AMD FirePro W5100 vs Intel Iris Xe MAX Graphics Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only common benchmark in the database is Geekbench OpenCL, and the results are decisive. The Intel Iris Xe MAX Graphics scores 14,315 points against the AMD FirePro W5100's 11,888 points, a 20.4% advantage for the Intel part. That is a substantial margin in raw compute throughput, placing the Iris Xe MAX in a different performance class for OpenCL workloads.

Context from the nearest rivals reinforces this. The Intel card sits within 0.3% of the AMD Radeon Vega 11 (14,352) and 0.4% of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN (14,373), while edging out the GTX 1070 Ti (14,277) by 0.3%. The FirePro W5100, by contrast, lands near the AMD Radeon Pro 455 (12,831) and NVIDIA GTX 590 (12,830), with a 0.1% gap in both cases, and trails the AMD Radeon 740M (12,870) by 0.2%. The percentile rankings tell the same story: the Iris Xe MAX sits at the 56th percentile across all GPUs, while the FirePro W5100 sits at the 52nd.

The 20.4% delta between the two cards is far larger than any of the rival deltas, meaning the Intel part does not just win the head-to-head, it wins by a margin that separates it from the entire cluster of comparable GPUs around the FirePro W5100's score. In practical terms, the Iris Xe MAX delivers roughly one-fifth more OpenCL throughput, which can translate to faster compute dispatch in applications that leverage the OpenCL API.

Where Each One Wins

The database records one head-to-head benchmark, and Intel wins it. There are no recorded wins for the AMD FirePro W5100 in this comparison. However, the two cards have different strengths that extend beyond the single shared test.

The Intel Iris Xe MAX Graphics wins on raw OpenCL compute, with a 20.4% higher score. It also benefits from a lower power envelope: 25 W against the FirePro W5100's 50 W, meaning it achieves its higher score at half the power draw. The Intel card also has a higher pixel rate (39.60 GPixel/s versus 14.88 GPixel/s) and texture rate (79.20 GTexel/s versus 44.64 GTexel/s), both of which support its compute advantage in fill-rate-bound scenarios.

The AMD FirePro W5100 has its own advantages. It offers 4x DisplayPort 1.2 outputs, while the Intel Iris Xe MAX has no display outputs at all. For any workstation scenario that requires driving multiple monitors, the FirePro W5100 is the only option of the two. It also has a higher memory bandwidth: 96.00 GB/s versus 68.26 GB/s, which can matter for bandwidth-sensitive workloads even if raw compute is lower. The FirePro W5100 also supports Vulkan 1.2.170, and it has a recorded Geekbench Vulkan score of 13,805, a test the Intel card has not been run through in the database. The FirePro's single-slot form factor and lack of power connectors make it straightforward to install in a desktop workstation, while the Iris Xe MAX is an integrated graphics product (IGP) with no slot width.

The practical split is therefore: compute and efficiency favor Intel, while display output, memory bandwidth, and Vulkan support favor AMD. For a headless compute accelerator, the Intel part is the stronger choice. For a multi-display workstation GPU, the AMD part is the only one that works.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from different architectural generations and are built on different process nodes. The Intel Iris Xe MAX uses the DG1 chip, based on Generation 12.1 architecture, manufactured on Intel's 10 nm process. The AMD FirePro W5100 uses the Bonaire chip, based on GCN 2.0 architecture, manufactured by TSMC on a 28 nm process. The process node gap is significant: 10 nm versus 28 nm, which helps explain the Intel card's superior performance at half the TDP.

Die size and transistor counts also differ. The Intel DG1 die measures 95 mm², while the AMD Bonaire die measures 160 mm². The AMD chip packs 2,080 million transistors, giving a transistor density of 13.0M per mm². The Intel die's transistor count is not recorded in the database, but the smaller die with a finer process node yields the efficiency advantage seen in the power figures.

Both cards have identical core counts in some respects: 768 shading units and 48 texture mapping units. The ROP count differs, with the Intel part at 24 ROPs versus the AMD part at 16 ROPs. That contributes to the Intel card's higher pixel rate. Memory configurations are similar in size and bus width (4 GB, 128 bit), but the types differ: LPDDR4X on the Intel side versus GDDR5 on the AMD side. The FirePro W5100's GDDR5 runs at a higher effective speed (6 Gbps versus 4.3 Gbps), yielding 96.00 GB/s bandwidth against the Intel card's 68.26 GB/s.

API support shows a generational gap. The Intel card supports DirectX 12 (12_1) and OpenGL 4.6, the same DirectX tier as the AMD card's DirectX 12 (12_0), but the Intel card supports Vulkan 1.4 versus the AMD card's Vulkan 1.2.170. The Intel card also has a recorded FP16 performance of 5.069 TFLOPS (2:1), while the AMD card has no FP16 figure recorded, indicating a lack of dedicated half-precision throughput.

The bus interface differs as well: PCIe 4.0 x8 on the Intel card versus PCIe 3.0 x16 on the AMD card. The Intel card's newer PCIe generation partially compensates for its narrower link, but the AMD card has the wider physical connection.

FAQ

Q: Which card is faster in OpenCL compute?

A: The Intel Iris Xe MAX Graphics scores 14,315 in Geekbench OpenCL, which is 20.4% higher than the AMD FirePro W5100's 11,888.

Q: Can the Intel Iris Xe MAX drive a monitor?

A: No. The Intel card has no display outputs, while the AMD FirePro W5100 provides 4x DisplayPort 1.2 outputs.

Q: How does the power consumption compare?

A: The Intel Iris Xe MAX has a TDP of 25 W, exactly half the AMD FirePro W5100's 50 W.

Q: Which card has more memory bandwidth?

A: The AMD FirePro W5100 has 96.00 GB/s bandwidth from its GDDR5 memory, while the Intel Iris Xe MAX has 68.26 GB/s from LPDDR4X.

Q: Does the AMD FirePro W5100 support Vulkan?

A: Yes, it supports Vulkan 1.2.170 and has a recorded Geekbench Vulkan score of 13,805. The Intel card supports Vulkan 1.4 but has no recorded Vulkan benchmark.

Q: What are the process nodes for each card?

A: The Intel DG1 chip is built on Intel's 10 nm process, while the AMD Bonaire chip is built on TSMC's 28 nm process.

Specification Differences

| Specification | Intel Iris Xe MAX Graphics | AMD FirePro W5100 |

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

| Chip | DG1 | Bonaire |

| Architecture | Generation 12.1 | GCN 2.0 |

| Process node | 10 nm | 28 nm |

| Foundry | Intel | TSMC |

| Transistors | Not recorded | 2,080 million |

| Die size | 95 mm² | 160 mm² |

| Transistor density | Not recorded | 13.0M / mm² |

| Memory type | LPDDR4X | GDDR5 |

| Memory clock | 2133 MHz, 4.3 Gbps effective | 1500 MHz, 6 Gbps effective |

| Memory bandwidth | 68.26 GB/s | 96.00 GB/s |

| ROPs | 24 | 16 |

| Pixel rate | 39.60 GPixel/s | 14.88 GPixel/s |

| Texture rate | 79.20 GTexel/s | 44.64 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 2.534 TFLOPS | 1,428.5 GFLOPS |

| FP16 | 5.069 TFLOPS (2:1) | Not recorded |

| TDP | 25 W | 50 W |

| Slot width | IGP | Single-slot |

| Power connectors | None | None |

| Suggested PSU | 200 W | 250 W |

| Bus interface | PCIe 4.0 x8 | PCIe 3.0 x16 |

| Display outputs | No outputs | 4x DisplayPort 1.2 |

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

| Vulkan | 1.4 | 1.2.170 |

| Dimensions | Not recorded | 173 mm (6.8 inches) x 111 mm (4.4 inches) |

| Release date | 2020-10-30 | 2014-03-30 |

| Predecessor | Graphics | FirePro Terascale |

| Successor | Alchemist | Radeon Pro Polaris |

| Geekbench OpenCL | 14,315 | 11,888 |

| Geekbench Vulkan | Not recorded | 13,805 |

| Percentile (all GPUs) | 56th | 52nd |