Should I buy the GTX 1650?

After its predecessor, the GTX 1050, humongous success in previous years, one would expect that the GTX 1650 would follow through. This is not the case and here we will explain why with some benchmarks, numbers and comparisons.

Should I buy the GTX 1650?

The GTX 1650 offers the best performance for its size and power consumption in 2020, but not the best performance for its price. If what you're looking for is price to performance ratio then the RX 570 is what you should buy. On the other hand if you're looking to build a small form factor PC, the GTX 1650 is an excellent option.

GTX 1650 in 2020

GTX 1650 Specifications


Announcement Date	April 23th, 2019
TDP	75 W
Suggested PSU	350 W
Power connector	None (not required)
Core Speed	1485 - 1665 (Boost) MHz
Memory Bus Width	128 Bit
Memory Type	GDDR5
Regular memory size	4 GB
Max memory size	4 GB
Architecture	Turing
Process size	12 nm
Transistors	4,700 million
Shading units	896
Features	Turing Mesh Shaders, G-Sync compatible.
Ports	1 x DVI, 1x HDMI, 1 x Display Port

The GTX 1650 was released in 2019 as a budget graphics card for desktop PCs that can run all games in 1080p. It is based on the Turing architecture and is the successor to the GTX 1050 and GTX 1050 Ti. Compared to the other graphics card in its generation (RTX 2000 GPUs), the GTX 1650 lacks Raytracing and Tensor cores.

Its direct competitors in price are the older RX 570 and the newer RX 5500, which both perform better than the GTX 1650. Performance-wise in the 75 W power consumption bracket (no power connector required), the GTX 1650 is second to none as of 2020.

The GTX 1650 has a laptop version too, which is a bit slower due to lower clock rates, although starting March 2020, the mobile version is also available with faster GDDR6 memory.

GTX 1650 gaming benchmarks


Game		Average FPS at 1080p High Presets
	Anno 1800	48
	Anthem	48
	Battlefield 5	52
	Borderlands 3	40
	Call of Duty Modern Warfare	61
	Control	33
	Dirt Rally2.0	87
	Far Cry New Dawn	60
	Fifa 20	219
	Final Fantasy XV	35
	Ghost Recon Breakpoint	46
	Grand Theft Auto 5	68
	Just Cause 4	58
	Minecraft	265
	Metro Exodus	31
	Shadow of the Tomb Raider	50
	The Division 2	55
	The Witcher 3	77
	Total War: Three Kingdoms	30

The graphics card works well in modern titles, with the exceptions of final fantasy XV and Metro Exodus, which run close to 30 fps (still playable), adjusting the graphics to medium is necessary if you want to achieve 50+ fps.

GTX 1650 eSports performance


Game		Average eFPS at 1080p High presets
	Apex Legends	71
	Counter Strike: Global Offensive	144
	Dota 2	127
	Fortnite	128
	League of Legends	157
	Overwatch	86
	PUBG	91

Frequently asked questions about the GTX 1650

Is the GTX 1650 worth it?

In desktop PCs the gtx 1650 is worth it only if you intend to build a small form factor PC that can run modern titles in 1080p and medium settings. If your intention is to build the best performing PC for this price, a RX 570 or RX 5500 is much more worth it.

Is the GTX 1650 future proof?

Currently the graphics card holds its own in modern titles at 1080p and high presets rendering playable frame rates. Nevertheless we expect this not to be the case for the near future, as you probably will need to lower the options to medium/low settings in order for most modern games to still be playable. Driver support is expected to be great for a few years. For better future proof at the same price range the RX 5500 is recommended.

Can GTX 1650 run all games?

Yes it can run most if not all games at 30+ FPS high setting in 1080p. In order to get close to 60 FPS tweaking down the graphical settings is needed, for example, Metro Exodus runs consistently 50+ FPS in medium settings.

Does GTX 1650 support 144 Hz?

Yes, although the graphics card doesn't render 144 FPS in modern AAA titles, it does so in most eSports in medium to high settings. League of Legends, Dota 2, Overwatch all run in 144+ FPS in the correct settings.

Is the GTX 1650 good for streaming?

It is good enough to stream eSport titles like League of Legends at decent (60+) frame rates and high presets. The mobile version will perform cool and silent while streaming if it is properly cooled, for example, in a Lenovo Legion model. Nevertheless an external microphone is necessary for noise cancelling. Check our streaming mic guide: https://gofullbuild.com/post/streaming-mic-guide/

Can the GTX 1650 run VR?

Yes it can, barely. We have to keep in mind the GTX 1650 is a budget small form factor graphics card, and as such it is capable of running VR games, but it is not a good experience.

Pros and cons of buying a GTX 1650 in 2020

Pros:

Low power consumption. Best performance per watt in the 75W bracket.
No power connector required.
Good for small form factor PCs and laptops.
Runs all modern games in 1080p and playable frame rates.

Cons:

Bad price to performance ratio, there are much better options like the RX 570 or RX 5500.
Not a really huge performance jump when compared to its predecessor, the NVIDIA GTX 1050 and GTX 1050Ti.
Lacks the technologies other NVIDIA graphics cards have in its architecture.

Best CPUs to pair with a GTX 1650

The only way a GTX 1650 makes sense in a budget/performance conscious build is if it is also a small form factor build. For that reason a CPU with a small footprint and low power consumption is appropriate to pair up with a GTX 1650. An Intel NUC is ideal for this, but let's also consider a case in which you build your own small form factor pc.

Small form factor options:

I3 10300T: The 10th gen Intel CPU offers a small footprint, low power consumption (only 35W and an option to lower it to 25W), 4 cores and it won't bottleneck a GTX 1650 as it performs well enough for it. Keep in mind that with turbo the CPU might consume more than 35W, which could hinder the ventilation in a small form factor pc.

Ryzen 3 3200GE: The AMD counterpart offers a 35W TDP, 4 cores and a performance that won't bottleneck a GTX 1650. It sells for around 115 USD, thus being not the best budget option, but a good one.

Budget oriented options:

Let's say you got the GTX 1650 really cheap or as a gift, then you're effectively doing a budget oriented build.

Ryzen 3 3100: With 4 cores/8 threads, an excellent performance and a very low price tag. This is the best option you could find as a budget oriented CPU. With a price of just around $99 there is no competition right now.

i3 10100: The Intel option offers a performance close to that of the Ryzen 3 3100, but with a price tag a bit higher (around $122), if the price goes lower this is going to be a very competitive option.

Options to the GTX 1650

The options near the price of a GTX 1650 are NVIDIA's GTX 1050, GTX 1650 SUPER and GTX 1060. In AMDs side you have the RX570, RX580, RX 5500 and RX 5600.


Graphics card	Price	Performance compared to the GTX 1650	TDP [W]
GTX 1650	$150	+0%	75
GTX 1050	$129	-47%	75
GTX 1650 SUPER	$160	+40%	100
GTX 1060 3GB	$170	+21%	120
RX 570	$120	+20%	120
RX 580	$159	+32%	185
RX 590	$218	+44%	175
RX 5500	$160	+42%	130

As you can see the GTX 1650 loses in everything exceptuating power consumption, where lower is better. A very good case can be made in favor of the GTX 1650 only in what consumption to performance refers. In any other way a RX 5500, RX 570 or a GTX 1650 SUPER are better.

Final thoughts

Let's put it this way: the graphics card is the best option you can find for an Intel NUC. For a real budget/performance oriented PC build the GTX 1650 is absolutely not a good option as of 2020. It seems like it is only there to make its brother look better, the GTX 1650 SUPER. Saving a bit more than three $2.99 iced coffees (or $10) you can get 40%+ performance in either a GTX 1650 SUPER or a RX5500. For a much cheaper price, the RX 570 performs about 10% better while being 2 years older and consuming more power.

iced coffee

Image By David Dewitt

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