Key Points
- The NVIDIA GTX 1650 was released in 2019 as an entry-level budget gaming card that delivers solid 1080p resolution gaming at an inexpensive price.
- The GTX 1650 features 896 CUDA cores and 4GB of GDDR5 VRAM, providing a smooth gaming experience at 1080p resolution.
- The GTX 1650 is a mid-range GPU based on the Turing architecture, but it does not support ray tracing and lacks many of the advanced features of higher-end cards.
- The GTX 1650 retails for around $149, making it one of the most sought-after 1080p GPUs.
- The GTX 1650 is a power-efficient card with a low power draw of 75W, but some models may require a six-pin power connector.
- The GTX 1650 is suitable for gaming on 1080p with high presets, but it falls within the same price range as the GTX 1050 and competes against the RX 570 from AMD.
- Benchmarks show that the GTX 1650 performs well at 1080p on high settings, but it may not offer the best price-to-performance ratio compared to other GPUs in its price range.
NVIDIA released the GTX 1650 towards the end of the Turing graphics cards lifecycle. The GTX 1650 was the ideal card for the entry-level budget gamer in 2019. To this day, the card performs well and lives up to the reputation it gained in 2019 for delivering solid 1080p resolution gaming at an inexpensive price.
If you’re building your first gaming computer or haven’t built a PC in a while, you’ve likely come across the GTX 1650 in your search for a graphics card. It’s been widely reviewed, re-released by NVIDIA, and comes at a solid budget price point. But does this make it the right GPU for you?
In today’s article, we’ll dive into all of this GPU’s specs, features, benefits, and drawbacks. Let’s get started.
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650: Overview
Nvidia released the GTX 1650 as the more affordable option of the GTX 1660, one of the most popular cards of the GTX 1600 series, in 2019. The GTX 1650 allowed gamers to experience some of what was, at the time, cutting-edge features, including the entry-level point for ray-tracing and AI acceleration.
The GTX 1650 has 896 CUDA cores, which is considerably lower than the amount of CUDA cores provided by the next level up, the 1660, which provides you with 1408 CUDA cores. The aim of NVIDIA in releasing the GTX 1650 was to provide gamers with a smooth, 1080p gaming experience that could handle most games easily.
The reality of the GTX 1650’s performance slightly differs from NVIDIA’s stated intentions in releasing the card. While it does provide gamers with a 1080p, it’s not always the smoothest experience. The GTX 1650 comes with 4GB of GDDR5 VRAM.
- 128-bit memory interface
- 4GB GDDR5 video memory
- DisplayPort, DVI, HDMI output
- Up to 70% faster than the GTX 1050
At the time of the GTX 1650’s release, GDDR6 memory was becoming the norm for graphics cards and was featured in the 1660 Ti. However, GDDR5 VRAM is powerful enough to run most games with a steady 60 FPS in 1080p resolution.
The GTX 1650 is a mid-range GPU based on the Turing architecture with a TU117 chip that supports DirectX 12. While the Turing architecture introduced ray tracing for the first time in the NVIDIA graphics card, don’t expect to enable it with the GTX 1650 as it doesn’t feature any ray tracing cores.
Essentially, the GTX 1650 is a 1080p graphics card that strips away many of the bells and whistles that NVIDIA delivered with the Turing architecture.
Release Date and Price
NVIDIA unveiled the GTX 1650 on October 29, 2019, and the card was released in the summer of 2020 for an asking price of $149. For gaming, the MSRP of $149 was a great price point for an entry-level 1080p graphics card.
Today, the GTX 1650 still retails for around the $149 price point, making it one of the most sought-after 1080p GPUs.
Different Models
In total, the GTX 1600 lineup featured several entry-level graphics cards that were ideal for budget-friendly PC builds. The lineup consists of:
- GeForce GTX 1650
- GeForce GTX 1650 Ti
- GeForce GTX 1630
- GeForce GTX 1660
- GeForce GTX 1660 Super
Features
The GTX 1650 uses the same Turing architecture as the GTX 1660 but with significantly fewer CUDA cores and texture units, making it notably less powerful than the GTX 1660. The GTX 1650 utilizes the TU117 chipset, a smaller and less powerful variant of the TU116 that is featured in cards like the GTX 1660 and 1660 Super.
Featuring DirectX 12, G-SYNC, and plug-and-play drivers, the GTX 1650 provides everything you need to start using the GPU immediately after installing it into your system. While ray tracing isn’t achievable with the 1650, there is some improved shading and 3D rendering thanks to the 896 CUDA cores.
One of the GTX 1650’s most notable features is its impressive power efficiency. The card only requires a power draw of 75W, meaning that you should be able to power the card entirely off of the PCIe x16 lane you plug it into.
However, this is up to the specific version of the graphics card you purchase. Always make sure to check the power requirements of each individual card before committing to a purchase.
Specifications
| Graphics Processor | Turing 117 |
| CUDA Cores | 896 |
| Power Draw | 75W |
| Base Clock Speed | 1485 MHz |
| Boost Clock Speed | 1665 MHz |
| Memory | 4GB of GDDR5 VRAM |
| Slots Required | 1 PCIe |
| Display Outputs | 1 x HDMI 2.0, 1 x DisplayPort 1.4a, 1 x DVI |
NVIDIA GTX 1650 Review
NVIDIA has always been on the cutting edge of researching and developing new graphics cards, but it has traded places with AMD for years in terms of who makes the best GPUs regarding price to performance.
With the GTX 1650, NVIDIA hoped to take some ground that AMD had taken in the 1080p graphics card market. But is it the best card for 1080p gaming on a budget in today’s world of overpriced GPUs and advancing tech?
Power and Efficiency
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Probably one of the biggest reasons to consider the 1650 is its low power consumption. The GTX 1650 is rated for a power draw of 75W in its base configuration. This allows you to power the card entirely from the PCIe lane without the need for a power connector.
But before you get too excited, most third-party models of the GTX 1650 require a six-pin power connector even though they are still rated for 75W TDP. In fact, one of the biggest complaints about the 1650 is the confusion surrounding the power connector.
Make sure you have a power supply with enough wattage and a spare six-pin power connector just in case you buy one that requires it.
Compatibility and Cooling
The GTX 1650 is a small form-factor card thanks to its low TDP rating and comes as either a single or double-blower fan setup. If you are working on building a small form-factor desktop, the GTX 1650 will be sure to fit, thanks to its slim profile.
The card requires one PCIe lane and won’t take up too much space on a mini-ITX motherboard. Regarding cooling, the GTX 1650 comes in either single-fan or double-fan setups.
The cooler is simple, but there hasn’t been much to note regarding issues with GTX 1650s overheating. There are several special edition versions of the GTX 1650 by companies like GIGABYTE and ASUS, which have specialized coolers to keep the GTX 1650 ice cold.
Graphics Quality
The overall graphics quality of the GTX 1650 puts it in the range of cards that are suitable for gaming on 1080p with ‘High’ presets. While it is possible to game on ultra settings with the GTX 1650 in 1080p resolution, this card hits its sweet spot when gaming on high presets instead of ultra.
- 128-bit memory interface
- 4GB GDDR5 video memory
- DisplayPort, DVI, HDMI output
- Up to 70% faster than the GTX 1050
The GTX 1650 is the successor to the GTX 1050, and in terms of pricing, it falls within the same range as the GTX 1050. And, more often than not, you can get the GTX 1050 for a lower price than the GTX 1650.
Additionally, the GTX 1650 competes against the RX 570 from AMD. To show the comparative performance, we have compiled a list of benchmarks for us to examine the GPUs within.
Benchmarks
To get an idea of how the GTX 1650 performs relative to the competition, we gathered benchmarks from a few of the closest rivals. Each graphics card here is the base manufacturer model, and the settings tested for are a 1920 x 1080 resolution in the following games set at high quality.
| Title | GTX 1650 | GTX 1050 | RX 570 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forza Horizon 5 | 62 FPS | 32 FPS | 56 FPS |
| Counter-Strike: Global Offensive | 152 FPS | 134 | 226 FPS |
| Resident Evil Village | 63 FPS | 42 FPS | 105 FPS |
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 28 FPS | 30 FPS | 46 FPS |
| PUBG | 86 FPS | 43 FPS | 69 FPS |
| Destiny 2 | 69 FPS | 76 FPS | 126 FPS |
| Grand Theft Auto: V | 53 FPS | 49 FPS | 79 FPS |
As these benchmarks show, while the GTX 1650 is undoubtedly a capable card for gaming at 1080p on high settings, it is comparable to both the GTX 1050 that it succeeds and the competing RX 570 from 2019.
While these benchmarks show that it’s by no means a bad 1080p GPU, it doesn’t exactly hit the mark when it comes to price-to-performance as you can find both the 1050 and RX 570 for often cheaper than the GTX 1650.
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GTX 1650: Pros and Cons
Pros:
- An efficient power rating of 75W TDP
- Solid 1080p gaming on high settings
- The small form factor is ideal for micro-ITX builds
Cons:
- Not much faster than its predecessor
- Often more expensive than competing 1080p GPUs
NVIDIA GTX 1650: Is It a Buy?
Buy it if…
You are looking for an inexpensive GPU for 1080p gaming.
The GTX 1650 is made for 1080p gaming. It doesn’t have all the bells and whistles of the high-end cards, so it won’t be as much of an investment. For the price, you get all the 1080p performance you could ask for.
You are looking for a smaller GPU.
If you have a case that can’t fit a larger card, the GTX 1650 has a slim profile, making it easy to fit into the smallest of cases. Additionally, since some models can power themselves via the PCIe slot, they are perfect for compact PCs.
You need a new graphics card for an older PC.
If you want a cheap card to sweeten the performance on an older PC, but don’t want to dump too much money into aging hardware, this GPU is the perfect compromise.
Don’t Buy it if…
You are looking to play games at a resolution higher than 1080p.
While the GTX 1650 does provide a decent experience, it’s not the most capable, especially true when gaming on ultra settings. It has a high price-to-performance ratio when compared to competing GPUs in the price range. 1440p and 4K are unlikely on this GPU, at least for any games made in the past decade.
You are looking for the best price-to-performance ratio in a budget graphics card.
If your goal is to max out the performance you can get for the money, this might not be the best card. Competing models like the RX 570 and the GTX 1660 offer better performance for a similar price.
The image featured at the top of this post is ©Dmitriev Mikhail/Shutterstock.com.
