GPU Comparison

The NVIDIA GeForce GT 645M and AMD FirePro M4150 are both end-of-life mobile graphics solutions from the 28 nm era, built by TSMC. The data shows a clear split: the AMD FirePro M4150 wins the only shared benchmark decisively, while the NVIDIA card offers a broader feature set and higher peak throughput in specific sub-measurements. The GT 645M holds a higher overall percentile ranking (26th vs 24th) and a higher average benchmark score (4411 vs 4013), but that average is pulled up by results from tests the AMD card does not participate in.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GT 645M has an average benchmark score of 4411, which is 398 points higher than the AMD FirePro M4150’s 4013. However, this average is computed from three benchmark tests for NVIDIA and a single test for AMD.

Q: In the only benchmark where both GPUs were tested, which one wins?

A: The AMD FirePro M4150 wins the Geekbench OpenCL test with a score of 4013, while the NVIDIA GeForce GT 645M scores 2680. This represents a delta of -33.2% for the NVIDIA part, meaning AMD is ahead by roughly a third.

Q: How do these GPUs compare in memory bandwidth?

A: The AMD FirePro M4150 features GDDR5 memory with a 128-bit bus, delivering 64.00 GB/s. The NVIDIA GeForce GT 645M uses DDR3 on the same 128-bit bus, providing 28.80 GB/s, less than half the bandwidth of the AMD part.

Q: What are the transistor and die size differences?

A: The NVIDIA GK107 chip contains 1,270 million transistors on a 118 mm² die. The AMD Opal chip packs 950 million transistors into 77 mm², resulting in a higher transistor density of 12.3M / mm² versus NVIDIA’s 10.8M / mm².

Q: Do both GPUs support the same DirectX version?

A: No. The AMD FirePro M4150 reports DirectX 12 (11_1) support, while the NVIDIA GeForce GT 645M reports DirectX 12 (11_0). Both support OpenGL 4.6, but NVIDIA’s Vulkan version is 1.2.175, slightly newer than AMD’s 1.2.170.

Q: What is the pixel rate of each GPU?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GT 645M achieves a pixel rate of 6.240 GPixel/s, while the AMD FirePro M4150 is lower at 5.720 GPixel/s. The NVIDIA card’s advantage comes from having 16 ROPs versus AMD’s 8 ROPs.

Where Each One Wins

The AMD FirePro M4150 wins the only direct head-to-head comparison available. In Geekbench OpenCL, it scores 4013 against NVIDIA’s 2680, a 33.2% advantage. This is a significant margin in a compute-oriented workload, which aligns with its professional FirePro branding. The AMD part also has a substantial memory bandwidth lead, 64.00 GB/s versus 28.80 GB/s, which likely contributes to its OpenCL performance. GDDR5 memory operating at 4 Gbps effective, paired with a 128-bit bus, gives it over twice the bandwidth of the GT 645M’s DDR3 at 1800 Mbps effective.

The NVIDIA GeForce GT 645M wins in several architectural and throughput metrics, even if it loses the compute benchmark. It has a higher pixel rate (6.240 GPixel/s vs 5.720 GPixel/s) and a higher texture rate (24.96 GTexel/s vs 17.16 GTexel/s). Its FP32 throughput is also higher at 599.0 GFLOPS versus 549.1 GFLOPS. These figures suggest that in rasterization-heavy tasks, where pixel fill and texture filtering dominate, the NVIDIA card could hold an edge, despite its slower memory. The GT 645M also has more TMUs (32 vs 24) and more ROPs (16 vs 8), which explains its fill rate advantages.

The GT 645M also has a wider bus interface: PCIe 3.0 x16 versus the AMD card’s PCIe 3.0 x8. In a mobile platform, this difference matters less for rendering, but it can affect data transfer overhead in certain workloads. Additionally, the NVIDIA part supports Geekbench Metal and Vulkan tests, scoring 5679 and 4875 respectively, while the AMD card has no recorded results for those APIs. This indicates the NVIDIA driver stack covers a broader range of compute APIs.

Architecture Differences

The NVIDIA GeForce GT 645M is built on the Kepler architecture, specifically the GK107 chip. It uses 384 shading units, 32 TMUs, and 16 ROPs. Kepler is a design that emphasized energy efficiency and balanced compute-to-graphics ratios. The GT 645M has a base clock of 709 MHz with a boost clock of 780 MHz. Its memory runs at 900 MHz, translating to 1800 Mbps effective on DDR3.

The AMD FirePro M4150 is based on GCN 1.0, the first iteration of AMD’s Graphics Core Next architecture, using the Opal chip. It also has 384 shading units, but fewer TMUs (24) and ROPs (8). GCN 1.0 was designed with compute performance as a priority, featuring a different scheduling model than Kepler. The AMD card does not list base or boost clocks in the data, but its memory runs at 1000 MHz, or 4 Gbps effective on GDDR5.

The transistor counts differ notably: NVIDIA packs 1,270 million transistors into 118 mm², while AMD fits 950 million into 77 mm². This gives AMD a higher density at 12.3M / mm² versus NVIDIA’s 10.8M / mm². Both are on the same 28 nm TSMC process, so the density difference reflects design choices, Kepler has more logic per area, while GCN 1.0 is more compact. The GT 645M’s larger die likely accommodates the extra TMUs and ROPs.

API support diverges in DirectX version: NVIDIA lists 12 (11_0) while AMD lists 12 (11_1). The feature level difference (11_1 vs 11_0) can enable additional optional Direct3D 11.1 features on the AMD side. Vulkan versions also differ slightly, with NVIDIA at 1.2.175 and AMD at 1.2.170, a minor revision gap. OpenGL support is identical at 4.6.

Specification Differences

| Specification | NVIDIA GeForce GT 645M | AMD FirePro M4150 |

|---|---|---|

| Architecture | Kepler | GCN 1.0 |

| Chip | GK107 | Opal |

| Transistors | 1,270 million | 950 million |

| Die Size | 118 mm² | 77 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 10.8M / mm² | 12.3M / mm² |

| Memory Size | 2 GB | 1024 MB |

| Memory Type | DDR3 | GDDR5 |

| Memory Clock | 900 MHz / 1800 Mbps | 1000 MHz / 4 Gbps |

| Bandwidth | 28.80 GB/s | 64.00 GB/s |

| TMUs | 32 | 24 |

| ROPs | 16 | 8 |

| Pixel Rate | 6.240 GPixel/s | 5.720 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 24.96 GTexel/s | 17.16 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 599.0 GFLOPS | 549.1 GFLOPS |

| TDP | 32 W | Not specified |

| Slot Width | IGP | MXM Module |

| Bus Interface | PCIe 3.0 x16 | PCIe 3.0 x8 |

| DirectX | 12 (11_0) | 12 (11_1) |

| Vulkan | 1.2.175 | 1.2.170 |

| Release Date | 2012-09-30 | 2013-10-15 |

The most consequential differences are memory-related. The AMD card’s GDDR5 provides 64.00 GB/s, more than double NVIDIA’s 28.80 GB/s from DDR3. This explains the AMD win in OpenCL. However, the NVIDIA card counters with more TMUs and ROPs, producing higher texture and pixel rates. The GT 645M also has double the memory capacity (2 GB vs 1024 MB), which is useful for texture-heavy scenes at higher resolutions.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

There is only one direct benchmark comparison in the data: Geekbench OpenCL. The AMD FirePro M4150 scores 4013, while the NVIDIA GeForce GT 645M scores 2680. The delta is -33.2% relative to the AMD card, meaning NVIDIA lags by a third. This is a decisive result. The AMD card’s higher memory bandwidth (64.00 GB/s vs 28.80 GB/s) is the likely driver, as OpenCL workloads often saturate memory.

Beyond the head-to-head, the NVIDIA GT 645M has additional benchmark results that the AMD card lacks. In Geekbench Vulkan, the NVIDIA card scores 4875. In Geekbench Metal, it scores 5679. These results indicate that the NVIDIA part performs strongly in graphics API compute tests. However, without corresponding AMD scores, a direct comparison is impossible. The GT 645M’s average benchmark score of 4411 benefits from these extra tests, while the AMD card’s average is solely its OpenCL score of 4013.

Looking at nearest rivals provides context. The GT 645M’s 4411 average sits 0.5% above the NVIDIA GeForce 930M (4388) and 1.2% above the Intel Iris Pro Graphics 5200 (4360). It is 1.8% above the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 GDDR6 (4335), a modern desktop card, though that comparison reflects the benchmark’s specific weighting. The AMD FirePro M4150’s 4013 average is 0.5% below the NVIDIA GeForce GT 755M (4033) and 0.9% above the AMD Radeon HD 6850 X2 (3977). This places the AMD card slightly behind NVIDIA’s mid-range mobile parts of its generation.

In summary, benchmark results indicate the AMD FirePro M4150 is the stronger compute performer in OpenCL, while the NVIDIA GeForce GT 645M offers superior fill rates and broader API coverage. The AMD card’s memory bandwidth advantage is substantial, but the NVIDIA card’s higher transistor count and more numerous TMUs/ROPs give it raw throughput edges in texture and pixel processing.