Intel HD Graphics P4600 vs NVIDIA GeForce GT 745M Comparison

# NVIDIA GeForce GT 745M vs Intel HD Graphics P4600

The database places these two mobile graphics solutions in adjacent performance territory. The NVIDIA GeForce GT 745M records an average benchmark score of 3953, while the Intel HD Graphics P4600 sits slightly lower at 3389. The head-to-head OpenCL result favors the NVIDIA part by 5.6%. Both parts occupy low positions in the overall GPU percentile ranking, with the GT 745M at the 23rd percentile and the Intel P4600 at the 20th percentile across all recorded GPUs. This places both firmly in the entry-level segment of the mobile graphics landscape, but with meaningful differences in compute throughput, feature support, and architectural approach.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The most direct comparison available in the database is the Geekbench OpenCL test. The NVIDIA GeForce GT 745M scored 3580, while the Intel HD Graphics P4600 scored 3389. The delta of 5.6% is a clear win for the NVIDIA part.

Looking at the nearest rivals in the database for each part provides more context. The GT 745M's closest competitors include the AMD Radeon R5 M420 (3956, a 0.1% gap) and the NVIDIA GeForce 830M (3957, 0.1%). The NVIDIA Quadro K2000 (3964, 0.3%) and the Quadro 2000D (3930, 0.6%) also sit within a narrow band. This cluster of scores around 3950 shows that the GT 745M is performing at a very consistent level relative to its immediate peers, with the largest gap to the Quadro 2000D being less than 1%.

The Intel P4600's nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce GT 740 (3431, 1.2% gap) and the NVIDIA Quadro 2000M (3434, 1.3%). The Intel part trails these by roughly 1.3% to 1.7%, a modest but consistent deficit. The 745M's nearest rival list is tighter, with the largest gap (NVIDIA GeForce GT 730M at 3316) being 2.2% behind, and the Intel part sits in a similar position relative to its own closest competitors. The head-to-head data confirms the pattern: NVIDIA holds a single win with no losses in the recorded head-to-head tests.

FAQ

Q: How many shading units do these GPUs have?

A: The NVIDIA GT 745M includes 384 shading units and 32 texture mapping units. The Intel P4600 has 160 shading units and 20 texture mapping units.

Q: Do they support DirectX and OpenGL?

A: The Pascal GT 745M supports DirectX 12 (11_0) and OpenGL 4.6, along with Vulkan 1.2.175. The Intel P4600 supports DirectX 12 (11_1), OpenGL 4.3, and Vulkan 1.0.

Q: What is the memory setup?

A: The GT 745M uses 2GB of GDDR5 on a 128-bit bus, delivering 64.00 GB/s of bandwidth. The P4600 uses shared system memory, with bandwidth dependent on the host system.

Q: Which has higher pixel fill rates?

A: The GT 745M rated at 4.392 GPixel/s and 17.57 GTexel/s, while the Intel P4600 is rated at 2.400 GPixel/s and 24.00 GTexel/s.

Q: What are the thermal design power ratings?

A: The GT 745M has a TDP of 45W. The Intel P4600 is rated at 84W.

Q: What interfaces do they use?

A: The GT 745M uses a PCIe 3.0 x16 interface. The P4600 uses a Ring Bus interface. Both are integrated parts (IGP).

Architecture Differences

The two parts come from different design philosophies. The NVIDIA GeForce GT 745M is built on the Kepler architecture, GK107 chip, fabricated at TSMC on a 28nm process with 1,270 million transistors on a 118 mm² die. That gives a transistor density of 10.8M per mm². This is a discrete mobile GPU with its own framebuffer.

The Intel HD Graphics P4600 is an integrated graphics solution. It uses the Haswell GT2 chip, part of Intel's Generation 7.5 architecture, built on Intel's 22nm process. It is not a discrete chip; it has no dedicated die size or transistor count listed in the database. Its execution resources are shared with the host system.

The differences are visible in the compute pipeline. The GT 745M has a full 32 raster operating units (ROPs), while the P4600 has just 2. The NVIDIA part also has more texture mapping units (32 vs 20). The 745M features higher pixel rate (4.392 GPixel/s vs 2.400 GPixel/s) and a higher texture rate (17.57 GTexel/s vs 24.00 GTexel/s). However, the Intel part's texture rate is actually higher in raw terms, which shows its focus on memory bandwidth sharing rather than dedicated VRAM.

This is also visible in the FP32 compute numbers. The GT 745M has a theoretical single-precision throughput of 421.6 GFLOPS. The P4600 reaches 384.0 GFLOPS. Both are more than adequate for the lighting and shader workloads that fell into this class.

Specification Differences

| Field | NVIDIA GeForce GT 745M | Intel HD Graphics P4600 |

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

| Chip | GK107 | Haswell GT2 |

| Architecture | Kepler | Generation 7.5 |

| Process | 28 nm | 22 nm |

| Foundry | TSMC | Intel |

| Transistors | 1,270 million | Not listed |

| Die size | 118 mm² | Not listed |

| Transistor density | 10.8M / mm² | Not listed |

| Base clock | listed | 350 MHz |

| Boost clock | listed | 1200 MHz |

| Memory clock | 1000 MHz | System Shared |

| Memory size | 2 GB | System Shared |

| Memory type | GDDR5 | System Shared |

| Memory bus width | 128 bit | System Shared |

| Memory bandwidth | 64.00 GB/s | System Dependent |

| Shading units | 384 | 160 |

| Texture mapping units | 32 | 20 |

| ROPs | 16 | 2 |

| Pixel rate | 4.392 GPixel/s | 2.400 GPixel/s |

| Texture rate | 17.57 GTexel/s | 24.00 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 421.6 GFLOPS | 384.0 GFLOPS |

| TDP | 45 W | 84 W |

| Bus interface | PCIe 3.0 x16 | Ring Bus |

| Display outputs | Portable Device Dependent | Motherboard Dependent |

| Release | End-of-life | End-of-life |

The Verdict

Strictly based on the recorded data, the NVIDIA GeForce GT 745M is the better choice for someone who needs a discrete mobile GPU with dedicated VRAM and a proven software ecosystem. It wins the direct head-to-head by a 5.6% margin, carries a higher percentile rank (23rd vs 20th), and offers a broader API set (DirectX 12 Ultimate, OpenGL 4.6, Vulkan 1.2.175) than the Intel part (DirectX 12, OpenGL 4.3, Vulkan 1.0). The GT 745M also has a much richer feature set in terms of shading units, ROPs, and its own dedicated memory.

The Intel HD Graphics P4600, however, is the only option for a system where integrated graphics is a prerequisite. It has a more advanced 22nm process, lower power consumption at the system level (84W vs 45W plus discrete memory). It also has a higher boost clock (1200 MHz vs the GT's unspecified default). Its texture fill rate is higher (24.00 GTexel/s vs 17.57 GTexel/s). For users running a narrow set of lighter workloads, the Intel solution can match the NVIDIA part, as shown by its OpenCL score of 3389 vs the Intel's 3580, a difference of about 1.3%.

If raw compute wins, the GT 745M is the clear winner. If the platform integration, system-level power, and CPU's drivers matter more, the Intel HD 4600 deserves attention. The data does not lie: in this comparison, the NVIDIA part is faster, more capable, and the safer choice; the Intel part is a more efficient, integrated solution with a narrower software ecosystem.