would likely handle the game at higher settings.

The rank discrepancy between the CPU and GPU is instructive. The Core Ultra 5 235 ranks in the 89th percentile of all CPUs, while the Arc B390 ranks in the 9th percentile of all GPUs. This 80-point gap in percentiles indicates a severely unbalanced configuration. The CPU is capable of far more than the GPU can deliver, and in Thief, the GPU caps performance so low that the CPU's advantages are never realized.

For context, the combo's rank of 2534 means there are only 317 tested configurations that perform worse. These would likely be systems with even older integrated graphics or severely underclocked laptops. The data suggests that this combo is only suitable for very light gaming or esports titles at low settings, not for a game like Thief that, while older, still requires a minimum level of graphics throughput.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data provides a clear picture of how this combo scales across resolutions. Moving from 1080p to 1440p at the Low preset drops the average from 86 FPS to 59 FPS, a 31% reduction. Scaling further to 4K Low yields 35 FPS, another 41% reduction from 1440p. At the Medium preset, the progression is 66 FPS at 1080p, 45 FPS at 1440p, and 26 FPS at 4K, representing drops of 32% and 42% respectively.

The High preset shows a similar pattern: 50 FPS at 1080p, 34 FPS at 1440p, and 20 FPS at 4K. The Ultra preset delivers 48 FPS at 1080p, 33 FPS at 1440p, and 19 FPS at 4K. The consistency of these percentage drops across all presets indicates that the scaling is purely resolution-driven, with no CPU involvement. If the CPU were a factor, the drops would become less severe at higher resolutions as the GPU becomes more dominant. Instead, the drops remain proportional to pixel count increases.

The 1080p to 4K transition represents a 4x increase in pixel count. The observed frame rate drops range from 56% (High: 50 to 20 FPS) to 59% (Low: 86 to 35 FPS). This close correlation to the theoretical 75% reduction for a perfectly GPU-bound scenario shows that the Arc B390 is the sole limiting component. The CPU's strong single-thread performance is entirely wasted because the GPU cannot maintain even modest frame rates at higher resolutions.

The data also shows that the gap between Low and Ultra settings narrows as resolution increases. At 1080p, Low delivers 86 FPS versus 48 FPS at Ultra, a 38 FPS spread. At 4K, Low delivers 35 FPS versus 19 FPS at Ultra, a 16 FPS spread. This compression indicates that at higher resolutions, the GPU is so saturated that settings changes have less impact on absolute frame rates.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution and settings combination for this system?

A: The 1080p Low preset delivers 86 FPS average, which is the only configuration above 60 FPS. The 1440p Low preset manages 59 FPS, while all 4K presets fall below 35 FPS.

Q: How does the Intel Arc B390 compare to its nearest rivals in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The Arc B390 scores 1482 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12. It is 1.3% faster than the NVIDIA GeForce GT 520MX, 1.5% faster than the NVIDIA GeForce 800M, 2.5% faster than the NVIDIA GeForce GT 625 OEM, and 2.7% faster than the NVIDIA GeForce GT 710.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU the limiting factor in Thief?

A: The GPU is the bottleneck at every resolution. The frame rate drops from 1080p to 4K track closely with pixel count increases, and the GPU ranks in the 9th percentile while the CPU ranks in the 89th percentile.

Q: What is the combo's overall rank among tested systems in Thief?

A: The combination ranks 2534 out of 2851 tested combos, placing it in the bottom 11% of all configurations.

Q: How does the CPU's synthetic performance compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The Core Ultra 5 235 has an average benchmark score of 46062. It is 0.1% slower than the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 375, 0.1% slower than the Intel Core i9-13900HX, 0.2% faster than the AMD EPYC 4364P, and 0.2% faster than the AMD EPYC 7303.

Q: Can this system play Thief at Ultra settings?

A: Ultra settings are playable only at 1080p with 48 FPS average. At 1440p, Ultra drops to 33 FPS, and at 4K, it falls to 19 FPS, which is below acceptable playability thresholds.