AMD FirePro W5000 vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX 870M Comparison

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 870M and the AMD FirePro W5000 represent two distinct approaches to mobile and workstation graphics from the same 28 nm era. The data shows the GeForce GTX 870M, a Kepler-based mobile part, holds a clear performance lead in the available benchmark, while the FirePro W5000, a GCN 1.0 workstation card, counters with a wider memory bus and a lower power envelope. Below is a breakdown of their measured performance, architectural differences, and key specifications.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only direct comparison available is in the Geekbench OpenCL test, where the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 870M decisively outperforms the AMD FirePro W5000. The GTX 870M scores 12,630 points, while the FirePro W5000 scores 9,803 points. This translates to a 28.8% advantage for the NVIDIA part, making it the winner in the sole head-to-head benchmark. This is a substantial margin, indicating that in compute-heavy OpenCL workloads, the GTX 870M provides significantly higher throughput.

Looking at the broader benchmark context, the GTX 870M’s average benchmark score of 9,959 places it at the 48th percentile of all GPUs. Its closest rival, the AMD Radeon Pro 5300M, scores 10,013, which is just 0.5% higher, showing that the GTX 870M is essentially on par with that newer mobile workstation part. It also edges out the NVIDIA Quadro K5100M (10,043 score, 0.8% higher) and the AMD Radeon R9 M375 (10,070 score, 1.1% higher) by small margins. Interestingly, the data shows the GTX 870M is 1.1% ahead of the NVIDIA Quadro 6000, a much older desktop workstation card, which scores 9,846.

The AMD FirePro W5000, with an average score of 9,803, sits at the 47th percentile. Its nearest rival is the NVIDIA Quadro M2000M, which scores 9,832, a 0.3% difference that puts the FirePro slightly behind. It also trails the NVIDIA Quadro 6000 by 0.4% (which scores 9,846). However, the FirePro W5000 is 0.2% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 (score 9,780) and 0.8% ahead of the NVIDIA Tesla M10 (score 9,724). This indicates that while the FirePro W5000 is competitive with a range of other cards, it falls into a slightly lower performance tier than the GTX 870M in this specific metric.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs are built on fundamentally different architectures, though they share the same manufacturing process. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 870M uses the GK104 chip based on the Kepler architecture, fabricated by TSMC on a 28 nm process. The AMD FirePro W5000 uses the Pitcairn chip based on the GCN 1.0 architecture, also from TSMC on a 28 nm node. This shared process node means that the differences in performance and power are largely due to architectural design choices.

The GTX 870M’s Kepler design is more heavily oriented toward raw shader throughput. It packs 1,344 shading units along with 112 texture mapping units (TMUs) and 24 render output units (ROPs). In contrast, the FirePro W5000’s GCN architecture has a leaner setup with 768 shading units, 48 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. This explains the GTX 870M’s massive lead in texture fill rate (108.3 GTexel/s vs. 39.60 GTexel/s) and its slight edge in pixel fill rate (27.08 GPixel/s vs. 26.40 GPixel/s). The NVIDIA part also delivers significantly higher FP32 compute performance at 2.599 TFLOPS, nearly double the FirePro W5000’s 1,267.2 GFLOPS.

Memory configurations also differ substantially. The GTX 870M has 3 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 192-bit bus, yielding a bandwidth of 120.0 GB/s. The FirePro W5000 has 2 GB of GDDR5 memory but on a wider 256-bit bus, resulting in 102.4 GB/s of bandwidth. Despite having a narrower bus, the GTX 870M achieves higher bandwidth due to its faster memory clock (5 Gbps effective vs. 3.2 Gbps effective). The transistor counts reflect the design differences: the GTX 870M has 3,540 million transistors on a 294 mm² die, while the FirePro W5000 has 2,800 million on a smaller 212 mm² die. This gives the FirePro a higher transistor density (13.2M / mm² vs. 12.0M / mm²).

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has a higher raw compute performance in FP32 operations?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 870M is the clear winner, with 2.599 TFLOPS of FP32 compute power compared to the AMD FirePro W5000’s 1,267.2 GFLOPS.

Q: How does the memory bandwidth of the two cards compare?

A: Even though the AMD FirePro W5000 has a wider 256-bit memory bus, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 870M achieves higher bandwidth at 120.0 GB/s versus 102.4 GB/s, thanks to its faster 5 Gbps effective memory clock.

Q: What is the difference in their thermal design power (TDP)?

A: The AMD FirePro W5000 is more power-efficient from a TDP perspective, rated at 75 W, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 870M has a higher TDP of 100 W.

Q: Are both GPUs based on the same manufacturing process?

A: Yes, both the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 870M and the AMD FirePro W5000 are fabricated by TSMC on a 28 nm process node.

Q: Which GPU has a higher shading unit count?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 870M has a significantly higher count with 1,344 shading units, whereas the AMD FirePro W5000 has 768 shading units.

Q: What is the difference in their release dates and production status?

A: The AMD FirePro W5000 was released earlier on 2012-08-06, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 870M came later on 2014-03-11. Both are marked as end-of-life in their production status.

The Verdict

Based strictly on the benchmark data, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 870M is the superior performer. It holds a 28.8% lead in the head-to-head OpenCL test and nearly doubles the FP32 compute throughput of the AMD FirePro W5000. For any user prioritizing raw compute performance, texture fill rates, or higher memory bandwidth, the GTX 870M is the definitive choice from the data. Its average benchmark score also places it in a slightly higher percentile (48th vs. 47th) and above several direct rivals like the Quadro K5100M and Radeon Pro 5300M.

The AMD FirePro W5000, however, offers a different set of trade-offs that may appeal to specific users. Its 75 W TDP is 25 W lower than the GTX 870M’s, which could be a critical factor in thermally constrained systems. It also features a wider 256-bit memory bus, which can be advantageous in certain memory-latency-sensitive tasks, despite the lower overall bandwidth. Furthermore, the FirePro W5000 is a single-slot desktop card with a PCIe 3.0 x16 interface and dedicated display outputs (1x DVI, 2x DisplayPort 1.2), whereas the GTX 870M is a mobile MXM module with outputs that are "portable device dependent." The FirePro also comes with a suggested PSU rating of 250 W, making it easier to integrate into a standard desktop build.

For a mobile workstation replacement or an MXM-based upgrade, the GTX 870M is the only option and it delivers the better performance. For a desktop workstation, the FirePro W5000 offers a lower-power, single-slot solution with professional display outputs, but it is measurably slower in compute benchmarks.

Specification Differences

| Specification | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 870M | AMD FirePro W5000 |

| :--- | :--- | :--- |

| Chip | GK104 | Pitcairn |

| Architecture | Kepler | GCN 1.0 |

| Transistors | 3,540 million | 2,800 million |

| Die Size | 294 mm² | 212 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 12.0M / mm² | 13.2M / mm² |

| Memory Size | 3 GB | 2 GB |

| Memory Bus Width | 192 bit | 256 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | 120.0 GB/s | 102.4 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 1344 | 768 |

| TMUs | 112 | 48 |

| ROPs | 24 | 32 |

| Pixel Rate | 27.08 GPixel/s | 26.40 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 108.3 GTexel/s | 39.60 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 2.599 TFLOPS | 1,267.2 GFLOPS |

| TDP | 100 W | 75 W |

| Slot Width | MXM Module | Single-slot |

| Bus Interface | MXM-B (3.0) | PCIe 3.0 x16 |

| Display Outputs | Portable Device Dependent | 1x DVI, 2x DisplayPort 1.2 |

| Suggested PSU | N/A | 250 W |

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

| Vulkan | 1.2.175 | 1.2.170 |