Last week, NVIDIA introduced the GeForce RTX 3050 with 6 GB of graphics memory. There was no big announcement from NVIDIA itself, but some board partners have already presented their cards. In addition, the matching driver, GeForce 551.32, was released last week.
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The GeForce RTX 3050 is basically not a new card. Already in January 2022, the first models with 8 GB of graphics memory were introduced, which were supposed to cost $250. Technically, the situation with the GeForce RTX 3050 is somewhat complicated because there are already two retail versions and an OEM variant that differ in some details.
Initially, the GA106 GPU was used, later replaced by the GA107. Both are based on the Ampere architecture, albeit in slightly different configurations. However, the performance difference between the 2,560 and 2,304 FP32 compute units is expected to be minimal. All models had 8 GB of graphics memory connected to a 128-bit wide memory interface. The TDP of the models ranged from 115 to 130 W.
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NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 with 6 GB
The GeForce RTX 3050 with 6 GB again uses the GA107 GPU and the configuration with 2,304 FP32 compute units, 20 smart shaders, and thus 20 ray tracing units as well as 80 tensor cores. Noticeable is the comparatively low clock speed of 1,042 MHz, which can be increased to only 1,492 MHz via boost – this corresponds to the base clock of the previous GeForce RTX 3050 models. The reduced memory configuration from 8 GB to 6 GB is connected to a slimmed-down 96-bit memory interface. The memory bandwidth decreases from 224 to 168 GB/s.
Another feature of the GeForce RTX 3050 with 6 GB of graphics memory is the low TDP of only 70 W. As a result, the cards do not require additional power supply. With a price just under $200, the card is the first NVIDIA model to be released at $170 in over four years.
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Currently on the market are the MSI GeForce RTX 3050 Ventus 2X 6G OC, MSI GeForce RTX 3050 LP 6G OC, Palit GeForce RTX 3050 StormX, and the passively cooled Palit GeForce RTX 3050 KalmX.
First benchmarks from ComputerBase show that the performance of the GeForce RTX 3050 with 6 GB decreases by 25% when limited to a 70 W TDP. This is a good value considering the 47% reduced power consumption. In Cyberpunk 2077, the 6 GB model loses about 20%. Nevertheless, the GeForce RTX 3050 remains a GeForce RTX 3050, competing with a Radeon RX 7600 or perhaps more likely the Radeon RX 6600.
The importance of this performance range is difficult to assess. But the fact that NVIDIA and its partners are bringing such models to the market speaks for itself. However, the lack of a major announcement from NVIDIA shows that the model is not particularly important for the company.
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