GRID (2019) Laptop and Desktop Benchmarks

Racing Eldorado. Following F1 2019 and Dirt Rally 2.0, GRID is the third Codemasters racing game that we take for a benchmark check this year. Find out here whether the demands on the system turn out rather low, medium, or high.

Florian Glaser, 👁 Florian Glaser, ✓ Andrea Grüblinger (translated by Mark Riege), Published 10/17/2019 🇩🇪 🇷🇺

Technology

While we have often criticized the aged graphics of Codemasters games in the past, there is hardly anything to complain about with the technology. Although some elements could still be slightly more modern, the game offers convincing visuals overall. On the positive side, we have for example the detail-rich and lovingly designed car bodies that move along well-textured routes with lots of bystanders.

The developers also deserve some respect for the neat effects. In addition to the illumination, the small particles and weather effects are also attractive. From pouring rain and the resulting reflections in particular, GRID is able to bring very beautiful and evocative pictures to the monitor. The destruction model of the race cars is also a view to behold. In contrast to F1 2019 and Dirt Rally 2.0, the driving experience tends more towards an arcade game, with the cars not being quite as easy to steer as in the Need for Speed series.

At almost 46 GB, the download size of the game is average (the version in the store has six DVDs!). We were a bit surprised about the fact that GRID purely uses DirectX 12, and that there is no DirectX-11 mode. So you will need Windows 10 and a suitable graphics card for the game. Another surprise lies in the navigation. If we had often complained about the nested menus of Codemasters games in previous years, GRID appears to be very clean and structured comfortably (see screenshots further below).

The graphics options were split by the developer into two separate menus for easier navigation. While the Basic tab handles the resolution, image mode, display frequency, and brightness (optional FPS Lock plus optional V-Sync), the Advanced tab offers 10 separate settings. Those who don't feel like tuning the details for hours can just use one of the preconfigured presets, which range from Ultra Low up to Ultra High.

The short load times make the need for a restart after some changes appear less grave. However, we noticed that the load time of races not only depends on the storage solution used but also on the size of the video memory. For GPUs with only 1 or 2 GB of VRAM, the wait times increase noticeably. In addition, we had to struggle with one or the other crash during the course of our testing.

Benchmark

Since GRID does not contain an integrated benchmark, we are using a race from the campaign for our speed measurements, or to be exact, the JDM Rush event from the Tuner series that takes place in rainy San Francisco. The first round, which takes about one minute, is recorded with the OCAT tool (Fraps does not work due to DirectX 12). You can follow the exact sequence in the video below. In addition to the average performance, the benchmark charts also contain the minimum FPS rates. Apropos FPS, we would consider GRID as playable starting from an average value of 40 FPS. Things become really smooth only starting from 60+ FPS.

Results

HD (1280x720)

Although the hardware demands remain within limits, there should still be a dedicated GPU under the hood of the laptop or desktop PC, if possible. For example, the Radeon RX Vega 8 of the Honor Magicbook was still unable to produce decent FPS numbers with only 1280x720 pixels and the Ultra Low preset. On the other hand, dedicated entry-level chips on the level of the GeForce MX250 should not have any problems with these settings.

GRID 2019
1280x720 Ultra Low Preset
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 Mobile MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG, i9-9900K	241 (192^min) fps ∼100%
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 (Desktop) MSI GeForce RTX 2070, i9-9900K	221 (172^min) fps ∼92%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 (Desktop) MSI GeForce GTX 1070, i9-9900K	218 (172^min) fps ∼90%
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 (Desktop) MSI GeForce RTX 2060, i9-9900K	216 (174^min) fps ∼90%
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 (Desktop) MSI GeForce RTX 2080, i9-9900K	212 (169^min) fps ∼88%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 (Desktop) MSI GeForce GTX 1080, i9-9900K	208 (167^min) fps ∼86%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 (Desktop) NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060, i9-9900K	194 (151^min) fps ∼80%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Mobile MSI GP65 Leopard 9SD, i7-9750H	192 (154^min) fps ∼80%
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 Mobile MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF, i7-9750H	187 (147^min) fps ∼78%
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 Mobile MSI GE65 Raider 9SE, i7-9750H	183 (145^min) fps ∼76%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Mobile MSI GP75 Leopard 9SC, i7-9750H	166 (128^min) fps ∼69%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Mobile Alienware 17 R4, i7-7820HK	131 (102^min) fps ∼54%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 Mobile Asus G752VS, 6820HK	130 (100^min) fps ∼54%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti Mobile MSI GE72 7RE, i7-7700HQ	111 (85^min) fps ∼46%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 Mobile MSI GT62VR, 6820HK	106 (85^min) fps ∼44%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Mobile Asus GL753VD, i7-7700HQ	87.2 (66^min) fps ∼36%
AMD Radeon RX Vega 8 (Ryzen 2000/3000) Honor Magicbook, R5 2500U	28.8 (25^min) fps ∼12%

FHD (1920x1080)

When using 1920x1080 pixels, we recommend an accelerator from the (upper) mid-range. While a GeForce GTX 1050 Ti is just barely sufficient for the Medium preset, for High to maximum details, it should be at least a GeForce GTX 1060 or GTX 1650, which is also moderate.

GRID 2019
1920x1080 Medium Preset 1920x1080 High Preset 1920x1080 Ultra High Preset
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 Mobile, i9-9900K MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG	184 (149^min) fps ∼95% 144 (116^min) fps ∼83% 103 (81^min) fps ∼64%
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 (Desktop), i9-9900K MSI GeForce RTX 2080	169 (141^min) fps ∼88% 140 (116^min) fps ∼81% 111 (91^min) fps ∼69%
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 (Desktop), i9-9900K MSI GeForce RTX 2070	161 (132^min) fps ∼83% 127 (106^min) fps ∼73% 96.1 (79^min) fps ∼60%
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 Mobile, i7-9750H MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF	152 (122^min) fps ∼79% 124 (100^min) fps ∼72% 83.5 (66^min) fps ∼52%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 (Desktop), i9-9900K MSI GeForce GTX 1080	151 (123^min) fps ∼78% 121 (100^min) fps ∼70% 92.1 (74^min) fps ∼58%
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 (Desktop), i9-9900K MSI GeForce RTX 2060	145 (120^min) fps ∼75% 111 (92^min) fps ∼64% 79.5 (58^min) fps ∼50%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 (Desktop), i9-9900K MSI GeForce GTX 1070	134 (106^min) fps ∼69% 105 (85^min) fps ∼61% 72.8 (53^min) fps ∼46%
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 Mobile, i7-9750H MSI GE65 Raider 9SE	117 (93^min) fps ∼61% 101 (82^min) fps ∼58% 69.7 (54^min) fps ∼44%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Mobile, i7-9750H MSI GP65 Leopard 9SD	116 (95^min) fps ∼60% 94.3 (75^min) fps ∼55% 64.1 (53^min) fps ∼40%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Mobile, i7-7820HK Alienware 17 R4	104 (85^min) fps ∼54% 103 (85^min) fps ∼60% 81.5 (65^min) fps ∼51%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 Mobile, 6820HK Asus G752VS	103 (83^min) fps ∼53% 95.6 (78^min) fps ∼55% 70.1 (56^min) fps ∼44%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 (Desktop), i9-9900K NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060	89.6 (72^min) fps ∼46% 74.2 (60^min) fps ∼43% 50.1 (37^min) fps ∼31%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 Mobile, 6820HK MSI GT62VR	80.1 (65^min) fps ∼42% 68 (55^min) fps ∼39% 45.3 (37^min) fps ∼28%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Mobile, i7-9750H MSI GP75 Leopard 9SC	77.3 (63^min) fps ∼40% 64.4 (53^min) fps ∼37% 44.4 (37^min) fps ∼28%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti Mobile, i7-7700HQ MSI GE72 7RE	41.5 (25^min) fps ∼22% 33.9 (22^min) fps ∼20% 23 (14^min) fps ∼14%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Mobile, i7-7700HQ Asus GL753VD	39.8 (31^min) fps ∼21% 33.7 (28^min) fps ∼19% 21.3 (14^min) fps ∼13%
AMD Radeon RX Vega 8 (Ryzen 2000/3000), R5 2500U Honor Magicbook	13.7 (11^min) fps ∼7% 12.4 (9^min) fps ∼7%

QHD (2560x1440) and UHD (3840x2160)

GRID becomes really demanding only on QHD and UHD monitors. With a combination of 2560x1440 pixels and the Ultra High preset, you can only get good FPS values from a GeForce GTX 1660 Ti or better. Playing at 3840x2160 pixels in full details screams for a GeForce GTX 1080 or RTX 2070.

GRID 2019
2560x1440 Ultra High Preset 3840x2160 Ultra High Preset
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 (Desktop), i9-9900K MSI GeForce RTX 2080	91.2 (75^min) fps ∼58% 60 (42^min) fps ∼42%
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 Mobile, i9-9900K MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG	82.5 (69^min) fps ∼53% 54.8 (48^min) fps ∼39%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti (Desktop), i9-10980XE Asus X299 Prime Desktop DDR4-3200	78 (52.4^P1) fps ∼50% 52.8 (40.7^P1) fps ∼37%
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 (Desktop), i9-9900K MSI GeForce RTX 2070	74.7 (52^min) fps ∼48% 47.9 (34^min) fps ∼34%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 (Desktop), i9-9900K MSI GeForce GTX 1080	70.9 (51^min) fps ∼45% 46.9 (34^min) fps ∼33%
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 Mobile, i7-9750H MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF	66 (55^min) fps ∼42% 39.3 (34^min) fps ∼28%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Mobile, i7-7820HK Alienware 17 R4	65.5 (53^min) fps ∼42% 45.2 (36^min) fps ∼32%
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 (Desktop), i9-9900K MSI GeForce RTX 2060	64.5 (46^min) fps ∼41% 41.4 (30^min) fps ∼29%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 (Desktop), i9-9900K MSI GeForce GTX 1070	59.9 (43^min) fps ∼38% 36.3 (27^min) fps ∼26%
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 Mobile, i7-9750H MSI GE65 Raider 9SE	58.9 (47^min) fps ∼38% 36.3 (30^min) fps ∼26%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 Mobile, 6820HK Asus G752VS	53.7 (42^min) fps ∼34% 31.7 (26^min) fps ∼22%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Mobile, i7-9750H MSI GP65 Leopard 9SD	51.3 (43^min) fps ∼33% 31.2 (27^min) fps ∼22%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 Mobile, 6820HK MSI GT62VR	39.3 (30^min) fps ∼25% 21 (18^min) fps ∼15%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 (Desktop), i9-9900K NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060	39.3 (31^min) fps ∼25% 24.5 (20^min) fps ∼17%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Mobile, i7-9750H MSI GP75 Leopard 9SC	26 (16^min) fps ∼17% 15 (9^min) fps ∼11%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti Mobile, i7-7700HQ MSI GE72 7RE	16.8 (10^min) fps ∼11% 7.9 (4^min) fps ∼6%
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Mobile, i7-7700HQ Asus GL753VD	13.9 (8^min) fps ∼9% 8.1 (5^min) fps ∼6%

Note

Since gaming tests are very time-consuming and often hindered by installation or activation limitations, we are only able to deliver some of the benchmarks to you at the time of publishing the article. Additional graphics cards will be inserted in the following days and weeks.

Overview

Test Systems

Device	Graphics Card	Processor	Working Memory	Operating System
Desktop PC I	MSI GeForce RTX 2080 (8 GB GDDR6) MSI GeForce RTX 2070 (8 GB GDDR6) MSI GeForce RTX 2060 (6 GB GDDR6) MSI GeForce GTX 1080 (8 GB GDDR5X) MSI GeForce GTX 1070 (8 GB GDDR5) Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB GDDR5)	Intel Core i9-9900K	4 x 8 GB DDR4	Windows 10 64 Bit
Desktop PC II	Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080 Ti (11 GB GDDR5X) Asus GeForce GTX 980 Ti (6 GB GDDR5) XFX Radeon R9 Fury (4 GB HBM) Sapphire Radeon R9 290X (4 GB GDDR5) Sapphire Radeon R9 280X (3 GB GDDR5) MSI Radeon R7 370 (2 GB GDDR5)	Intel Core i7-7740X	2 x 8 GB DDR4	Windows 10 64 Bit
Desktop PC III	Nvidia GeForce RTX 2070 Super (8 GB GDDR6) Nvidia GeForce RTX 2060 Super (8 GB GDDR6) Nvidia Titan X (Pascal) (12 GB GDDR5X) AMD Radeon RX Vega 64 (8 GB HBM2) XFX AMD Radeon RX 590 (8 GB GDDR5) Sapphire AMD Radeon RX 580 (8 GB GDDR5) Sapphire AMD Radeon RX 570 (8 GB GDDR5) Gainward GeForce GTX 1650 (4 GB GDDR5) Zotac GeForce GT 1030 (2 GB GDDR5)	AMD Ryzen 7 2700X	2 x 8 GB DDR4	Windows 10 64 Bit
Desktop PC IV	Nvidia Titan RTX (24 GB GDDR6)	AMD Ryzen Threadripper 2920X	4 x 16 GB DDR4	Windows 10 64 Bit
MSI GT76	Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 (8 GB GDDR6)	Intel Core i9-9900K	2 x 16 GB DDR4	Windows 10 64 Bit
MSI GP65	Nvidia GeForce RTX 2070 (8 GB GDDR6)	Intel Core i7-9750H	2 x 16 GB DDR4	Windows 10 64 Bit
MSI GE65	Nvidia GeForce RTX 2060 (6 GB GDDR6)	Intel Core i7-9750H	2 x 8 GB DDR4	Windows 10 64 Bit
MSI GP65	Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 Ti (6 GB GDDR6)	Intel Core i7-9750H	2 x 16 GB DDR4	Windows 10 64 Bit
MSI GP75	Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 (4 GB GDDR5)	Intel Core i7-9750H	2 x 8 GB DDR4	Windows 10 64 Bit
Alienware 17 R4	Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080 (8 GB GDDR5X)	Intel Core i7-7820HK	2 x 16 GB DDR4	Windows 10 64 Bit
Asus G752VS	Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070 (8 GB GDDR5)	Intel Core i7-6820HK	2 x 16 GB DDR4	Windows 10 64 Bit
MSI GT62VR	Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB GDDR5)	Intel Core i7-6820HK	2 x 8 GB DDR4	Windows 10 64 Bit
MSI GE72	Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 Ti (2 GB GDDR5)	Intel Core i7-7700HQ	2 x 4 GB DDR4	Windows 10 64 Bit
Asus GL753VD	Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 (4 GB GDDR5)	Intel Core i7-7700HQ	1 x 16 GB DDR4	Windows 10 64 Bit
MSI GL62	Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 (2 GB GDDR5)	Intel Core i7-7700HQ	2 x 4 GB DDR4	Windows 10 64 Bit
MSI GE72	Nvidia GeForce GTX 965M (2 GB GDDR5)	Intel Core i7-6700HQ	1 x 8 GB DDR4	Windows 10 64 Bit
MSI PE60	Nvidia GeForce GTX 950M (2 GB GDDR5)	Intel Core i7-6700HQ	2 x 4 GB DDR4	Windows 10 64 Bit
MSI CX72	Nvidia GeForce 940MX (2 GB DDR3)	Intel Core i7-6700HQ	2 x 8 GB DDR4	Windows 10 64 Bit
MSI GP62	Nvidia GeForce 940M (2 GB DDR3)	Intel Core i7-5700HQ	1 x 8 GB DDR3	Windows 10 64 Bit
MSI CX61	Nvidia GeForce 920M (2 GB DDR3)	Intel Celeron 2970M	1 x 8 GB DDR3	Windows 10 64 Bit
Honor Magicbook	AMD Radeon RX Vega 8	AMD Ryzen 5 2500U	1 x 8 GB DDR4	Windows 10 64 Bit

4K Monitor	Nvidia Driver	AMD Driver
Asus PB287Q, Philips Momentum 436M6VBPAB	ForceWare 436.48	Adrenalin 19.10.1

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Editor of the original article: Florian Glaser - Managing Editor Gaming Laptops - 615 articles published on Notebookcheck since 2009

I discovered my interest in computers in my childhood, growing up with MS-DOS and Windows 3.1 in the early 1990s. I was especially fascinated with computer games, even from an early age. From Monkey Island through Lands of Lore to Doom, I tried every game I could get my hands on. I have been working for Notebookcheck since 2009 with my focus mostly being on high-performance gaming laptops.

Translator: Mark Riege - Translator - 510 articles published on Notebookcheck since 2018

Having worked as a programmer for 20 years (medical devices, AI, data management systems), I've been following the computer scene for many years and especially enjoy finding out about new technology advances. Originally from Germany but living in the US, I've been working as a translator more recently, with Notebookcheck allowing me to combine my interest in new devices and translation. Other interests include Buddhism, spending time in Tibetan monasteries, and translating ancient Tibetan texts.

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> Expert Reviews and News on Laptops, Smartphones and Tech Innovations > Reviews > GRID (2019) Laptop and Desktop Benchmarks

Florian Glaser, 2019-10-17 (Update: 2022-01-21)

Legend
5	Stutters – This game is very likely to stutter and have poor frame rates. Based on all known benchmarks using the specified graphical settings, average frame rates are expected to fall below 25fps
	May Stutter – This graphics card has not been explicitly tested on this game. Based on interpolated information from surrounding graphics cards of similar performance levels, stutters and poor frame rates are expected.
30	Fluent – Based on all known benchmarks using the specified graphical settings, this game should run at or above 25fps
40	Fluent – Based on all known benchmarks using the specified graphical settings, this game should run at or above 35fps
60	Fluent – Based on all known benchmarks using the specified graphical settings, this game should run at or above 58fps
	May Run Fluently – This graphics card has not been explicitly tested on this game. Based on interpolated information from surrounding graphics cards of similar performance levels, fluent frame rates are expected.
?	Uncertain – This graphics card experienced unexpected performance issues during testing for this game. A slower card may be able to achieve better and more consistent frame rates than this particular GPU running the same benchmark scene.
	Uncertain – This graphics card has not been explicitly tested on this game and no reliable interpolation can be made based on the performances of surrounding cards of the same class or family.
The value in the fields displays the average frame rate of all values in the database. Move your cursor over the value to see individual results.