Thief

The AMD Radeon 880M integrated GPU paired with the Intel Core Ultra 7 155H produces a very narrow playable window in Thief, with the data showing that this combo ranks 2787th out of 2851 tested configurations. The measured frames per second across resolutions and settings reveal a component pairing that is heavily constrained by the graphics processor, yet the CPU's capabilities still shape the overall experience in ways that are worth investigating.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data shows a steep and consistent drop as resolution increases from 1080p to 4K, which is the classic signature of a GPU-bound scenario. At Low settings, the average framerate falls from 73 FPS at 1920x1080 to 50 FPS at 2560x1440, then plummets to 29 FPS at 3840x2160. That is a 58% reduction in average FPS from 1080p to 4K, indicating that the rendering pipeline becomes the bottleneck almost immediately once pixel count rises.

The scaling pattern across all settings follows the same trajectory, though the absolute numbers shrink. At High settings, the average drops from 42 FPS at 1080p to 29 FPS at 1440p, then to 17 FPS at 4K. The gap between 1440p and 4K is particularly punishing: a 12 FPS loss at High, a 21 FPS loss at Low, and a 16 FPS loss at Medium. These deltas suggest that the Radeon 880M's fillrate and memory bandwidth are insufficient for 4K rendering, as even the lowest settings cannot maintain a fluid experience above 30 FPS.

What is more telling is the relationship between settings and resolution. At 1080p, the difference between Low and Ultra is 33 FPS (73 vs 40), which is a substantial spread. At 4K, that same Low-to-Ultra gap narrows to 13 FPS (29 vs 16). This compression of the settings range at higher resolutions implies that the GPU is saturated regardless of quality level, meaning the pixel workload dominates over shader complexity. The data suggests that the limiting component at 4K is unambiguously the integrated graphics processor, as no settings adjustment can recover meaningful performance.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon 880M is an integrated GPU based on the RDNA 3.5 architecture, built on a 4 nm process. Its boost clock reaches 2900 MHz, while the base clock sits at 400 MHz. The memory configuration is entirely system-shared, with bandwidth listed as system dependent, which means the GPU's performance is tied to the host platform's memory subsystem. The shading units number 768, with 48 texture mapping units and only 16 raster operation units, a configuration that explains the poor high-resolution performance seen in the measured rows.

The GPU's average benchmark score is 8436, placing it in the 43rd percentile among all GPUs. Its nearest rivals in the benchmark database are the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 675MX (average score 8427, deltaPct 0.1%), the NVIDIA GeForce MX330 (average score 8458, deltaPct -0.3%), and the AMD Radeon HD 8870M (average score 8462, deltaPct -0.3%). This places the 880M in the same performance tier as those older discrete mobile GPUs, which is notable because they all have dedicated memory while the 880M relies on shared system memory.

The 16 ROPs are particularly relevant to Thief's results. Raster operations are responsible for pixel output, and with only 16 available, the GPU struggles to fill a 4K frame. The texture rate of 139.2 GTexel/s and pixel rate of 46.40 GPixel/s are theoretical limits that the measured FPS data suggests are rarely approached at higher resolutions. The FP32 performance of 4.454 TFLOPS is modest for modern games, and the 12 ray tracing cores do not appear to provide any measurable benefit in this title, as Thief is a 2014 release that predates hardware ray tracing.

The GPU's DirectX 12 Ultimate support (12_2) is present in the API list, but Thief was released in 2014 and likely runs on older DirectX paths. The PassMark DirectX 11 score of 73 and DirectX 12 score of 32 are telling: the GPU is significantly better at older APIs, which aligns with the game's era. The data implies that the 880M's modern feature set is not being fully utilized by Thief, yet the raw rasterization performance is still the dominant constraint.

CPU Role

The Intel Core Ultra 7 155H is a 16-core, 22-thread processor from the Meteor Lake architecture, with a base clock of 3.80 GHz and a boost clock of 4.80 GHz. Its cache hierarchy includes 112 KB of L1 per core, 2 MB of L2 per core, and 24 MB of shared L3 cache. The CPU's average benchmark score is 32697, placing it in the 83rd percentile among all CPUs, which indicates a strong processor relative to the broader market.

The nearest CPU rivals in the database are the Intel Core i5-14600T (average score 32707, deltaPct 0%), the AMD Ryzen AI 7 PRO 360 (average score 32662, deltaPct 0.1%), and the AMD Ryzen 5 7400F (average score 32750, deltaPct -0.2%). The Core Ultra 7 155H sits essentially at parity with these chips, with a negligible 0.1% to 0.4% difference. This means the CPU is not a differentiating factor in the measured results; it is more than capable of feeding the GPU in Thief.

The CPU's single-thread performance, as measured by Cinebench R23, is 1743 points, while multi-core reaches 15028 points. For a 2014 game like Thief, which is likely not heavily multithreaded, the single-core score is the more relevant metric. The PassMark single-thread score of 3468 confirms that the CPU is well above the minimum requirements for the game. The data suggests that the CPU is never the bottleneck in any of the measured configurations, as the FPS numbers scale almost entirely with resolution and settings, not with CPU workload variations.

The memory bandwidth of 89.6 GB/s is a shared resource between the CPU and the integrated GPU. Since the Radeon 880M uses system-shared memory, the CPU's memory controller and bandwidth allocation directly impact GPU performance. The dual-channel memory bus provides sufficient bandwidth for the CPU's own tasks, but the GPU's demands at 4K likely strain the same bus, contributing to the steep FPS drop at that resolution.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo rank of 2787 out of 2851 tested configurations places this pairing in the bottom 2.3% of all tested combos for Thief. This is a very low ranking, which is expected given that the Radeon 880M is an integrated GPU with only a 43rd percentile standing among all GPUs. The CPU, despite its 83rd percentile ranking, cannot compensate for the GPU's limitations in a game that is heavily GPU-bound at higher resolutions.

The rank disparity between the CPU and GPU is the key insight here. The Core Ultra 7 155H is in the top 17% of all CPUs, while the Radeon 880M is in the bottom 57% of all GPUs. This creates a severe imbalance in the combo, where the CPU's potential is largely wasted in Thief because the GPU cannot render frames fast enough to utilize the CPU's processing power. The data shows that even at 1080p Low settings, where the GPU is least stressed, the average FPS is only 73, which is well below what the CPU could support if paired with a stronger GPU.

The near-rival GPU comparisons reinforce this ranking. The Radeon 880M is within 0.3% of the NVIDIA GeForce MX330 and AMD Radeon HD 8870M in average benchmark scores, which are all entry-level or aging mobile GPUs. In Thief, this translates to a playable experience only at 1080p with Low settings, and even then, the 73 FPS average does not leave much headroom for demanding scenes. The combo rank of 2787 suggests that most other tested configurations, including those with older discrete GPUs, outperform this pairing in this specific game.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the measured average FPS ranges from 73 at Low settings to 40 at Ultra. The Medium preset yields 55 FPS, and High yields 42 FPS. The Medium settings also have recorded min and max values of 47 and 63 FPS, respectively, showing a 16 FPS spread that indicates some scene-to-scene variability. The Low setting has no min/max data, but the average suggests a comfortable experience for a 60 Hz display, though not for high-refresh displays.

At 2560x1440, the averages drop to 50 FPS at Low, 38 FPS at Medium, 29 FPS at High, and 27 FPS at Ultra. The Medium preset's min and max are 32 and 43 FPS, a narrower 11 FPS spread than at 1080p, which suggests the GPU is becoming more consistently saturated. The gap between High and Ultra at this resolution is only 2 FPS, indicating that the Ultra preset's additional effects do not meaningfully tax the GPU further, likely because the pixel workload dominates.

At 3840x2160, the averages are 29 FPS at Low, 22 FPS at Medium, 17 FPS at High, and 16 FPS at Ultra. The Medium preset has min and max values of 19 and 26 FPS, which is a 7 FPS spread. None of these averages reach the 30 FPS threshold that is generally considered the minimum for playable frame rates, and the Low setting barely misses it at 29 FPS. The data shows a clear cliff between 1440p and 4K, where the GPU simply runs out of resources regardless of quality settings.

The scaling from Low to Ultra at each resolution is as follows: at 1080p, the spread is 33 FPS; at 1440p, it is 23 FPS; at 4K, it is 13 FPS. This diminishing return on settings adjustments as resolution increases confirms that the GPU's pixel fillrate is the primary constraint. The measured rows show no data for min or max FPS at most settings, which limits the analysis of frame pacing, but the available Medium preset data shows that frame variability decreases at higher resolutions, suggesting a more stable but lower frame rate.

Settings Recommendations

The measured FPS data points to 1920x1080 with Low settings as the only configuration that delivers a consistently smooth experience, with an average of 73 FPS. This is the recommended preset for players who prioritize frame rate stability over visual fidelity. The Low setting at 1440p yields 50 FPS, which is playable but not ideal for fast-paced stealth sequences, and the 4K Low setting at 29 FPS is borderline and likely to cause noticeable stutter.

For players who prefer medium visual quality, the 1080p Medium preset at 55 FPS is a viable alternative, with a min of 47 FPS that stays above the 30 FPS playability threshold. However, the 1440p Medium preset at 38 FPS is less advisable, as it drops below 40 FPS and the min of 32 FPS approaches the stutter threshold. The High and Ultra presets at 1080p (42 and 40 FPS) are playable but offer no significant visual advantage over Medium for this GPU, and the 1440p High and Ultra presets (29 and 27 FPS) are not recommended.

The data indicates that the Ultra preset at any resolution above 1080p is not viable, with 4K Ultra at 16 FPS being effectively unplayable. The recommended strategy is to use 1080p Low for the best frame rate, or 1080p Medium if the user can tolerate a 18 FPS average drop for improved visuals. At 1440p, only the Low preset is acceptable, and 4K should be avoided entirely given that even Low settings fail to reach 30 FPS.

FAQ

*Q: What is the best resolution and settings combo for this hardware in Thief?*

A: The measured data shows that 1920x1080 with Low settings produces the highest average FPS at 73, making it the optimal configuration. The 1080p Medium preset at 55 FPS is a secondary option for better visuals.

*Q: Can this combo run Thief at 4K?*

A: No, the data shows that even at 4K Low settings, the average FPS is only 29, which is below the 30 FPS playability threshold. All other 4K presets yield averages between 16 and 22 FPS.

Q: How does the Radeon 880M compare to its nearest GPU rivals?

A: The Radeon 880M has an average benchmark score of 8436, placing it within 0.3% of the NVIDIA GeForce MX330 (8458) and AMD Radeon HD 8870M (8462), and 0.1% above the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 675MX (8427).

Q: Is the Intel Core Ultra 7 155H a bottleneck in this game?

A: The CPU ranks in the 83rd percentile among all CPUs with an average score of 32697, while the GPU ranks in the 43rd percentile. The FPS scaling with resolution indicates the GPU is the limiting component, not the CPU.

Q: What is the frame rate variability at Medium settings?

A: At 1080p Medium, the min and max FPS are 47 and 63, respectively. At 1440p Medium, they are 32 and 43, and at 4K Medium, they are 19 and 26. The spread narrows as resolution increases.

Q: How does the combo rank compare to other tested configurations?

A: This pairing ranks 2787th out of 2851 tested combos in Thief, placing it in the bottom 2.3% of all tested configurations.