How did we get here?
The simple answer is yes, but this question doesn’t have a simple answer. The target I usually set for a low budget gamer is between two hundred fifty and three hundred dollars. This video card will eat over half of that budget immediately. At between one hundred sixty and one seventy nine, this card is not a budget buy. What it does offer, however is great performance for its architecture. In particular, I’m talking about the 6GB version.
You see, NVidia in their infinite wisdom, has introduced another combination of different cards wit the same name. They have done this for years, like the GT1030 which came in DDR5, then DDR4. The GTX 1060 had a 6GB version and a 3GB. The RTX 3060 which had the standard 12GB, a Low Hash Version to prohibit crypto mining, and an 8GB version. They have even done it more recently by changing from DDR6x to DDR6 in some cards.
The RTX 3050 comes in two versions, or flavors if you prefer. The standard RTX3050 comes with 8GB of video memory, 256 more Cuda cores for processing, and a 1.78 GHz clock speed. The 6GB version runs with two less GB of video memory, the before mentioned shortage in processing power, and runs at 1.47 GHz. So, why would anyone buy the step-sibling?
Why I did it
The RTX3050 6GB version offers an advantage that the base version doesn’t. It has no need for external power. It is the closest thing NVidia has to a budget video card right now, placing it with the Arc A380 and the RX6400, though both are much cheaper. The offers from Intel and AMD respectively, also run on much less power and don’t need an external source, meaning a smaller power supply. Any of these cards can get by with a 300W power supply, maybe a little smaller, which means that Optiplex you picked up for 40 bucks, doesn’t need an upgrade and adapters.
In my case, I have a number of those old Dell PCs, some having 300W PSU’s or less. Until now, I have had to try the A380 or RX6400. Each of those has their own issue. The Arc A380 needs resizable bar, a configuration allowing data to flow more efficiently. Older gen hardware doesn’t support it, so performance suffers, horribly. The RX6400 runs on a four lane by PCIe 4.0 standard. Video cards of that era, all ran on 16 lanes. For comparison, NVMe SSDs run on four lanes. It is a sever limitation.
Some testing
The RTX 3050 6GB version runs on eight lanes, twice the bandwidth of the RX6400. It shows in testing, too. The RTX3050 consistently out performed the two other cards, sometimes by as much as double. In all cases, it was at least twenty percent better. But that was with a 12700KF, a recent CPU with PCIe 4.0 and resized bar, what about older stuff? I ran that too.
Running with a 4 core, 8 thread XEON E3-1270v3 from the $300 build , the results were all over the place with the RTX 3050 still outperforming overall, but with inconsistent numbers. I lead, sometimes by a few frames and other times by over twice as much. In all cases, it’s performance was predictable and replicable.
So, what’s next for the RTX3050?
This card will make the rounds on my testing bench for several weeks, then become part of a build. I’m not sure if that will be a budget build or something I would have put the GTX 1660 in, but I’m sure something like a micro ITX build will be very much to it’s liking and the small power requirement will also help keep the build cool. It’s not the cheapest card I’ve purchased, and it certainly isn’t the most expensive, so I’m not upset by the price, but this card really does need to retail for about twenty five dollars less than it does.
The reason it may not, is that it has a use case, like the RX6400. The AMD card is a single slot low profile that fits where other cards won’t, and although the performance suffers in older boxes, it’s still better than some alternatives. The 3050 has it’s place as well, with older machines that have the room, and it does perform well for it’s specs.
So, is it a budget card? No. Is it a card for a budget build? I’m saying yes and standing by my answer. It’s definitely a solid option for a budget minded build .
If you would like to read my other blogs, you can find them here. The video for the RTX 3050 can be found here.