GPU Comparison

FAQ

Q: Which GPU wins the Geekbench OpenCL benchmark, and by how much?

A: The AMD FirePro W4170M takes the win in Geekbench OpenCL with a score of 5034, compared to the NVIDIA GeForce GTS 450's 4893. That is a 2.9% advantage for the AMD part.

Q: How does the AMD FirePro W4170M compare to its closest rival, the AMD Radeon R7 M340?

A: The FirePro W4170M scores 5034, while the Radeon R7 M340 averages 5063. The data shows the FirePro trails that rival by 0.6%, a very narrow margin that places them in the same performance tier.

Q: What is the NVIDIA GeForce GTS 450's standing relative to the AMD FirePro W5130M?

A: The GTS 450 scores 4893, while the FirePro W5130M averages 4904. That puts the GTS 450 0.2% behind the W5130M, indicating statistically similar OpenCL performance.

Q: Which GPU has a higher percentile ranking among all GPUs?

A: The AMD FirePro W4170M sits at the 30th percentile, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTS 450 is at the 28th percentile. Both are positioned in the lower-mid range of the performance distribution.

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

A: The AMD FirePro W4170M comes with 2 GB of GDDR5 memory, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTS 450 has 1024 MB (1 GB) of GDDR5. The AMD card doubles the framebuffer capacity.

Q: When was each GPU released, and what is its production status?

A: The AMD FirePro W4170M was released on 2015-04-22, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTS 450 was released on 2010-09-12. Both are listed as end-of-life products.

Architecture Differences

The AMD FirePro W4170M is built on the GCN 1.0 architecture, using the Opal chip, and is fabricated on a 28 nm process at TSMC. In contrast, the NVIDIA GeForce GTS 450 uses the Fermi architecture with the GF106 chip, produced on a 40 nm process, also at TSMC. The process node difference is significant: the AMD part packs 950 million transistors into a 77 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 12.3 million per mm². The GTS 450, on the other hand, crams 1,170 million transistors into a much larger 238 mm² die, giving it a lower transistor density of 4.9 million per mm².

The compute core counts differ substantially. The FirePro W4170M features 384 shading units, 24 texture mapping units, and 8 ROPs. The GTS 450 has 192 shading units, 32 TMUs, and 16 ROPs. So while the AMD card has double the shader count, the NVIDIA card has more TMUs and double the ROPs. This architectural split suggests different strengths: the FirePro leans on shader throughput, while the GTS 450 emphasizes texture and pixel processing.

In terms of feature support, the AMD FirePro W4170M supports DirectX 12 (11_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.170. The NVIDIA GeForce GTS 450 also supports DirectX 12 (11_0) and OpenGL 4.6, but it has no Vulkan support listed. That makes the AMD card the more modern option for API compatibility, particularly for Vulkan-based workloads. The bus interface also differs: the FirePro uses PCIe 3.0 x8, while the GTS 450 uses PCIe 2.0 x16.

The form factors and power delivery are entirely different. The FirePro W4170M is an MXM Module with no power connectors, designed for mobile workstations. The GTS 450 is a Dual-slot desktop card, 210 mm long and 111 mm high, requiring a single 6-pin power connector and a suggested 300 W PSU. The GTS 450 also has a listed TDP of 106 W, while the FirePro has no TDP listed.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only head-to-head benchmark available is Geekbench OpenCL, and the AMD FirePro W4170M wins it decisively. With a score of 5034 against the GTS 450's 4893, the FirePro holds a 2.9% edge. That is a modest but clear win, the kind of margin that shows up in real workloads as a slight but consistent performance advantage.

Looking at the rival context, the FirePro's 5034 score places it just 0.3% ahead of the AMD Radeon R5 M430 (5018) and 0.7% ahead of the AMD Radeon R7 Graphics (4998). It trails the Radeon R7 M340 and Radeon R7 240 (both 5063) by 0.6%. This clustering suggests the FirePro sits right at the edge of a tightly packed performance group, where a few percent separates several cards.

The GTS 450's 4893 score puts it in a similar neighborhood. It is 0.2% behind the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 Ti 8 GB (4901) and the AMD FirePro W5130M (4904), and 0.5% ahead of the AMD Radeon R6 M255DX (4867). The GTS 450 also trails the AMD Radeon R7 M265 (4929) by 0.7%. Despite being a much older architecture, the GTS 450 holds its own in this specific OpenCL test, though it still loses to the FirePro W4170M.

The 2.9% delta between the two cards is the headline number. It is not a generational gap, but it is consistent with the FirePro's newer architecture and higher shader count. In practical terms, the FirePro W4170M delivers roughly 3% better OpenCL compute performance than the GTS 450, which is enough to be noticeable in GPU-accelerated applications but not enough to be a night-and-day difference.

Specification Differences

The two GPUs differ across nearly every specification category. The AMD FirePro W4170M uses a 28 nm process node, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTS 450 uses 40 nm. Transistor counts are 950 million versus 1,170 million, and die sizes are 77 mm² versus 238 mm². Transistor density is 12.3 million per mm² on the AMD side, compared to 4.9 million per mm² on the NVIDIA side.

Clock speeds vary. The FirePro W4170M has a base clock of 825 MHz and a boost clock of 900 MHz, with memory running at 1000 MHz (4 Gbps effective). The GTS 450 has no base or boost clock listed, but its memory runs at 902 MHz (3.6 Gbps effective). Memory configurations also differ: the FirePro has 2 GB of GDDR5 on a 128-bit bus, delivering 64.00 GB/s of bandwidth. The GTS 450 has 1024 MB of GDDR5 on a 128-bit bus, delivering 57.73 GB/s.

The compute resources are split differently. The FirePro has 384 shading units, 24 TMUs, and 8 ROPs, producing a pixel rate of 7.200 GPixel/s, a texture rate of 21.60 GTexel/s, and FP32 throughput of 691.2 GFLOPS. The GTS 450 has 192 shading units, 32 TMUs, and 16 ROPs, with a pixel rate of 6.264 GPixel/s, a texture rate of 25.06 GTexel/s, and FP32 throughput of 601.3 GFLOPS.

Power and physical specs diverge sharply. The FirePro W4170M is an MXM Module with no power connectors, while the GTS 450 is a Dual-slot card requiring a 1x 6-pin connector and a suggested 300 W PSU. The GTS 450 has a TDP of 106 W; the FirePro has no TDP listed. The bus interface is PCIe 3.0 x8 for the AMD card and PCIe 2.0 x16 for the NVIDIA card. Display outputs are "Portable Device Dependent" for the FirePro, while the GTS 450 offers 2x DVI and 1x mini-HDMI 1.3a.

The API support differs in two key ways. Both support DirectX 12 (11_1 for AMD, 11_0 for NVIDIA) and OpenGL 4.6, but only the FirePro supports Vulkan (1.2.170). The GTS 450 has no Vulkan support listed. The release dates are separated by nearly five years: the GTS 450 launched on 2010-09-12 with a 129 USD launch MSRP, while the FirePro W4170M launched on 2015-04-22 with no launch MSRP listed.

Where Each One Wins

The AMD FirePro W4170M wins the only head-to-head benchmark, the Geekbench OpenCL test, with a 2.9% advantage. That makes it the better choice for GPU compute workloads that rely on OpenCL acceleration. Its higher FP32 throughput (691.2 GFLOPS versus 601.3 GFLOPS) and double the shading units (384 versus 192) support this result. The FirePro also brings 2 GB of memory versus 1 GB, which helps in memory-heavy tasks. Its Vulkan support and newer PCIe 3.0 interface make it the more future-proof option for software that can use modern APIs. As a mobile MXM module with no external power connectors, it is also the only one of the two that fits in a laptop or compact workstation chassis.

The NVIDIA GeForce GTS 450, despite losing the head-to-head, has its own strengths. It has double the ROPs (16 versus 8) and more TMUs (32 versus 24), leading to a higher texture rate of 25.06 GTexel/s compared to 21.60 GTexel/s on the FirePro. That makes it potentially stronger in texture-bound rendering scenarios, even if its overall OpenCL score is lower. Its pixel rate of 6.264 GPixel/s trails the FirePro's 7.200 GPixel/s, but the GTS 450's larger ROP count could help in certain fill-rate-limited situations. It also has a lower memory bandwidth (57.73 GB/s versus 64.00 GB/s), but its 128-bit bus and GDDR5 memory keep it competitive. The GTS 450 is a desktop card with standard DVI and mini-HDMI outputs, making it easier to slot into a traditional desktop build. Its 129 USD launch MSRP reflects its original budget-desktop positioning, and its PCIe 2.0 x16 interface is compatible with virtually any motherboard from that era.

For users choosing between the two, the decision comes down to workload and platform. The FirePro W4170M is the better compute card, with a clear benchmark win, more memory, and modern API support. The GTS 450 is the better fit for legacy desktop systems, particularly if texture throughput is a priority and Vulkan support is irrelevant. The benchmark data shows the FirePro is the faster card overall, but the GTS 450 remains a viable option in its niche.