GPU Comparison

The Intel Iris Pro Graphics P580 and the NVIDIA GeForce GT 1010 represent two very different approaches to low-end graphics. The P580 is an integrated GPU from Intel’s Skylake generation, designed to share system memory, while the GT 1010 is a discrete entry-level card from NVIDIA’s Pascal family. Benchmark data shows a clear performance gap, but the architecture and feature sets tell a more nuanced story.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only direct benchmark comparison available is the Geekbench OpenCL test. In this metric, the Intel Iris Pro Graphics P580 achieves a score of 9082, while the NVIDIA GeForce GT 1010 scores 6698. This represents a 35.6% advantage for the Intel part, a substantial margin that places the two GPUs in different performance tiers despite their similar market positioning.

This result is notable because the GT 1010 operates at significantly higher clock speeds, with a base clock of 1228 MHz and a boost clock of 1468 MHz, compared to the P580’s 350 MHz base and 1000 MHz boost. The Intel GPU compensates for its lower clocks with a much wider execution architecture. The P580 packs 576 shading units, 72 texture mapping units, and 9 ROPs, whereas the GT 1010 has only 256 shading units, 16 TMUs, and 8 ROPs. This 2.25x difference in shader count and 4.5x difference in TMUs explains how the Intel part can deliver 1,152.0 GFLOPS of FP32 compute versus the GT 1010’s 751.6 GFLOPS.

The texture fill rate tells a similar story. The P580 achieves 72.00 GTexel/s, while the GT 1010 manages only 23.49 GTexel/s, a threefold difference. However, the GT 1010 counters with a higher pixel rate of 11.74 GPixel/s compared to the P580’s 9.000 GPixel/s. This suggests the GT 1010 may have an edge in fill-rate-bound scenarios, though the compute-heavy OpenCL benchmark clearly favors the Intel part.

The average benchmark scores reinforce this gap. The P580 has an average score of 7170, while the GT 1010 averages 6698. This places the P580 at the 39th percentile of all GPUs, versus the 38th percentile for the GT 1010. The P580’s nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560 SE (7171, 0% delta) and the GTX 970 (7157, 0.2% delta), while the GT 1010 sits close to the AMD Radeon R7 M370 (6764, -1% delta) and R7 M460 (6612, 1.3% delta). The data indicates the Intel part performs closer to older mid-range discrete cards, whereas the GT 1010 aligns with low-end mobile parts.

Where Each One Wins

The benchmark results show the Intel Iris Pro Graphics P580 is the clear winner in compute-oriented workloads. Its 35.6% lead in OpenCL performance makes it better suited for tasks that leverage general-purpose GPU compute, such as OpenCL-accelerated applications, image processing, and certain productivity workloads. The higher FP32 throughput and triple the texture fill rate provide a solid foundation for these types of parallel workloads.

The NVIDIA GeForce GT 1010, despite losing the compute benchmark, has structural advantages in other areas. Its dedicated 2 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 64-bit bus provides 48.06 GB/s of bandwidth, which is not dependent on system RAM performance. In contrast, the P580’s memory bandwidth is listed as "System Dependent," meaning its real-world performance varies with the host system’s memory configuration and speed. For gaming or applications that are sensitive to memory latency and bandwidth, the GT 1010’s fixed and faster GDDR5 memory could provide a more consistent experience.

The GT 1010 also has a higher pixel rate (11.74 GPixel/s vs 9.000 GPixel/s), which can benefit certain rasterization-heavy tasks. Its single-slot form factor and lack of power connectors make it a simple drop-in upgrade for old systems, whereas the P580 is an IGP with no upgrade path, it is permanently tied to its host processor. The GT 1010’s display outputs (1x DVI and 1x mini-HDMI 2.0) are also fixed and known, while the P580’s outputs are motherboard dependent.

For users running Vulkan applications, the GT 1010 may have an edge in API support, as it supports Vulkan 1.4 versus the P580’s Vulkan 1.3. Both support DirectX 12 (12_1) and OpenGL 4.6, so these are equal in older graphics APIs.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU is faster in compute benchmarks?

A: The Intel Iris Pro Graphics P580 scores 9082 in Geekbench OpenCL, which is 35.6% higher than the NVIDIA GeForce GT 1010’s score of 6698.

Q: Does the GT 1010 have any performance advantages over the P580?

A: Yes. The GT 1010 has a higher pixel rate (11.74 GPixel/s vs 9.000 GPixel/s) and dedicated GDDR5 memory with 48.06 GB/s bandwidth, whereas the P580 relies on system-shared memory with bandwidth that is system dependent.

Q: How do these GPUs compare in terms of memory configuration?

A: The GT 1010 has 2 GB of dedicated GDDR5 memory on a 64-bit bus. The P580 uses system-shared memory with no dedicated VRAM, making its performance dependent on the host system’s memory.

Q: Which GPU has more shading units and texture units?

A: The Intel P580 has 576 shading units and 72 TMUs, while the NVIDIA GT 1010 has 256 shading units and 16 TMUs. The P580 also delivers 72.00 GTexel/s texture fill rate versus 23.49 GTexel/s for the GT 1010.

Q: What are the power requirements for each card?

A: The P580 has a TDP of 15 W and is an IGP, requiring no power connectors. The GT 1010 has a TDP of 30 W, also needs no power connectors, but has a suggested PSU of 200 W.

Q: Which GPU has a higher average benchmark score?

A: The P580 has an average benchmark score of 7170, placing it at the 39th percentile, while the GT 1010 averages 6698, at the 38th percentile.

Specification Differences

The two GPUs differ across nearly every major specification category. The Intel P580 uses a 14 nm+ process node from Intel, while the GT 1010 uses a 14 nm node from Samsung. The GT 1010 has a known transistor count of 1,800 million on a 74 mm² die, while the P580’s transistor count and die size are not listed.

Clock speeds are dramatically different. The P580 runs at a 350 MHz base and 1000 MHz boost, while the GT 1010 runs at 1228 MHz base and 1468 MHz boost. The GT 1010 also has a fixed memory clock of 1502 MHz (6 Gbps effective), whereas the P580’s memory clock is tied to system memory.

Memory configuration is a major split: the P580 uses system-shared memory with no fixed size or bandwidth, while the GT 1010 has 2 GB of GDDR5 on a 64-bit bus with 48.06 GB/s bandwidth. The P580 has 576 shading units, 72 TMUs, and 9 ROPs, versus the GT 1010’s 256 shading units, 16 TMUs, and 8 ROPs.

Compute throughput differs significantly: the P580 delivers 1,152.0 GFLOPS FP32 and 2.304 TFLOPS FP16 (2:1), while the GT 1010 delivers 751.6 GFLOPS FP32 and has no listed FP16 capability. The TDP also differs, with the P580 at 15 W and the GT 1010 at 30 W. The GT 1010 is a single-slot card measuring 147 mm (5.8 inches) with PCIe 3.0 x4 interface, while the P580 is an IGP with a Ring Bus interface. Vulkan support differs as well: the GT 1010 supports Vulkan 1.4, while the P580 supports Vulkan 1.3.

Architecture Differences

The architectural divide is fundamental. The Intel Iris Pro Graphics P580 is built on the Generation 9.0 architecture, specifically the Skylake GT4e chip, and belongs to the HD Graphics-W (Skylake) generation. It uses Intel’s 14 nm+ process and features an integrated design with a Ring Bus interface. This is a true integrated GPU, sharing system memory and relying on the host platform for all memory bandwidth.

The NVIDIA GeForce GT 1010 is built on the Pascal architecture, using the GP108 chip and belonging to the GeForce 10 generation. It is manufactured on Samsung’s 14 nm process and is a discrete GPU with a PCIe 3.0 x4 interface. The GT 1010 has a fixed die size of 74 mm² and integrates 1,800 million transistors, with a transistor density of 24.3M per mm². The P580’s die size and transistor count are not provided in the data.

The GT 1010’s predecessor is listed as GeForce 900 and its successor as GeForce 20, positioning it within NVIDIA’s product stack. The P580 has no listed predecessor or successor. The GT 1010’s display outputs are fixed as 1x DVI and 1x mini-HDMI 2.0, while the P580’s outputs are motherboard dependent. Both are end-of-life products, but the GT 1010 was released on 2021-01-12, while the P580 was released on 2015-08-31, a gap of over five years that explains the Pascal generation’s more modern feature set in some areas.