Well, that was a little thing, wasn’t it? Nvidia quietly launched his RTX 3050 6GB. At first glance, this is an unattractive and slow version of the graphics card he has been on the market for nearly three years.
According to Computer Base’s benchmarks for retail cards purchased, it had a little over 20% difference against the RTX 3050 8G in some of the benchmarks we ran. This puts performance on par with the GTX 1650 Super and Radeon RX 6500 XT. It’s not an attractive upgrade unless you’re upgrading from a lower end from a few years ago.
Specifications include a GA107 GPU with 8GB 14Gbps GDDR6 with 2,304 CUDA cores, 1492MHz boost clock, and 96-bit bus. The launch price is $169, at least for the MSI RTX 3050 6GB Ventus 2X we tested. It’s not very exciting, is it?
But it’s not all bad. Some users find some of its characteristics appealing. Notably, the 70W TDP means no external power is required. This means all your old OEM PCs and repurposed office machines can be easily connected. It also means that low profile and passive models will be available, with Palit introducing his KalmX version. I definitely think there is some charm there.
Still, $169 is too expensive. Cards like the Intel Arc A580 are faster and have a better feature set for about $10 more, but move up the ranks to $200 and you’ll get the much faster RX 6600, which beats the RTX 3050 8GB. I can get it.
| Header Cell – Column 0 | RTX3050 6GB | RTX3050 8GB |
|---|---|---|
| GPU | GA107-325 | GA106-150 |
| CUDA core | 2,304 | 2,560 |
| Core/boost clock | 1,042MHz / 1,492MHz | 1,552MHz / 1,777MHz |
| memory | 6GB 14Gbps GDDR6 | 8GB 14Gbps GDDR6 |
| memory bus | 96 bit | 128 bit |
| TGP | 70W | 130W |
| release date | February 2, 2024 | January 4, 2022 |
| price | $169 | $249 |
Nvidia will say you get RTX capabilities (although you don’t get DLSS 3 or frame generation niceties) and ray tracing support. At this level it doesn’t make much sense.
At $169, the RTX 3050 6G doesn’t go down as one of the best graphics card deals of 2024. But for those looking for a card that doesn’t require an external power supply, decent performance per watt, low-profile or fanless options, or a card to reinvigorate an old clunker with a garbage power supply, it’s a good option. It looks like.
If these characteristics appeal to you, but you can’t or don’t want to spend more money on a card with much better gaming performance, the RTX 3050 6G is probably worth considering.
Still, I find it very hard to get excited about a slower version of a three-year-old entry-to-mid-level graphics card.
If it was called the RTX 3040 and cost $149, you’d probably understand it a little better. I understand the niche appeal, but if you’re looking for a gaming card first and foremost, give this one a pass.
