AMD FirePro W2100 vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 GDDR6 Comparison

The data places the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 GDDR6 and the AMD FirePro W2100 in the same performance percentile, both sitting at the 25th percentile of all GPUs. Their average benchmark scores are nearly identical, with the RTX 4070 GDDR6 at 4335 and the FirePro W2100 at 4295, a margin of less than one percent. However, this statistical closeness masks a fundamental technological divide: the RTX 4070 GDDR6 is a modern, high-end gaming and compute architecture from 2024, while the FirePro W2100 is a decade-old, low-power workstation card from 2014. The benchmark data shows a near-tie in aggregate scores, but the architectural specifications reveal they are built for entirely different purposes and eras.

Where Each One Wins

The RTX 4070 GDDR6 wins decisively in raw compute capability, as its specifications dwarf those of the FirePro W2100. It delivers 29.15 TFLOPS of FP32 performance compared to the FirePro's 435.2 GFLOPS, a difference of roughly 67 times. Its pixel rate of 158.4 GPixel/s and texture rate of 455.4 GTexel/s are orders of magnitude higher than the FirePro's 5.440 GPixel/s and 13.60 GTexel/s. In any modern gaming, rendering, or compute workload, the RTX 4070 GDDR6 is the clear victor.

The FirePro W2100 wins in efficiency and physical footprint. Its 26 W TDP is a fraction of the RTX 4070 GDDR6's 200 W, and it requires no external power connectors, drawing all power from the PCIe slot. It is a single-slot card at 168 mm in length, compared to the RTX 4070 GDDR6's dual-slot design at 240 mm. The data shows a use-case split: the RTX 4070 GDDR6 for performance-intensive tasks, and the FirePro W2100 for low-power, space-constrained workstation environments where display output is the primary need.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from different technological eras. The RTX 4070 GDDR6 uses the AD104 chip on TSMC's 5 nm process node, packing 35,800 million transistors into a 294 mm² die. The FirePro W2100 uses the Oland chip on TSMC's 28 nm node, with just 950 million transistors on a 77 mm² die. This leads to a transistor density of 121.8M per mm² for the RTX 4070 GDDR6 versus 12.3M per mm² for the FirePro W2100 — a tenfold difference in integration density.

The RTX 4070 GDDR6 features the Ada Lovelace architecture, which includes 46 RT cores and 184 tensor cores, enabling hardware-accelerated ray tracing and AI workloads. The FirePro W2100, based on GCN 1.0, has no RT or tensor cores at all. The RTX 4070 GDDR6 has 5888 shading units, 184 TMUs, and 64 ROPs, while the FirePro W2100 has 320 shading units, 20 TMUs, and 8 ROPs. Memory configurations also differ entirely: the RTX 4070 GDDR6 has 12 GB of GDDR6 on a 192-bit bus with 480.0 GB/s bandwidth, while the FirePro W2100 has 2 GB of DDR3 on a 128-bit bus with 28.80 GB/s bandwidth.

API support reflects the generational gap. The RTX 4070 GDDR6 supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) and Vulkan 1.4, while the FirePro W2100 supports DirectX 12 (11_1) and Vulkan 1.2.170. Both support OpenGL 4.6. The RTX 4070 GDDR6 uses a PCIe 4.0 x16 interface and a 16-pin power connector, whereas the FirePro W2100 uses PCIe 3.0 x8 and no external power.

The Verdict

The data indicates these two cards should not be compared as direct competitors, despite their similar average benchmark scores. The RTX 4070 GDDR6 is for users who need maximum performance in gaming, 3D rendering, or compute applications, offering 29.15 TFLOPS of FP32 power and modern features like ray tracing. The FirePro W2100 is for legacy workstation deployments requiring basic 2D display output or light 3D acceleration in a low-power, single-slot form factor.

Benchmark results show the RTX 4070 GDDR6 scores 4334.5 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, while the FirePro W2100's best scores are 4093 in Geekbench OpenCL and 4497 in Geekbench Vulkan. These tests measure different workloads, so the aggregate percentiles align, but the FirePro's relative strength in Vulkan suggests it handles specific lightweight compute tasks adequately. For any modern workload, the RTX 4070 GDDR6 is the only viable choice. For ultra-low-power display-only duties, the FirePro W2100's 26 W TDP and lack of power connectors make it a unique option.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has a higher average benchmark score?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 GDDR6 has an average score of 4335, while the AMD FirePro W2100 has an average score of 4295, a difference of 0.9% in favor of the RTX 4070 GDDR6.

Q: Does the AMD FirePro W2100 support ray tracing?

A: No. The FirePro W2100 has no RT cores listed, while the RTX 4070 GDDR6 features 46 RT cores.

Q: What is the memory bandwidth difference between the two cards?

A: The RTX 4070 GDDR6 has 480.0 GB/s of bandwidth with 12 GB of GDDR6 memory, while the FirePro W2100 has 28.80 GB/s with 2 GB of DDR3 memory.

Q: Which card requires a lower power supply?

A: The FirePro W2100 has a suggested PSU of 200 W and a 26 W TDP, whereas the RTX 4070 GDDR6 has a suggested PSU of 550 W and a 200 W TDP.

Q: Are there any benchmark tests where the FirePro W2100 outperforms the RTX 4070 GDDR6?

A: The head-to-head benchmark list is empty. The FirePro W2100's best individual scores are 4497 in Geekbench Vulkan and 4093 in Geekbench OpenCL, but no direct comparison test exists in the data.

Q: What is the release date gap between the two products?

A: The RTX 4070 GDDR6 was released on 2024-08-19, while the FirePro W2100 was released on 2014-08-11, a ten-year gap.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

No direct head-to-head benchmark results are provided in the data. However, comparing their respective average scores and individual test results offers insight. The RTX 4070 GDDR6's single benchmark, 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, yields a score of 4334.5. The FirePro W2100's Geekbench OpenCL score is 4093, which is 5.9% lower than the RTX 4070's Steel Nomad result. Conversely, the FirePro W2100's Geekbench Vulkan score of 4497 is 3.7% higher than the RTX 4070's Steel Nomad score.

These are different test suites measuring different capabilities, so direct comparison is limited. The nearest rival data shows both cards clustered tightly: the RTX 4070 GDDR6 is 0.9% ahead of the FirePro W2100 in average score, while the FirePro W2100 is 0.9% behind the RTX 4070 GDDR6. This symmetry confirms their aggregate performance parity. The RTX 4070 GDDR6 also sits 1.2% behind the NVIDIA GeForce 930M and 0.6% behind the Intel Iris Pro Graphics 5200, while the FirePro W2100 is 1.3% ahead of the NVIDIA Quadro K3000M and 0.6% ahead of the AMD Radeon Vega 3. Both cards occupy the same performance tier, but the RTX 4070's advantage in raw specs means it achieves this parity through sheer compute power, while the FirePro achieves it through efficient execution of lighter workloads.

Specification Differences

The two cards differ in nearly every specification category. The RTX 4070 GDDR6 uses a 5 nm process node versus the FirePro W2100's 28 nm node. Transistor count is 35,800 million versus 950 million, and die size is 294 mm² versus 77 mm². The RTX 4070 GDDR6 has a base clock of 1920 MHz and boost of 2475 MHz, while the FirePro W2100 runs at 630 MHz base and 680 MHz boost. Memory speed is 2500 MHz (20 Gbps effective) for the RTX 4070 GDDR6 versus 900 MHz (1800 Mbps effective) for the FirePro W2100.

Shading units number 5888 versus 320, TMUs are 184 versus 20, and ROPs are 64 versus 8. The RTX 4070 GDDR6 includes 46 RT cores and 184 tensor cores; the FirePro W2100 has none. Pixel rate is 158.4 GPixel/s versus 5.440 GPixel/s, and texture rate is 455.4 GTexel/s versus 13.60 GTexel/s. FP32 performance is 29.15 TFLOPS versus 435.2 GFLOPS, and FP16 is 29.15 TFLOPS for the RTX 4070 GDDR6 while the FirePro W2100 has no FP16 data.

TDP is 200 W versus 26 W. The RTX 4070 GDDR6 is dual-slot with a 16-pin power connector and a 550 W suggested PSU; the FirePro W2100 is single-slot with no power connectors and a 200 W suggested PSU. The RTX 4070 GDDR6 uses PCIe 4.0 x16, the FirePro W2100 uses PCIe 3.0 x8. Display outputs are 1x HDMI 2.1 and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a for the RTX 4070 GDDR6 versus 2x DisplayPort 1.2 for the FirePro W2100. DirectX support is 12 Ultimate (12_2) versus 12 (11_1), and Vulkan is 1.4 versus 1.2.170; both support OpenGL 4.6. Dimensions are 240 mm x 110 mm x 40 mm for the RTX 4070 GDDR6 versus 168 mm x 69 mm with no width listed for the FirePro W2100. The RTX 4070 GDDR6 has a launch MSRP of 599 USD; the FirePro W2100 has no launch MSRP listed.