NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 TU116

Benchmark Performance

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 TU116 occupies a modest position in the performance hierarchy, sitting at the 50th percentile among all GPUs tracked in the database. This median placement indicates that the card delivers roughly average performance relative to the entire spectrum of graphics hardware, from entry-level integrated solutions to flagship enthusiast boards. The benchmark data shows a card that is firmly entrenched in the 1080p mainstream segment, where it can handle most titles at medium to high settings without excessive compromise.

The TU116 variant of the GTX 1650 represents a notable shift from the original GTX 1650 architecture. While the base clock of 1410 MHz and boost clock of 1590 MHz are modest by modern standards, the underlying Turing architecture provides efficiency gains that help the card punch slightly above its silicon size. The FP32 compute throughput of 2.849 TFLOPS places the card in a position where it can comfortably manage esports titles and older AAA games, but will struggle with the most demanding recent releases at maximum settings.

In terms of raw computational output, the card's texture rate of 89.04 GTexel/s and pixel rate of 50.88 GPixel/s indicate balanced processing capabilities. These figures suggest that the card can maintain consistent frame pacing in scenarios where geometry and texture work are evenly distributed. The fillrate numbers, while not class-leading, are sufficient for the card's target resolution and settings envelope.

The FP16 performance of 5.699 TFLOPS (2:1) shows that the TU116 chip includes some degree of half-precision acceleration, though this is unlikely to provide tangible benefits in most gaming workloads, which typically rely on FP32 operations. The 896 shading units and 56 texture mapping units work in concert to deliver the observed performance characteristics, with the 32 ROPs providing adequate back-end throughput for the card's memory subsystem.

Memory Subsystem

The GTX 1650 TU116 is equipped with 4 GB of GDDR6 memory, a significant upgrade over the GDDR5 found in the original GTX 1650. This memory configuration operates at an effective speed of 12 Gbps, which translates to a memory bandwidth of 192.0 GB/s across the 128-bit bus interface. This bandwidth figure represents a substantial improvement over what the older GDDR5 implementation could achieve, and it directly impacts performance in memory-intensive scenarios.

The 192.0 GB/s bandwidth is adequate for 1080p gaming, where the card's target resolution keeps memory pressure manageable. However, the 4 GB capacity presents a more significant limitation than the bandwidth itself. As game textures grow in complexity and size, the modest VRAM allocation can become a bottleneck in titles that aggressively stream high-resolution assets. Benchmark results indicate that the card maintains consistent performance in games that respect the 4 GB budget, but frame time spikes can occur when the memory pool is exhausted.

At high resolutions, the memory subsystem's constraints become more apparent. The 128-bit bus width, combined with the 4 GB capacity, means that the card is not well-suited to 1440p or 4K gaming, where both capacity and bandwidth demands increase substantially. The bandwidth figure of 192.0 GB/s, while respectable for the card's class, falls short of what would be required to maintain smooth frame rates in demanding titles at higher resolutions. For users who primarily play at 1080p, however, the memory configuration provides a balanced match to the GPU's compute capabilities.

Who Should Consider It

The GTX 1650 TU116 is best suited for gamers who operate within the 1080p resolution space and prioritize consistent frame rates over maximum visual fidelity. The benchmark percentile of 50 indicates that this card sits at the exact midpoint of GPU performance, which translates to a capable 1080p experience in most titles when settings are adjusted appropriately. Users who play competitive esports titles such as first-person shooters or multiplayer online battle arenas will find that the card can often push well beyond 60 frames per second at competitive settings.

For users who prefer single-player narrative games with higher visual demands, the GTX 1650 TU116 requires more careful settings management. At 1080p with medium presets, the card can deliver playable performance in most titles, though some of the most graphically intensive releases of recent years may necessitate dropping to a mix of low and medium settings to maintain smooth frame pacing. The 4 GB memory capacity means that texture quality settings should be monitored, as ultra textures in some titles can exceed the available VRAM.

The card's 80 W TDP and lack of power connectors make it an attractive option for users upgrading pre-built systems or small form factor builds where power delivery and physical space are constrained. The dual-slot design and 229 mm length are manageable for most mid-tower cases, while the 250 W suggested PSU requirement ensures compatibility with a wide range of existing power supplies. Users who do not require ray tracing capabilities and are content with 1080p gaming will find that the GTX 1650 TU116 meets their needs without unnecessary expenditure.

How It Compares

The GTX 1650 TU116's position in the market is defined by its relationship to the broader GeForce 16 and 20 series families. As a successor to the GeForce 10 series, it inherits a legacy of solid 1080p performance while adding the efficiency improvements of the Turing architecture. The card's production status as end-of-life means that it is being phased out in favor of newer offerings, but its performance characteristics remain relevant for budget-conscious builds.

When compared to its predecessor generation, the GeForce 10 series, the GTX 1650 TU116 offers improved efficiency and the benefits of the 12 nm process node from TSMC. The Turing architecture's architectural improvements, even without the ray tracing hardware found in higher-tier Turing cards, provide better instruction-level efficiency and power management. The absence of RT and tensor cores in this variant positions it as a pure rasterization performer, which aligns with its target market segment.

The card's successor, the GeForce 20 series, introduces hardware ray tracing capabilities that the GTX 1650 TU116 lacks. This generational gap means that users who anticipate wanting ray tracing features in the future would need to look toward the newer series. However, for users who prioritize traditional rasterized performance at 1080p, the GTX 1650 TU116's characteristics remain competitive, particularly given its modest power requirements and the fact that it does not require auxiliary power connectors.

Ray Tracing and Feature Set

The GTX 1650 TU116 does not include dedicated ray tracing cores or tensor cores, as these hardware components were reserved for the higher-tier GeForce 20 series cards. This omission means that the card relies entirely on traditional rasterization techniques for rendering, and it does not support hardware-accelerated ray tracing effects. Games that require ray tracing hardware will either disable these features or fall back to software-based approximations, which can significantly impact performance.

The card's API support is comprehensive for its generation, including DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. These modern API implementations ensure broad compatibility with contemporary games and applications, and they provide the necessary foundation for developers to extract performance through low-level hardware access. The DirectX 12_1 feature level indicates support for conservative rasterization and other advanced rendering techniques, while the Vulkan 1.4 support ensures cross-platform compatibility.

The display output configuration includes 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 2.0, and 1x DisplayPort 1.4a, which provides flexibility for connecting various display types. The DisplayPort 1.4a output supports high refresh rate monitors at 1080p, which aligns well with the card's performance envelope. The absence of tensor cores means that DLSS and other AI-accelerated features are unavailable, but the card's target resolution of 1080p reduces the need for such upscaling technologies. The feature set, while lacking ray tracing, covers the essentials for a mainstream gaming card of its era.