AMD FirePro W5130M vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980M Comparison

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980M and AMD FirePro W5130M represent two distinct approaches to mobile graphics, with the data showing a decisive performance gap between them. The GTX 980M, a high-end consumer part from the GeForce 900M generation, and the FirePro W5130M, a professional workstation GPU from AMD’s FirePro Mobile line, share a 28 nm TSMC process node but little else in terms of intended workload or resulting capability. Benchmark results indicate that the GTX 980M holds a commanding lead across the board, yet the FirePro W5130M’s architectural heritage and feature set still warrant consideration for specific professional use cases.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The single available head-to-head benchmark tells a stark story. In Geekbench OpenCL, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980M scores 23,832 against the AMD FirePro W5130M’s 4,904. That is a 386% advantage for the NVIDIA part, meaning the GTX 980M delivers nearly five times the compute throughput in this workload. This is not a marginal victory; it is a generational and class-level obliteration. The GTX 980M’s score places it comfortably above the FirePro W5130M, and the deltaPct of 386% dwarfs any other comparison in the data.

Looking at the broader benchmark suite for the GTX 980M, its Passmark G3D score of 7,338 and Geekbench Vulkan score of 17,703 reinforce that this is a part designed for serious rendering and compute loads. The FirePro W5130M’s only listed benchmark is the Geekbench OpenCL score, which is its average benchmark score of 4,904. The GTX 980M’s average benchmark score across all tests is 5,308, which is actually higher than the FirePro W5130M’s sole score, despite the GTX 980M’s portfolio including more demanding tests like 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 (649) and multiple Passmark DirectX variants.

The comparison to nearest rivals further contextualizes the divide. The GTX 980M’s average score of 5,308 places it within a tight cluster of parts: it is only 0.2% behind the NVIDIA GeForce 930A (5,317), 0.3% behind the GeForce 840M (5,322), 0.5% ahead of the GeForce 940M (5,284), and 0.9% behind the AMD Radeon R7 M445 (5,358). This suggests that while the GTX 980M is a strong performer, its average score is heavily diluted by low-end DirectX 9 and G2D tests. The FirePro W5130M’s average score of 4,904 puts it in a similarly tight grouping, where it is 0.1% ahead of an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 Ti 8 GB (4,901) and 0.2% ahead of a GeForce GTS 450 (4,893), but 0.5% behind both AMD Radeon R7 M265 (4,929) and Radeon R7 M360 (4,931).

The raw compute disparity is most visible in the FP32 throughput. The GTX 980M delivers 3.462 TFLOPS versus the FirePro W5130M’s 947.2 GFLOPS. This is a 3.65x difference, aligning closely with the 386% OpenCL delta. In texture and pixel rates, the GTX 980M also dominates with 108.2 GTexel/s and 72.13 GPixel/s against the FirePro’s 29.60 GTexel/s and 14.80 GPixel/s. The GTX 980M wins the only head-to-head benchmark, and the supporting metrics leave no ambiguity about its superiority in raw performance.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from fundamentally different architectural lineages. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980M is built on Maxwell 2.0 architecture, using the GM204 chip, while the AMD FirePro W5130M employs GCN 1.0 architecture with the Tropo chip. Both are fabricated on a 28 nm process at TSMC, but the similarities end there.

The transistor counts reveal a massive scale difference. The GTX 980M packs 5,200 million transistors into a 398 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 13.1M / mm². The FirePro W5130M uses only 1,500 million transistors on a 123 mm² die, with a density of 12.2M / mm². The GTX 980M has over three times the transistor budget, which directly translates into its resource advantage: 1,536 shading units, 96 TMUs, and 64 ROPs versus the FirePro’s 512 shading units, 32 TMUs, and 16 ROPs. This is a 3x, 3x, and 4x advantage respectively.

Clock speeds also favor NVIDIA, albeit less dramatically. The GTX 980M runs at a 1038 MHz base and 1127 MHz boost, while the FirePro W5130M runs at 900 MHz base and 925 MHz boost. The GTX 980M’s higher clock, combined with its larger shader array, compounds the performance gap. Memory configurations are equally lopsided: the GTX 980M has 8 GB of GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus delivering 160.4 GB/s bandwidth, whereas the FirePro W5130M has 2 GB of GDDR5 on a 128-bit bus providing only 64.00 GB/s.

API support shows a notable divergence. The GTX 980M supports DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The FirePro W5130M supports DirectX 12 (11_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.170. The GTX 980M’s higher DirectX feature level (12_1 vs 11_1) and newer Vulkan revision indicate better support for modern graphics APIs. The GTX 980M also uses an MXM-B (3.0) interface, while the FirePro W5130M uses a standard PCIe 3.0 x16 bus. The GTX 980M is a removable MXM module, whereas the FirePro appears to be a more traditional soldered or slot-based design.

The Verdict

The data is unambiguous: the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980M wins the only head-to-head benchmark by 386% and holds overwhelming advantages in every core metric. For any task that relies on raw compute, fill rates, or memory bandwidth, the GTX 980M is the superior choice. Its 3.462 TFLOPS FP32 throughput, 160.4 GB/s memory bandwidth, and 8 GB VRAM capacity make it a capable mobile gaming and content-creation part. The nearest rivals data shows it performs on par with parts like the GeForce 940M and Radeon R7 M445 in average scores, but its peak compute scores are far higher.

The AMD FirePro W5130M, despite its lower performance, is not without merit. As a professional workstation GPU, its GCN 1.0 architecture and FirePro branding historically target certified applications and stability. However, the benchmark data does not include any professional-specific tests, and its sole score of 4,904 in Geekbench OpenCL places it in the same performance tier as an RTX 5060 Ti 8 GB (0.1% ahead) and a GeForce GTS 450 (0.2% ahead). In absolute terms, it is a low-end part.

The choice should be dictated by workload. If the priority is maximum graphics throughput, gaming capability, or general compute performance, the GTX 980M is the clear pick. Its 31st percentile ranking among all GPUs, compared to the FirePro’s 29th percentile, reinforces this. However, if the requirement is a professional mobile workstation GPU with a specific feature set, the FirePro W5130M’s PCIe 3.0 x16 interface and GCN architecture may be preferable, provided the application does not demand high frame rates or compute density. The GTX 980M is end-of-life, as is the FirePro, but the NVIDIA part remains far more powerful.

Specification Differences

| Specification | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980M | AMD FirePro W5130M |

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

| Architecture | Maxwell 2.0 | GCN 1.0 |

| Chip | GM204 | Tropo |

| Generation | GeForce 900M | FirePro Mobile (Wx100M) |

| Transistors | 5,200 million | 1,500 million |

| Die Size | 398 mm² | 123 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 13.1M / mm² | 12.2M / mm² |

| Base Clock | 1038 MHz | 900 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 1127 MHz | 925 MHz |

| Memory Clock | 1253 MHz / 5 Gbps effective | 1000 MHz / 4 Gbps effective |

| Memory Size | 8 GB | 2 GB |

| Memory Bus Width | 256 bit | 128 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | 160.4 GB/s | 64.00 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 1536 | 512 |

| TMUs | 96 | 32 |

| ROPs | 64 | 16 |

| Pixel Rate | 72.13 GPixel/s | 14.80 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 108.2 GTexel/s | 29.60 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 3.462 TFLOPS | 947.2 GFLOPS |

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

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

| Vulkan | 1.4 | 1.2.170 |

| Release Date | 2014-10-06 | 2015-10-01 |

FAQ

Q: Which GPU is faster in the Geekbench OpenCL benchmark?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980M scores 23,832 versus the AMD FirePro W5130M’s 4,904, a 386% advantage for the GTX 980M.

Q: What is the average benchmark score difference between the two?

A: The GTX 980M has an average benchmark score of 5,308 across all tests, while the FirePro W5130M’s average is 4,904 based on its single Geekbench OpenCL result.

Q: How do the memory configurations compare?

A: The GTX 980M features 8 GB of GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus with 160.4 GB/s bandwidth, while the FirePro W5130M has 2 GB of GDDR5 on a 128-bit bus with 64.00 GB/s bandwidth.

Q: Which GPU has more shading units?

A: The GTX 980M has 1,536 shading units, which is three times the FirePro W5130M’s 512 shading units.

Q: What are the FP32 compute throughput figures?

A: The GTX 980M delivers 3.462 TFLOPS while the FirePro W5130M provides 947.2 GFLOPS.

Q: Do they support the same DirectX version?

A: No. The GTX 980M supports DirectX 12 (12_1), while the FirePro W5130M supports DirectX 12 (11_1), a lower feature level.