AMD FirePro M5100 vs AMD Radeon Vega 10 Mobile Comparison

The AMD FirePro M5100 and the AMD Radeon Vega 10 Mobile represent two very different approaches to mobile graphics, separated by nearly six years of technological evolution. The data shows a classic clash between a dedicated discrete GPU from the GCN 1.0 era and a modern integrated graphics processor built on the GCN 5.0 architecture. While the benchmark results are surprisingly close, the underlying specifications and architectural philosophies could not be more different.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only common benchmark in the data is Geekbench OpenCL, and it provides a clear, if narrow, verdict. The AMD FirePro M5100 scores 6830 points, while the AMD Radeon Vega 10 Mobile scores 6476 points. This gives the FirePro M5100 a 5.5% advantage in raw compute performance. This is a meaningful lead, but it is not a decisive one. For context, the FirePro M5100's nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 675M, which scores 6946 (1.7% higher), and the AMD Radeon R7 M370, which scores 6764 (1% lower). The Vega 10 Mobile, on the other hand, sits within 0.6% of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 670M (6513) and is actually 1.1% ahead of the NVIDIA RTX PRO 5000 72 GB Blackwell (6407), proof of how competitive its score is relative to its place in the market.

The FirePro M5100's win is notable because it achieves it with a significantly lower clock speed. Its base clock is 725 MHz and its boost clock is 775 MHz, whereas the Vega 10 Mobile boosts to 1301 MHz. Despite the Vega part running at nearly 70% higher boost clocks, the FirePro M5100 still manages to edge out a victory. This demonstrates the advantage of having dedicated GDDR5 memory with a 128-bit bus and 72.00 GB/s of bandwidth, compared to the Vega 10 Mobile's system-shared memory, which has system-dependent bandwidth. The FirePro also has double the ROPs (16 vs. 8), which helps in certain rendering tasks. The 5.5% delta is the entire story of the head-to-head; there are no other tests where the Vega 10 Mobile can claim a win.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU is faster in Geekbench OpenCL, the FirePro M5100 or the Vega 10 Mobile?

A: The AMD FirePro M5100 is faster, scoring 6830 compared to the Vega 10 Mobile's 6476. This represents a 5.5% performance advantage for the FirePro M5100.

Q: How does the Vega 10 Mobile's score compare to a high-end NVIDIA workstation GPU?

A: The Vega 10 Mobile's average score of 6476 is 1.1% higher than the NVIDIA RTX PRO 5000 72 GB Blackwell, which scores 6407. This shows that the integrated GPU is competitive in this particular compute workload, despite its low power envelope.

Q: Does the Vega 10 Mobile have more shading units than the FirePro M5100?

A: No, both GPUs have exactly 640 shading units. However, the Vega 10 Mobile compensates with a much higher boost clock of 1301 MHz compared to the FirePro's 775 MHz.

Q: What is the power draw of the Vega 10 Mobile?

A: The Vega 10 Mobile has a TDP of 10 W, a figure not listed for the FirePro M5100. This makes the Vega part an extremely power-efficient IGP, suitable for thin and light laptops.

Q: What is the difference in their memory configurations?

A: The FirePro M5100 uses 2 GB of dedicated GDDR5 memory on a 128-bit bus, providing 72.00 GB/s of bandwidth. The Vega 10 Mobile uses System Shared memory, meaning its bus width, size, and bandwidth are all system-dependent.

Q: Which GPU has a more modern feature set for API support?

A: The Vega 10 Mobile is more modern, supporting DirectX 12 (12_1) and Vulkan 1.3, while the FirePro M5100 supports DirectX 12 (11_1) and Vulkan 1.2.170. Both support OpenGL 4.6.

Where Each One Wins

The AMD FirePro M5100 wins in the single available benchmark, the Geekbench OpenCL test. This is a compute-oriented test, and the FirePro's dedicated GDDR5 memory and higher ROP count likely contribute to its 5.5% lead. This suggests that for tasks that are memory-bandwidth sensitive or rely heavily on pixel fill-rate, the FirePro M5100 could maintain an advantage. Its dedication to compute is further shown by its 992.0 GFLOPS FP32 performance, which, while lower than the Vega's, is achieved with less total silicon dedicated to the GPU.

The AMD Radeon Vega 10 Mobile does not win any of the head-to-head benchmarks, but its data reveals where its strengths lie. Its architecture is far more efficient. The Vega 10 Mobile's 10 W TDP makes it an exceptionally low-power option, ideal for ultra-portable devices where battery life is paramount. Its 1.665 TFLOPS FP32 and 3.331 TFLOPS FP16 (2:1) performance shows a peak compute capability that is higher than the FirePro M5100, but it is held back by its memory system in the OpenCL test. The Vega part also wins on modern API support, particularly with Vulkan 1.3, which could make it a better choice for newer games and applications that leverage this API.

Specification Differences

The two GPUs differ in nearly every fundamental specification. The FirePro M5100 is built on a 28 nm process at TSMC, while the Vega 10 Mobile uses a 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries. The FirePro's chip, "Venus," has 1,500 million transistors on a 123 mm² die, resulting in a transistor density of 12.2M / mm². In contrast, the Vega 10 Mobile's "Raven-M" chip has 4,940 million transistors on a 210 mm² die, for a density of 23.5M / mm².

Clock speeds are drastically different. The FirePro M5100 has a base clock of 725 MHz and a boost of 775 MHz, with memory clocked at 1125 MHz (4.5 Gbps effective). The Vega 10 Mobile has a much lower base clock of 300 MHz but a far higher boost of 1301 MHz; its memory clock is listed as "System Shared." Memory configuration is another stark contrast: the FirePro has 2 GB of GDDR5 on a 128-bit bus with 72.00 GB/s bandwidth, while the Vega uses System Shared memory with system-dependent bandwidth.

The compute units are identical in count (640 shading units, 40 TMUs), but the ROPs differ, with the FirePro having 16 and the Vega having 8. This leads to different pixel rates (12.40 GPixel/s vs. 10.41 GPixel/s) and texture rates (31.00 GTexel/s vs. 52.04 GTexel/s). The form factor also differs: the FirePro is an MXM Module using an MXM-A (3.0) bus interface, while the Vega 10 Mobile is an IGP.

Architecture Differences

The architectural gap is a chasm. The FirePro M5100 is based on GCN 1.0, a first-generation compute architecture that was designed for discrete GPUs. Its "Venus" chip is a dedicated graphics processor with its own memory pool. The Vega 10 Mobile uses GCN 5.0, a much newer iteration of the architecture. The "Raven-M" chip is a mobile APU component, which means it is an integrated processor that shares system memory.

This fundamental difference shapes everything else. The FirePro's FP32 performance is 992.0 GFLOPS, and it has no listed FP16 capability. The Vega 10 Mobile, by contrast, has an FP32 rate of 1.665 TFLOPS and a robust FP16 rate of 3.331 TFLOPS (2:1), showcasing the newer architecture's improved compute throughput. The Vega part also benefits from a much higher boost clock (1301 MHz), nearly double the FirePro's. The FirePro's advantage lies in its dedicated memory and higher ROP count, which are less relevant in the compute-heavy OpenCL test but can be crucial for traditional rasterization. The Vega 10 Mobile also has a much higher transistor density and is manufactured on a more advanced 14 nm node, which explains its 10 W TDP, a figure that is not provided for the FirePro M5100.

The Verdict

The data points to a clear conclusion for different use cases. The AMD FirePro M5100 is the better choice for anyone whose primary concern is raw compute performance in the Geekbench OpenCL test. Its 5.5% lead is a real, tangible advantage. This makes it a viable option for legacy software that relies on OpenCL and for users who need a dedicated GPU with its own memory. Its 38th percentile ranking versus all GPUs is slightly better than the Vega 10 Mobile's 37th percentile, reinforcing its marginal performance edge.

The AMD Radeon Vega 10 Mobile, despite losing the benchmark, is the more sensible choice for a modern, power-constrained system. Its 10 W TDP is a definitive advantage in a mobile context, allowing for thinner, lighter laptops with longer battery life. Its modern architecture supports DirectX 12 (12_1) and Vulkan 1.3, making it a better foundation for future software. While it loses in this specific test, its higher FP32 and FP16 peak compute rates and more advanced architecture suggest it would be more efficient in tasks that are not bottlenecked by memory bandwidth. A builder looking for a dedicated GPU should choose the FirePro M5100. A builder looking for an efficient, integrated solution with modern feature support should choose the Radeon Vega 10 Mobile. The benchmark results indicate a narrow victory for the FirePro M5100, but the architectural trajectory is firmly in the Vega 10 Mobile's favor.