Asus GeForce RTX 3050 ROG Strix Review: High Clocks, High Price. Asus rtx 3050
Asus GeForce RTX 3050 ROG Strix Review: High Clocks, High Price
The Asus GeForce RTX 3050 ROG Strix looks great, with an overclock that makes it faster than reference cards, but its high price makes it a poor value. The RX 6600 costs less, as do some RTX 3060 cards, so you’re paying a lot for the looks and branding.
Pros
- Beefy but quiet cooling
- Lots of RGB bling
- Large factory overclock
- DLSS works great
Cons
- – Very high suggested price
- – Slower than RX 6600 in non-RT games
- – Requires a spacious case
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Asus is arguably the most recognized enthusiast PC brand in the US, selling some of the best motherboards, graphics cards, gaming laptops, and more with a FOCUS on PC gamers. Its GeForce RTX 3050 ROG Strix follows the familiar formula of using a large cooler with plenty of RGB lighting, coupled with a relatively large factory overclock. Like other GeForce RTX 3050 cards, however, the resulting performance lands well behind similarly priced GPUs like the Radeon RX 6600, and also trails the previous generation GeForce RTX 2060. Our updated GPU benchmarks hierarchy puts it well into the midrange or even budget territory, but the ongoing component shortages and brand name recognition give it a high-end price tag that makes it a poor value relative to the best graphics cards.
This Asus RTX 3050 review is our third time testing the RTX 3050, following on the heels of the initial EVGA RTX 3050 Black XC and subsequent Zotac RTX 3050 Twin Edge OC reviews. With the highest factory overclock of all the announced GeForce RTX 3050 cards, the Strix should be the pinnacle of the sort of performance we can expect to see out of Nvidia’s lowest tier RTX 30-series GPU. Here’s how it looks on paper:
| GA106 | GA106 | GA106 | GA106 | Navi 23 |
| Samsung 8N | Samsung 8N | Samsung 8N | Samsung 8N | TSMC N7 |
| 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 11.1 |
| 276 | 276 | 276 | 276 | 237 |
| 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 28 |
| 2560 | 2560 | 2560 | 2560 | 1792 |
| 80 | 80 | 80 | 80 | N/A |
| 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 28 |
| 1890 (OC mode), 1860 (Gaming) | 1777 | 1777 | 1807 | 2491 |
| 14 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 14 |
| 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 |
| 128 | 128 | 128 | 128 | 128 |
| 48 | 48 | 48 | 48 | 64 |
| 80 | 80 | 80 | 80 | 112 |
| 9.7 | 9.1 | 9.1 | 9.3 | 8.9 |
| 39 (77) | 36 (73) | 36 (73) | 37 (74) | N/A |
| 224 | 224 | 224 | 224 | 224 |
| 130 | 130 | 130 | 130 | 132 |
| Jan 2022 | Jan 2022 | Jan 2022 | Jan 2022 | Oct 2021 |
| 489 | 249 | 249 | 399 | 329 |
| 523 | 455 | 450 | 470 | 460 |
Even with the OC mode enabled, theoretical performance on the Asus RTX 3050 is only about 6% faster than the reference RTX 3050. Of course the TDP limit is likely higher (Asus doesn’t specify the card’s TDP, but we’ll look at power use later), but with the same memory bandwidth and core counts, we don’t expect to see a massive difference between the various RTX 3050 cards.
We’ve included MSRPs as well as the typical GPU prices from eBay for the past month (February 2022). The former is generally meaningless right now, while real-world at places like Newegg and Amazon often mirror the eBay pricing. The good news is that, as far as street are concerned, the Asus ROG Strix ‘only’ costs about 50–75 more than the cheapest RTX 3050 cards on average. The bad news is that the typical price on an RTX 3050 is about 200 more than Nvidia’s pie-in-the-sky suggested price.
We’ve included AMD’s Radeon RX 6600 in the table as well as a comparison point. Particularly in non-ray tracing (and non-DLSS) games, it tends to compete with the RTX 3060 and will thus easily outpace the RTX 3050 cards. AMD also has a (relatively) large Infinity Cache, 32MB for Navi 23, which improves the bandwidth utilization quite a bit so that performance often ends up being far better than what the raw specs would suggest.
Asus GeForce RTX 3050 ROG Strix
Asus’ ROG Strix line is known for going all-in on the bling and massive coolers, and we can see the appeal in that for the high-end and enthusiast markets. Large coolers are also necessary to keep up with the extreme power use of modern GPUs like the RTX 3080 Ti and RX 6900 XT. The RTX 3050 on the other hand is neither extreme nor power hungry, with a TDP rating of just 130W. But the 3050 ROG Strix card is nearly as large as other Strix models, even if the underlying heatsink isn’t quite as robust. The card weighs 1097g and measures 300x137x54 mm, compared to 1760g and 319x140x58 mm on the RTX 3070 ROG Strix — the length is a couple of centimeters less, but both cards require a relatively large case.
Asus provides some extras in other areas as well, for example video outputs consist of three DisplayPort 1.4 and two HDMI 2.1 ports. DisplayPort is still more common for PC monitors than HDMI 2.1, but that could change in the future, and HDMI 2.1 is widely used on modern TVs. It’s nice that Asus puts on that fifth port, which most modern GPUs skip.
The Strix card runs with a default boost clock of 1860 MHz, but if you install Asus’ GPU Tweak III and enable the OC profile, you’ll get an increased power limit and the boost clock gets a bump to 1890 MHz, which is what we used in our gaming tests. There’s also a quiet profile that drops the power limit and boost clock, if you’re more interested in a near-silent PC.
Asus uses three axial fans, with the middle fan rotating clockwise while the outside fans rotate counterclockwise. This is supposed to help reduce turbulence and noise, and the fans also halt at GPU temperatures below 42C, provided power draw is also “low” — though Asus doesn’t say exactly what that means. The fans also include an integrated rim that helps improve their static pressure and airflow through the heatsink.
All told, it’s an impressive card, but again it feels rather like overkill for a budget to midrange GPU like the RTX 3050. Even the relatively tame designs we’ve looked at so far didn’t have issues with thermals or noise, and no amount of overclocking (short of liquid nitrogen, perhaps) will get the RTX 3050 to perform as well as an RTX 3060. But if you want a card that looks fast, even if what’s under the hood comes up short, the ROG Strix RTX 3050 might be what you’re after.
Test Setup for Asus GeForce RTX 3050 ROG Strix
We’ve updated our GPU test PC and gaming suite for 2022. We’re now using a Core i9-12900K processor, MSI Pro Z690-A DDR4 Wi-Fi motherboard, and DDR4-3600 memory (with XMP enabled). We also upgraded to Windows 11 Pro, since it’s basically required to get the most out of Alder Lake. You can see the rest of the hardware in the boxout.
Our new gaming tests consist of a “standard” suite of eight games without ray tracing enabled (even if the game supports it), and a separate “ray tracing” suite of six games that all use multiple RT effects. For this review, we’ll be testing at 1080p at “medium” and “ultra” settings, and 1440p ultra as well. The last is perhaps too much for a GPU like the RTX 3050, depending on the game, but if you’re okay with 30-60 fps it should suffice. We also test with DLSS Quality mode in the games that support it, reported separately from the non-DLSS performance. All of the ray tracing suite and three of the games in the standard suite support DLSS.
Asus GeForce RTX 3050 ROG Strix Gaming Performance
1080p Medium
1080p DXR Medium
We’ll start with the standard benchmark discussion before we move on to the DirectX Raytracing (DXR) results. Overall, the Asus RTX 3050 ranked as the fastest 3050 card we’ve tested, coming in about 3% ahead of the Zotac and EVGA cards. Considering the price premium, it’s probably not worth buying the Asus over another card, unless you rate aesthetics and noise levels above bang for the buck.
As we’ve seen before, the RTX 3050 easily beat AMD’s RX 6500 XT, as well as the older RX 5500 XT 8GB and GTX 1660 Super, though its lead over the latter isn’t particularly large. Meanwhile, it fell behind the RTX 2060, RX 5600 XT, and all of the faster GPUs — often by a wide margin. Even with Asus‘s hefty overclock, there’s no way to turn the 3050 into something it’s not, namely an RTX 3060, RX 6600, or even an RTX 2060 competitor.
Ray tracing doesn’t massively change the picture, though this time the RTX 3050 did come out ahead of AMD’s RX 6600, and with DLSS it easily beats the RX 6600 XT as well. Across the six games we tested, DLSS Quality mode boosted performance by an average of 63%, with a range of 30% (in Metro Exodus Enhanced) to as much as 81% (Fortnite). Other DLSS modes could increase performance even more, though the loss of image fidelity does become noticeable at 1080p with the Balanced and Performance modes.
1080p Ultra
1080p DXR Ultra
Bumping from medium to ultra settings at 1080p often pushes beyond the comfort zone for the RTX 3050, and the higher factory overclock on the Asus card does little to counteract that. The games that fall below 60 fps on the reference clocked EVGA RTX 3050 still fall below 60 fps on the Asus ROG Strix card, while those with higher performance get a slight bump. Asus remains about 3% ahead of the Zotac card and 4% ahead of the EVGA card — not nothing, but also not much.
The AMD competition in the form of the RX 6500 XT is a different story. With only 4GB VRAM, the AMD card really struggled at 1080p ultra and the Asus RTX 3050 was on average 64% faster. importantly, where the Asus card hit 50 fps or more in all but one of the games we tested (Total War: Warhammer 3 only managed 40 fps), AMD’s RX 6500 XT fell below 30 fps in three of the eight games. Given the RX 6500 XT couldn’t manage playable performance with DXR enabled at 1080p medium, we didn’t even try to run it in ultra mode.
Ray tracing at 1080p ultra was still viable, but only with DLSS enabled. Without DLSS, only two of the games managed to break 30 fps averages at our 1080p ultra settings. With DLSS, every game was still playable, though a few just barely squeaked past the 30 fps mark. It’s important to know what you’re getting with a 3050, though. This is effectively the bare minimum level of ray tracing performance you need to be able to play most games that use more than a token amount of ray tracing, and it’s still slower than the previous generation RTX 2060.
1440p Ultra
Gaming at 1440p ultra with the RTX 3050 is possible, though how well it works will depend a lot on the games you play. Our new test suite is rather demanding, so none of the games broke 60 fps, though only Total War: Warhammer 3 dropped below 30 fps. The Asus card maintains its 3–4% lead over the other 3050 cards we’ve tested, but it’s still basically in the same ballpark — actually, it’s in the same row of the same ballpark.
Thanks to its overclock and extra VRAM, the Asus 3050 now basically ties the RTX 2060. It’s still slower in most of the games, but it does garner two victories in Forza Horizon 5 and Watch Dogs Legion. Of course, we’re comparing a healthily overclocked 3050 against a reference 2060 Founders Edition, so you could find factory overclocked 2060 cards that run 3–5% faster out of the box. But theoretically at least, the 3050 cards will cost less than the 2060 variants of yesteryear.
Asus GeForce RTX 3050 ROG Strix Power, Temps, Noise, Etc.
We wrap up our testing with a look at power use, clock speeds, temperatures, and noise levels. We use Powenetics to record in-line GPU power consumption, collecting data while we run Metro Exodus at 1440p ultra and the FurMark stress test at 1600×900. Our test PC remains the same old Core i9-9900K as we’ve used previously, to keep results consistent.
As expected, the higher factory overclock on the Asus ROG Strix RTX 3050 did increase power use in some situations. There was little difference between the Asus card and the EVGA reference clocked card in Metro Exodus, while the Asus card used about 10W more power during the FurMark test. But power alone doesn’t tell the whole story, so let’s look at the other aspects of the cards.
Despite having the same power use in Metro, the Asus card averaged about 80 MHz higher clocks than the Zotac card, and about 90 MHz higher clocks than the EVGA card. Flipping over to FurMark, the margins are even larger. Asus’ 3050 averaged 1887 MHz, about 140 MHz more than the Zotac card and 190 MHz more than the EVGA card. Basically, Asus has a higher power limit that allowed the GPU to run at higher clocks even in a demanding workload like FurMark. It doesn’t necessarily improve performance that much in games, but in certain scenarios the 3050 ROG Strix card could theoretically deliver up to 8% more performance than other 3050 cards.
Just as important as the power and clocks, the Asus card keeps GPU temperatures well in check — not that we’d expect anything else from the excessively large cooling setup. Thermals averaged 56C in Metro and FurMark, 3–4C lower than the slower EVGA card 7–9C lower than the Zotac card. Meanwhile, fan speeds were whisper quiet in gaming and only hit 1000 RPM, with FurMark bumping that up to 1370 RPM. In either case, the Asus fans aren’t working nearly as hard as the other 3050 cards.
We confirmed the impact of the lower fan speeds when we checked noise levels at 10cm using an SPL (sound pressure level) meter, which was aimed right at the GPU fans in order to minimize the impact of other fans like those on the CPU cooler. The noise floor of our test environment and equipment measures 33 dB(A). The Asus RTX 3050 topped out at 38.8 dB(A) after several minutes of use, about 3 dB lower than the Zotac card and 7 dB less than the Zotac card.
Fan speed was reported as 64%, but that appears to be just the one fan. Asus has three independent fan speed controllers, and the other two fans were clearly not spinning as fast (though we didn’t get exact measurements). Setting the card to a static 75% fan speed on all three fans increased the noise level to 45.3 dB(A), which was about as loud as the EVGA card under normal use, but temperatures dropped quite a bit on the Asus card.
Bottom Line: Asus GeForce RTX 3050 ROG Strix
Going into this review, we expected slightly better performance along with better thermal and noise characteristics from the Asus ROG Strix 3050. It didn’t disappoint. It’s slightly faster than the other 3050 cards we’ve tested, and while it did use a bit more power in some cases, it also ran cooler and quieter. If that’s not enough reason to consider buying the Strix card, Asus hopes all the RGB lighting will do the trick. It’s a great looking GPU that can serve as the visual centerpiece of a modest gaming build.
For some people, that will be enough. Graphics card continue to come down, but even the RTX 3050 cards still routinely sell for 400 or more. Asus has a nominal MSRP of 480 for the 3050 ROG Strix, and you could find the card for 490 on Newegg (it was temporarily sold out, but it’s not back in stock). That’s 110 more than the cheapest RTX 3050 listed at Newegg — the Asus RTX 3050 Dual OC — and the Strix looks nicer and has a more robust cooling setup. Then again, if you’re willing to sacrifice 5% performance (give or take), the Dual is a compact card that would be right at home in a mini-ITX build.
Asus basically caters to the most extreme ends of the spectrum with its various GPUs. If you want improved cooling, RGB lighting, and other extras, it’s more than happy to sell you an ROG Strix card. For those that don’t care as much about looks or maximum performance, the Phoenix gives you the barebones experience and will still work just fine. There are also other models like the TUF series that fill in the middle ground.
The better question, rather than whether you should buy the ROG Strix 3050 or a cheaper 3050, is whether you should move up a tier in GPU performance for roughly the same price. Actually, it’s not even a reasonable question, as the answer is unequivocally yes given the current online prices. There’s a Gigabyte RTX 3060 Gaming OC also on Newegg for the same 490 asking price now, and performance should be around 35% higher than the fastest 3050. Antonline also has an EVGA 3060 bundle that includes a PSU and keyboard for 600, and who doesn’t want a spare PSU and keyboard (says the component hoarder)?
If you need more options, this ASRock RX 6600 will also generally outperform the RTX 3050 (except in DXR/DLSS scenarios), and it costs over 100 less. And finally, here’s an ASRock RX 6600 XT Challenger for 466, less than the Asus 3050 Strix and again with nearly universally superior performance. The point being: There are better options.
Thankfully, GPU continue to head south, and we’ve seen another 9% average drop just in the past two weeks. It’s probably not a great time to buy a graphics card, in other words, as waiting another month or two will hopefully bring even better prices. Then again, I’ve been wrong on such predictions before. There’s still enough uncertainty that we could see GPU start to head back up, but with Ethereum’s Merge looming on the horizon, if it does happen at least it likely won’t be due to miners.
The Asus ROG Strix GeForce RTX 3050 OC Edition graphics card is the very best RTX 3050 that Asus makes, mid-range ROG Strix power.
The Bottom Line
Asus shines with its ROG Strix GeForce RTX 3050 OC Edition, providing some of the best performance from the RTX 3050. but with a second HDMI 2.1 connector. Something its competitors lack, big time. Nice work once again, Asus.
Introduction
I’ve been busy reviewing as many custom versions of NVIDIA’s new mid-range GeForce RTX 3050 graphics card as I can, flowing through into many lab as they do, with Asus hitting me up for their new ROG Strix GeForce RTX 3050 OC Edition.
The company also sent over their higher-end ROG Strix GeForce RTX 3080 Ti OC Edition, a graphics card that I’ve already reviewed, only realizing as I put it into the test bench. I thought I would re-review that card as well since I am shifting over to the AMD Ryzen 9 5900X processor. up from the Ryzen 7 3800X that I’ve been using.
Asus has quite the beefy mid-range card with its ROG Strix GeForce RTX 3050 OC Edition graphics card, and while performance won’t be that different between custom RTX 3050 cards, Asus always gives you all the frills with its ROG Strix variant.
Asus puts in the whole nine yards here, with a mean triple-fan cooler and super-beefy cooler design that feels far too good for a mid-range GPU. But, if you can find the Asus ROG Strix GeForce RTX 3050 OC Edition somewhere for a reasonable price. Asus has one of the very best.
Asus ROG Strix NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 OC Edition
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Everything You Need to Know About Ampere
Page 2 [Everything You Need to Know About Ampere]
Detailed Look
As usual, Asus provides the usual premium retail packaging experience. even with its mid-range ROG Strix GeForce RTX 3050 OC Edition graphics card. Remember, I spent over 10 years working in a small IT retailer here in my home city of Adelaide, South Australia.- and man.- the Asus ROG Strix RTX 3050 would look fantastic on the shelf. It would pull all eyes to it.
From the front, you know it’s an Asus ROG Strix graphics card.- and once you start playing around.- it’s only then you’ll realize you’ve got mid-range RTX 3050 performance. Aesthetics.- well, Asus can never be attacked for making a ‘meh’ looking product.
It’s a pity that Asus didn’t use a dual-slot design.
Asus does something different here, and is very welcomed: 2 x HDMI 2.1 ports versus the regular 1 x HDMI 2.1 port on everything else these days, as well as 3 x DisplayPort 1.4 connectors. That’s a mass amount of display connectivity for a mid-range RTX 3050, but that’s what the ROG Strix is known for.
It’s nice to see that there is a single 8-pin PCIe power connector required, as I was expecting Asus to use a 6-pin connector as well, but thankfully they didn’t.
Test System Specs
Latest upgrade:
Sabrent sent over their huge Rocket Q 8TB NVMe PCIe M.2 2280 SSD, which will be my new Games install SSD inside of my main test bed.
I’ve got a new upgrade inside of my GPU test bed before my change to a next-gen test bed, where I will be preparing for NVIDIA’s next-gen Ampere graphics cards and AMD’s next-gen RDNA 2 graphics cards.
Sabrent helped out with some new storage for my GPU test beds, sending over a slew of crazy-fast Rocket NVMe PCIe M.2 2280 SSDs. I’ve got this installed into my GPU test bed as the new Games Storage drive, since games are so damn big now. Thanks to Sabrent, I’ve got 2TB of super-fast M.2 PCIe 3.0 x4 SSD storage now.
Anthony’s GPU Test System Specifications
I’ve recently upgraded my GPU test bed.- at least for now, until AMD’s new Ryzen 9 5950X processor is unleashed then the final update for 2020 will happen and we’ll be all good for RDNA 2 and future Ampere GPU releases. You can read my article here: TweakTown GPU Test Bed Upgrade for 2021, But Then Zen 3 Was Announced.
- CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 3800X (buy from Amazon)
- Motherboard: Asus ROG X570 Crosshair VIII Hero (buy from Amazon)
- Cooler: CoolerMaster MasterLiquid ML360R RGB (buy from Amazon)
- RAM: G.SKILL Trident Z NEO RGB 32GB (4x8GB) (F4-3600C18Q-32GTZN) (buy from Amazon)
- SSD: Sabrent 2TB Rocket NVMe PCIe 4.0 M.2 2280 (buy from Amazon)
- PSU: be quiet! Dark Power Pro 11 1200W (buy from Amazon)
- Case: InWin X-Frame 2.0
- OS: Microsoft Windows 10 Professional x64 (buy from Amazon)
Benchmarks. Synthetic
3DMark Fire Strike
3DMark has been a staple benchmark for years now, all the way back to when The Matrix was released and Futuremark had bullet time inspired benchmarks. 3DMark is the perfect tool to see if your system. most important, your CPU and GPU. is performing as it should. You can search results for your GPU, to see if it falls in line with other systems based on similar hardware.
Heaven. 1080p
Heaven is an intensive GPU benchmark that really pushes your silicon to its limits. It’s another favorite of ours as it has some great scaling for multi-GPU testing, and it’s great for getting your GPU to 100% for power and noise testing.
Benchmarks. 1080p
Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla is the latest game to be inserted into our benchmark suite, with Ubisoft Montreal using its AnvilNext engine to power the game. It scales really well across the cards, and has some surprising performance benefits with AMD’s new Big Navi GPUs.
Middle-earth: Shadow of War is a sequel to the popular Shadow of Mordor, which was powered by the Lithtech engine. When cranked up to maximum detail, it will chew through your GPU and its VRAM like it’s nothing.
Metro Exodus is one of the hardest tests that our graphics cards have to go through, with 4A Games’ latest creation being one of the best looking games on the market. It is a serious test that pushes GPUs to their limits, and also features RTX technologies like DLSS.
Shadow of the Tomb Raider is one of the latest games to join our graphics card benchmark lineup, with the game built using the Foundation engine as a base, the same engine in Rise of the Tomb Raider. Eidos Montreal RD department made lots of changes to the engine during the development of Shadow of the Tomb Raider to make it one of the best-looking games out right now.
1080p Benchmark Performance Thoughts
1080p 60FPS in AAA games on the Asus ROG Strix GeForce RTX 3050 OC Edition graphics card pulls it in line with every other RTX 3050 out there. It’s not going to do anything special, but it will beat most of the regular ones and come out on top.
Benchmarks. 1440p
Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla is the latest game to be inserted into our benchmark suite, with Ubisoft Montreal using its AnvilNext engine to power the game. It scales really well across the cards, and has some surprising performance benefits with AMD’s new Big Navi GPUs.
Middle-earth: Shadow of War is a sequel to the popular Shadow of Mordor, which was powered by the Lithtech engine. When cranked up to maximum detail, it will chew through your GPU and its VRAM like it’s nothing.
Metro Exodus is one of the hardest tests that our graphics cards have to go through, with 4A Games’ latest creation being one of the best looking games on the market. It is a serious test that pushes GPUs to their limits, and also features RTX technologies like DLSS.
Shadow of the Tomb Raider is one of the latest games to join our graphics card benchmark lineup, with the game built using the Foundation engine as a base, the same engine in Rise of the Tomb Raider. Eidos Montreal RD department made lots of changes to the engine during the development of Shadow of the Tomb Raider to make it one of the best-looking games out right now.
1440p Benchmark Performance Thoughts
I wouldn’t recommend the new GeForce RTX 3050 for 1440p gaming, but with DLSS set to “Performance” mode you will at least see 60FPS in decent titles.
Benchmarks. 4K
Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla is the latest game to be inserted into our benchmark suite, with Ubisoft Montreal using its AnvilNext engine to power the game. It scales really well across the cards, and has some surprising performance benefits with AMD’s new Big Navi GPUs.
Middle-earth: Shadow of War is a sequel to the popular Shadow of Mordor, which was powered by the Lithtech engine. When cranked up to maximum detail, it will chew through your GPU and its VRAM like it’s nothing.
Metro Exodus is one of the hardest tests that our graphics cards have to go through, with 4A Games’ latest creation being one of the best looking games on the market. It is a serious test that pushes GPUs to their limits, and also features RTX technologies like DLSS.
Shadow of the Tomb Raider is one of the latest games to join our graphics card benchmark lineup, with the game built using the Foundation engine as a base, the same engine in Rise of the Tomb Raider. Eidos Montreal RD department made lots of changes to the engine during the development of Shadow of the Tomb Raider to make it one of the best-looking games out right now.
4K Benchmark Performance Thoughts
Nah, the RTX 3050 isn’t for 4K gaming.
What’s Hot, What’s Not
What’s Hot
- The best display connectivity on an RTX 3050 yet: Asus has the best display connectivity of any GeForce RTX 3050 on the market, simply for the second HDMI 2.1 connector.
- 2 x HDMI 2.1 connectors FTW: The additional HDMI 2.1 connector lets you plug in a second monitor or TV to your RTX 3050, so if you had an HDMI 2.1-enabled monitor and an HDMI 2.1-enabled TV (that doubles as your TV for your PS5 or Xbox Series X/S console) the ROG Strix RTX 3050 can do that for you.
- The usual Asus ROG Strix style: If you want a mean-looking RTX 3050, then Asus has your back with the ROG Strix RTX 3050 OC Edition.
- 8GB of GDDR6 memory: AMD is new Radeon RX 6500 XT throws 4GB of GDDR6, where in a world of 8GB, 16GB, and even 24GB VRAM on cards, the 8GB of GDDR6 on the GeForce RTX 3050 is very welcomed. You won’t be gaming at 1440p or 4K, but it gives you wiggle room for RT and DLSS.
- HDMI 2.1 connectivity, great for HTPC: Another win here is the HDMI 2.1 connectivity over HDMI 2.0 on older-gen cards, as HDMI 2.1 allows a single cable to drive 4K 120Hz (and above) even on the entry-level GeForce RTX 3050. This is great for HTPC users.
- Single 8-pin PCIe power connector: It would be nice to do away with the PCIe power connector, maybe with the Ada Lovelace-powered GeForce RTX 4050 and its PCIe 5.0 connector, then we’ll see no PCIe power connector on a 50-series card.
- Entry-level ray tracing DLSS: This is a serious win for NVIDIA over AMD, and while you wouldn’t want to run out and buy the RTX 3050 for ray tracing. DLSS on the other hand, will super-pump your FPS in games that you want over 120FPS. Alternatively, older games can be enjoyed with DLSS set to Quality, with higher fidelity graphics.
What’s Not
- The dual HDMI 2.1 connectors: They’re great to have, but Asus doesn’t even include HDMI 2.1 connectivity on some of its most expensive, feature-laden gaming monitors. Yet, a mid-range ROG Strix GeForce RTX 3050 OC Edition graphics card.- so too do the other RTX 30 series ROG Strix GPUs.- has dual HDMI 2.1 connectors, and 3 x DP 1.4 connectors. yet their flagship monitors don’t.
Final Thoughts
If you are in the market for one of the best custom GeForce RTX 3050 graphics cards, then Asus is the path you will want to walk down with their ROG Strix GeForce RTX 3050 OC Edition graphics card. You’ve got the same mid-range performance as the other custom RTX 3050s, but with the usual Asus ROG Strix flair.
But it’s the dual HDMI 2.1 connectors that is impressive, as you could buy the ROG Strix RTX 3050 for an HTPC and enjoy multiple 4K 120Hz TVs or monitors. Asus providing the additional HDMI 2.1 connector makes it stand out from the crowd, so it could be the tipping point for you to buy the ROG Strix RTX 3050 over another custom RTX 3050.
Asus always delivers with its custom ROG Strix cards, and the ROG Strix GeForce RTX 3050 OC Edition is no different. If you are after a 1080p 120FPS gaming card, then you can do that here.- alternatively, if you want some gaming on the side.- and use it as an HTPC system, the second HDMI 2.1 connector could be the clincher.
The custom Asus ROG Strix GeForce RTX 3050 OC Edition graphics card is a great mid-range RTX 3050, something that lets you get a taste of ray tracing (RT) and can super-power your games with Deep Learning Super Sampling (DLSS).
Games like Warzone for example, can be enjoyed at 1080p 120FPS thanks to DLSS. while rocking a second HDMI 2.1 connector. Funny. Asus includes dual HDMI 2.1 ports on their mid-range ROG Strix RTX 3050, but doesn’t include the new connectivity on some of its highest-end ROG Strix gaming monitors. Heh.
Still, the Asus ROG Strix GeForce RTX 3050 OC Edition is a stellar mid-range Ampere GPU, is ready for you.
Memorial Day Gaming Laptop Deals Are Lit With Lenovo, HP, Asus And
This Memorial Day weekend is filled with deals on gaming laptops, from an affordable Lenovo Ideapad with an RTX 3050 to an Asus beast with an RTX 3080. So, no matter your budget, there is likely a deal to be had.
Lenovo IdeaPad Gaming 3 Laptop
The Lenovo IdeaPad Gaming 3 laptop is a great entry-level gaming laptop. It sports a Ryzen 5 CPU, NVIDIA RTX 3050 GPU, and 8GB of DDR5 RAM, which is sufficient for playing games on a 1080p external monitor.
The 15-inch FHD IPS screen supports a 120Hz refresh rate, delivering a smooth gaming experience. It also comes packed with two USB-A ports, one USB-C DisplayPort, an HDMI 2.0 port, an audio jack, and an ethernet port.
You can grab one of these Lenovo IdeaPads right now for a stellar 22% off at 699.99.
HP Victus 15.6″ Gaming Laptop
If you are looking for something with a little more power, the HP Victus 15.6″ gaming laptop might be what you are looking for. It comes powered by an AMD Ryzen 7 5800H, an NVIDIA RTX 3050 Ti, and 16GB of DDR4 RAM.
Enjoy playing your favorite games on the 1080p display with a 144Hz refresh rate. This laptop delivers excellent cooling and optimal gameplay with an updated thermal design, perfect for keeping your device cool when your gameplay gets spicy. Gamers will be able to take advantage of 512GB of SSD storage space for their favorite games on the go.
The HP Victus 15.6″ gaming laptop is currently a whopping 25% off for a sale price of 829.
Asus ROG Strix Scar 15.6″ Gaming Laptop
Moving on up the ladder of power, the Asus ROG Strix Scar 15.6″ gaming laptop is a beast. It comes with an Intel Core i9-12900H CPU, an RTX 3070 Ti GPU, and 16GB of DDR5 RAM. than enough for most modern games.
Gamers will be able to enjoy all that power on a QHD 240Hz IPS style display, covering 100% DCI-P3 color for more vivid colors. It also comes with 1TB of fast PCIe 4.0 SSD storage, enabling games to load fast. Anyone who is a fan of RGB customization will certainly want to take advantage of the Aura-sync per-key RGB keyboard and light bar as well.
The Asus ROG Strix Scar is on sale for 24% off at a sale price of 1549.99.
Gamers who want a slightly beefier GPU can also take advantage of the Asus ROG Strix Scar with an RTX 3080, which is currently 15% off at 1,699.99.
First Look: All the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3050 Cards So Far
They’re hard to find, yes: Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 3050 budget graphics cards rolled out from its card partners on Jan. 27. We took a comparative look at them all to help you in your hunt.
For as long as I can remember, I’ve had love of all things tech, spurred on, in part, by a love of gaming. I began working on computers owned by immediate family members and relatives when I was around 10 years old. I’ve always sought to learn as much as possible about anything PC, leading to a well-rounded grasp on all things tech today. In my role at PCMag, I greatly enjoy the opportunity to share what I know.
(Photo: Chris Stobing)
Nvidia’s new GeForce RTX 3050 family of low-end graphics cards is finally “here.” If you’ve been shopping for a graphics card anytime in the last two years, you know why those quote marks are there: You’ll have hunt hard to find any of them. From most sources, initial RTX 3050 card stocks sold out almost instantly on Jan. 27, and availability is sure to remain tight in the coming days and weeks. Nonetheless, the new cards are out there, like rarely spotted nocturnal animals, and some interesting trends have emerged with this launch that we should discuss. (Some, we hope, will not continue.)
The RTX 3050 in a Twisted Market
Due to the immense popularity of cryptocurrency mining, graphics cards have been in painfully short supply for years now. Miners buy up most models any chance they get; so have opportunists who have been buying them for resale at steeply elevated prices. This has created what will probably be remembered as a dark age for PC gamers and builders.
Base cards in the RTX 3050 line, according to Nvidia, are supposed to sell for 249.99, with models ranging up from there. Its card-making partners, faced with these market trends, have set the MSRPs on many of their step-up cards much higher. Some base-spec cards from every card OEM are indeed set at 249.99 MSRP; the card makers appear to be making some effort to have some cards at that price. But most enhanced models have been priced—list price, that is!—significantly higher, from 300 to almost 500. For many of the cards, that’s a way bigger percentage increase over base price than we’ve ever seen from a budget card line.
Given the market, you could call it profiteering, but we see it differently, almost necessitated by market pressures. And it may help to keep cards on shelves longer in the long run. That is because there is less of a price gap between these higher-priced GeForce RTX 3050 cards and the next cards up from AMD and Nvidia, the AMD Radeon RX 6600 and the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060, which gives scalpers less reason to buy into the RTX 3050. While you may end up paying more, it might also lead to a less frustrating shopping experience for everyone as stocks of these cards improve over time.
That said, there are still those 249.99-MSRP base models. Value-seekers should realistically try to track down one of those, as in some cases the only difference between a model that’s 249.99 at MSRP and a model that’s 399.99 at MSRP is just 30MHz of GPU clock. In a case like that, you will almost certainly not see a performance benefit proportional to the price, though that higher price may still be worth it if it saves you countless hours and possibly weeks of shopping around.
To be clear, you’ll see benefits to some of the cards that are priced higher, including better thermal hardware. But you’ll want to look closely at those cards and read our analyses on the cards below to get a better idea of the possible payoff.
A Quick Look at the GeForce RTX 3050 Reference Design
With that said, let’s go over the details of Nvidia’s reference design for the RTX 3050 before getting into the designs from the OEMs. For the GeForce RTX 3050, Nvidia didn’t create a true reference design that OEMs could copy from head to toe, as they often do with higher-end cards. That’s to say, there is no Nvidia-branded GeForce RTX 3050 Founders Edition. Instead, we’re left with a simple list of specs that every card will adhere to with some minor variations.
All GeForce RTX 3050 graphics cards have 2,560 CUDA cores that connect to 8GB of GDDR6 RAM over a 128-bit memory interface. The RAM is clocked at 14,000MHz, and so far none of the OEM graphics cards has deviated from this spec. The GPU core has a base clock of 1,550MHz and a boost clock of 1,777MHz. All of the current OEM cards priced at 249.99 MSRP operate at this base frequency. So do some of the higher-priced cards, but you will see some models factory-overclocked, as well.
Now, let’s take a look at what Asus, EVGA, Gigabyte, MSI, PNY, and Zotac were able to make out of the RTX 3050.
Asus Phoenix GeForce RTX 3050 8GB
Asus’ base-model RTX 3050 is the Phoenix GeForce RTX 3050 8GB. For this card, Asus opted for a compact single-fan design that’s only slightly longer than the PCI-E x16 slot that it plugs into. (It measures just 6.97 inches long.) It also features a metal backplate for added stiffness and heat dissipation, but it lacks LED enhancements or other card decor. It’s a plain one well suited to a compact PC.
Asus’ product page doesn’t specify what clock speed this card operates at, but it’s likely set to match Nvidia’s reference design, with a boost clock of 1,777MHz. It’s priced at 249.99 MSRP and will be in demand from upgraders and builders of Mini-ITX systems.
Asus Dual GeForce RTX 3050 8GB
The prosaically named Dual GeForce RTX 3050 8GB offers an improved thermal solution over the Phoenix GeForce RTX 3050 8GB. It has two fans for better cooling, and it also picks up a little RGB LED action on its face and side. Expect to pay a hefty premium for that extra cooling though, as Asus set this card with an MSRP of 439.99.
We again don’t have GPU clock speed information for this card, but we can get a rough range of what it will be. Asus’ best RTX 3050 is clocked at 1,890MHz, and the reference design specifies a clock of 1,777MHz. The Dual GeForce RTX 3050 8GB will almost certainly fall somewhere between these two, but it’s more likely to be close to the reference design. It might even ship clocked at 1,777MHz without any factory overclock. Asus also created a second version of this card, the Asus Dual GeForce RTX 3050 OC Edition 8GB, which will likely be priced 10 or 20 higher and be slightly higher-clocked.
Asus ROG Strix GeForce RTX 3050 8GB
Asus’ top-of-the-line RTX 3050 card is the ROG Strix GeForce RTX 3050 8GB. It’s one of the few RTX 3050 graphics cards we’ve seen so far to ship with a triple-fan cooling solution. The increased airflow inherent in this design, along with large aluminum heatsinks and no fewer than four heatpipes, make this model a prime candidate for overclocking. Asus also equipped the card with a metal backplate for additional cooling and structural support, and you get several RGB LED zones on the card to illuminate your gaming rig. This is a prime RTX 3050 for a PC with high visibility and a windowed side panel.
The ROG Strix GeForce RTX 3050 8GB has a modest factory overclock and is set to operate at 1,807MHz. It’s available for sale at 489.99 (where you can find it, anyway). This is by far the highest-priced RTX 3050 card available at launch, and it’s hard to justify that price in the face of other cards like Gigabyte’s GeForce RTX 3050 Gaming OC 8GB, which also has a triple-fan cooler and is priced at just 379.99. Asus also has a more premium version of this model that’s listed as the ROG Strix GeForce RT 3050 OC Edition 8GB, and this model is clocked a good deal higher at 1,890MHz. We don’t know how much this model will cost, as it has not hit store shelves yet, and Asus has not issued an MSRP. But we’d expect it to be priced in excess of 500 when it does.
EVGA GeForce RTX 3050 XC Black Gaming 8G
EVGA is tackling the RTX 3050 market with two versions of the same graphics card. The company’s base model is the GeForce RTX 3050 XC Black Gaming 8G, priced at 249.99; it operates at the reference design’s 1,777MHz. This is increased to 1,845MHz on the EVGA GeForce RTX 3050 XC (non-”Black”), which also carries a higher price of 329.99.
The GeForce RTX 3050 XC Gaming has a slight advantage in cooling, as it also comes with a metal backplate that helps to justify its higher price. Other than these few differences, these are much the same card, both employing the same dual-fan thermal solution.
Gigabyte GeForce RTX 3050 Eagle 8G
Gigabyte’s base-model RTX 3050 is labeled as the GeForce RTX 3050 Eagle 8GB, and this card is built along the lines of Nvidia’s reference design. It has a dual-fan thermal solution, as well as a protective metal backplate. It’s clocked at 1,777MHz. The card’s design extends the thermal solution past the PCB to enable one of the fans to push air straight through the card body and out the back, past the backplate.
At 249.99 and based on this thermal solution, this could be the most appealing of the base-model RTX 3050 graphics cards. Asus and PNY opted for single-fan cards for their base models, and EVGA left off a backplate for its 249.99 offering. MSI’s and Zotac’s base cards should be a close match, though, as they have similar designs.
Gigabyte also created a second version of this card, the GeForce RTX 3050 Eagle OC 8G, but this version of the card looks harder to recommend, at least on paper. It’s priced significantly higher at 349.99, and it features only a negligible 15MHz increase in clock speed. It’s simply not practical for a 40% increase in MSRP for that clock bump. A boost of less than 2% sure won’t gain you a 40% jump in performance!
Gigabyte GeForce RTX 3050 Gaming OC 8G
Gigabyte’s best RTX 3050 graphics card is the GeForce RTX 3050 Gaming OC 8GB, which is the only RTX 3050 to use a triple-fan cooler other than Asus’ ROG Strix GeForce RTX 3050. Gigabyte doesn’t impose nearly as large of a premium for this extra cooling, though. Unlike Asus’ card, which is set at 489 (nearly double Nvidia’s MSRP), Gigabyte set its card with a more realistic list price of 379.99.
To be fair, the Gigabyte doesn’t outdo the Asus card in every area. Gigabyte didn’t press the factory overclock on its card quite as far as Asus and left it at 1,822MHz, which is roughly a 2.5% increase over Nvidia’s reference design. It also has just two heatpipes, but for the price difference, the Gigabyte GeForce RTX 3050 Gaming OC 8GB looks more attractive than that competing Asus card.
MSI GeForce RTX 3050 Ventus 2X 8G
MSI’s GeForce RTX 3050 Ventus 2X 8G operates at 1,777MHz, with a dual-fan thermal solution and a metal backplate to help keep the card from overheating. The card features a custom PCB and an oversize cooler that extends past the PCB. This leaves part of the heatsink exposed on the back of the card and enables air to pass straight through to improve cooling.
The standard RTX 3050 Ventus 2X 8G is priced at 249.99 and is one of the best RTX 3050 cards at this price based on the thermal solution. MSI has a higher-priced model that’s denoted the GeForce RTX 3050 Ventus 2X 8G OC that’s priced 100 higher at 349.99. This model is likely to be clocked higher when it launches, but we don’t know exactly what clock speed it will operate at, at this time. Other than the presumptively boosted clock speed and definitely boosted price, this card is identical to the non-OC model.
MSI GeForce RTX 3050 Aero ITX 8G
MSI opted to make two RTX 3050 GPUs at the 249.99 price point. In addition to the Ventus 2X 8G, MSI’s GeForce RTX 3050 Aero ITX 8G will also cost 249.99. As its name suggests, this card is more compact than the Ventus 2X models as it’s designed to fit better into Mini-ITX cases. It has a single-fan thermal solution and a metal backplate, but it’s still two slots wide and full-height, so don’t confuse this entry for a low-profile GPU.
The RTX 3050 Aero ITX 8G will likely be clocked at 1,777MHz, but MSI has not disclosed the clock speed for this card yet. MSI also has an OC version of this card, too, the GeForce RTX 3050 Aero ITX 8G OC, which will likely be priced and clocked higher, but we don’t have further details on this card yet, either.
MSI GeForce RTX 3050 Gaming X 8G
MSI’s best RTX 3050 is the GeForce RTX 3050 Gaming 8G, priced at 379.99. Similar to the Ventus cards, this model also has a dual-fan thermal solution with a metal backplate, but the advantages to having it are currently unknown beyond the obvious heat dissipation plus. This card is likely to be clocked higher than either of the Ventus cards, but MSI hasn’t released this spec information yet.
A second model labeled as the GeForce RTX 3050 Gaming X 8G is priced even higher (419.99), but we don’t know anything more about it at this time, either, except that it’s mostly identical to the 379.99 card.
PNY GeForce RTX 3050 8GB XLR8 Gaming Revel Epic-X RGB Single Fan Edition
PNY has three RTX 3050 graphics cards that it announced, but none of these has shown up for sale yet. We don’t know how much any of them will cost, but we did at least get a look at them to get a rough idea of how they compare.
What will likely be PNY’s most affordable model, the GeForce RTX 3050 8GB XLR8 Gaming Revel Epic-X RGB Single Fan Edition, makes use of a single-fan thermal solution that looks rather solid, with a blockier enclosure than many other cards. RGB LEDs on the card side illuminate “GEFORCE RTX,” but the card doesn’t appear to come equipped with a metal backplate. It’s clocked at 1,777MHz, and it seems likeliest of the three that this model will retail for 249.99, though it could be higher.
PNY GeForce RTX 3050 8GB XLR8 Gaming Revel Epic-X RGB Dual Fan Edition
PNY’s second RTX 3050, the GeForce RTX 3050 8GB XLR8 Gaming Revel Epic-X RGB Dual Fan Edition, is essentially a larger version of its first card with two fans instead of one in a similarly blocky enclosure. This model is also clocked at 1,777MHz, but it will likely be priced higher, as it has a metal backplate and additional cooling. Air is able to pass straight through the thermal solution and out the back of the card, which should help to boost thermal performance. Based on the other cards in this list, our estimate is a list price around 350, but it could easily land higher or lower.
PNY GeForce RTX 3050 8GB Uprising Dual Fan
PNY doesn’t have one card that’s clearly better than its others. Instead, its third and final card, the GeForce RTX 3050 8GB Uprising Dual Fan, just appears to offer an alternative aesthetic. Like the company’s other twin-fan RTX 3050, the RTX 3050 Uprising is clocked at 1,777MHz with a generally similar thermal solution that consists of two fans and a metal backplate.
Here again, air can pass straight through the card housing and out the other side to boost cooling performance. But nothing else stands out to differentiate these two cards. Personally, I prefer the design of the company’s other dual-fan RTX 3050, but this is just a matter of individual taste.
Zotac Gaming GeForce RTX 3050 Twin Edge
Zotac’s Gaming GeForce RTX 3050 Twin Edge stands out as one of the best-looking-on-paper base-model RTX 3050 graphics cards at launch. Unlike Asus and PNY, which opted to use single-fan coolers for their base models, Zotac built its card with a dual-fan thermal solution. Zotac also tossed in a metal backplate that gives it an edge over EVGA in terms of value and makes it one of the best RTX 3050 graphics cards at 249.99 that you can buy. This places it in direct competition with the base cards from Gigabyte and MSI.
A slightly faster variant of this card is the Gaming GeForce RTX 3050 Twin Edge OC. This card is factory overclocked to 1,807MHz, giving it a negligible 1.6% increase in raw clock, but its price is amped up 60% off the non-OC version, from 249.99 to 399.99. As a result, at those prices, you would probably want to avoid this model; we can’t see how it would be worth the increased cost.
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