NVIDIA GeForce GT 1010 vs NVIDIA GRID K2 Comparison

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The NVIDIA GRID K2 has an average benchmark score of 8080, while the NVIDIA GeForce GT 1010 scores 6698. The GRID K2 sits at the 42nd percentile of all GPUs, while the GT 1010 is at the 38th percentile.

Q: What is the performance difference in the only shared benchmark?

A: In Geekbench OpenCL, the GRID K2 scores 10602 versus 6698 for the GT 1010. That is a 58.3% advantage for the K2, and it is the only head-to-head benchmark recorded in the database.

Q: How do their memory subsystems compare?

A: The GRID K2 has 4 GB of GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus, delivering 160.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The GT 1010 has 2 GB of GDDR5 on a 64-bit bus, delivering 48.06 GB/s.

Q: What are the power requirements?

A: The GRID K2 has a 225 W TDP and needs a 550 W power supply, using 1x 6-pin and 1x 8-pin connectors. The GT 1010 has a 30 W TDP, requires only a 200 W power supply, and uses no external power connectors.

Q: Which GPU supports newer display outputs?

A: The GT 1010 has 1x DVI and 1x mini-HDMI 2.0 outputs. The GRID K2 has no display outputs at all, indicating it is not designed for direct monitor connection.

Q: What are their production statuses?

A: Both are end-of-life products. The GRID K2 was released on 2013-05-10, while the GT 1010 was released on 2021-01-12.

Architecture Differences

The GRID K2 and GT 1010 come from different architectural eras. The GRID K2 uses the GK104 chip, built on the Kepler architecture, manufactured by TSMC at 28 nm. The GT 1010 uses the GP108 chip, built on the Pascal architecture, manufactured by Samsung at 14 nm.

The transistor counts tell a story of design priorities. The GRID K2 integrates 3,540 million transistors on a 294 mm² die, yielding a density of 12.0M / mm². The GT 1010 integrates 1,800 million transistors on a much smaller 74 mm² die, with a density of 24.3M / mm². The GT 1010's newer process allows roughly double the transistor density.

Compute resources are dramatically different. The GRID K2 has 1536 shading units, 128 texture mapping units (TMUs), and 32 render output units (ROPs). The GT 1010 has 256 shading units, 16 TMUs, and 8 ROPs. That is a 6x difference in shading units, an 8x difference in TMUs, and a 4x difference in ROPs.

Clock behavior also differs. The GT 1010 has a base clock of 1228 MHz and a boost clock of 1468 MHz. The GRID K2 has no base or boost clock recorded in the database. Memory clocks are close: the GRID K2 runs at 1250 MHz (5 Gbps effective), while the GT 1010 runs at 1502 MHz (6 Gbps effective).

The GRID K2 supports DirectX 12 (11_0), while the GT 1010 supports DirectX 12 (12_1). Both support OpenGL 4.6. For Vulkan, the GRID K2 supports version 1.2.175, while the GT 1010 supports version 1.4.

The bus interface differs as well. The GRID K2 uses PCIe 3.0 x16, while the GT 1010 uses PCIe 3.0 x4. The GRID K2 is a dual-slot card measuring 267 mm, while the GT 1010 is single-slot and measures 147 mm.

Where Each One Wins

The GRID K2 wins in every recorded performance metric. It has higher pixel rate (23.84 GPixel/s vs 11.74 GPixel/s), higher texture rate (95.36 GTexel/s vs 23.49 GTexel/s), and higher FP32 throughput (2.289 TFLOPS vs 751.6 GFLOPS). The K2 also has double the memory capacity, quadruple the memory bus width, and more than triple the memory bandwidth.

The GT 1010 wins in efficiency and physical design. Its TDP is 195 W lower (30 W vs 225 W), it requires no external power connectors, and it needs a 350 W smaller suggested power supply. Its 14 nm process yields higher transistor density, and its smaller 74 mm² die makes it a compact single-slot solution. The GT 1010 also supports newer API versions: DirectX 12_1 and Vulkan 1.4.

The GT 1010 is the only one of the two with display outputs, making it usable for workstation or HTPC tasks. The GRID K2 has no outputs, meaning it is intended for compute or virtualized environments.

The GRID K2 comes with a launch MSRP of 5,199 USD.

Specification Differences

| Field | NVIDIA GRID K2 | NVIDIA GeForce GT 1010 |

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

| Architecture | Kepler | Pascal |

| Process node | 28 nm | 14 nm |

| Foundry | TSMC | Samsung |

| Transistors | 3,540 million | 1,800 million |

| Die size | 294 mm² | 74 mm² |

| Transistor density | 12.0M / mm² | 24.3M / mm² |

| Base clock | Not recorded | 1228 MHz |

| Boost clock | Not recorded | 1468 MHz |

| Memory clock | 1250 MHz (5 Gbps effective) | 1502 MHz (6 Gbps effective) |

| Memory size | 4 GB | 2 GB |

| Memory type | GDDR5 | GDDR5 |

| Memory bus width | 256 bit | 64 bit |

| Memory bandwidth | 160.0 GB/s | 48.06 GB/s |

| Shading units | 1536 | 256 |

| TMUs | 128 | 16 |

| ROPs | 32 | 8 |

| Pixel rate | 23.84 GPixel/s | 11.74 GPixel/s |

| Texture rate | 95.36 GTexel/s | 23.49 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 2.289 TFLOPS | 751.6 GFLOPS |

| TDP | 225 W | 30 W |

| Slot width | Dual-slot | Single-slot |

| Power connectors | 1x 6-pin + 1x 8-pin | None |

| Suggested PSU | 550 W | 200 W |

| Bus interface | PCIe 3.0 x16 | PCIe 3.0 x4 |

| Display outputs | None | 1x DVI, 1x mini-HDMI 2.0 |

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

| Vulkan | 1.2.175 | 1.4 |

| Length | 267 mm | 147 mm |

| Release date | 2013-05-10 | 2021-01-12 |

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The database records one head-to-head benchmark between these two GPUs: Geekbench OpenCL. The GRID K2 scores 10602, and the GT 1010 scores 6698. That is a delta of 58.3% in favor of the GRID K2.

The GRID K2's advantage is consistent with its hardware resources. With 6x the shading units and 8x the texture units, the K2 has far more parallel compute capacity. Its 160.0 GB/s memory bandwidth also gives it a 3.3x advantage over the GT 1010's 48.06 GB/s, which matters for OpenCL workloads that transfer large data sets.

The GT 1010 does beat the GRID K2 in some architectural respects, but not in benchmark scores. Its 14 nm process and higher transistor density (24.3M / mm² vs 12.0M / mm²) show a more modern design. Its Vulkan 1.4 support and DirectX 12_1 feature level are newer than the K2's Vulkan 1.2.175 and DirectX 12 (11_0). However, these capabilities do not translate into a win in the recorded Geekbench OpenCL test.

The GRID K2 also holds a higher percentile position. It sits at the 42nd percentile of all GPUs, while the GT 1010 sits at the 38th percentile. The K2's average benchmark score of 8080 also towers over the GT 1010's average of 6698.

The nearest rival data places each card in different competitive brackets. The GRID K2's closest rivals are the GeForce GTX 650 Ti Boost (avg 8067, delta 0.2), the GeForce 945M (avg 8099, delta -0.2), and the GeForce GTX 650 Ti (avg 8053, delta 0.3). The GT 1010's closest rivals are the AMD Radeon R7 M370 (avg 6764, delta -1), the AMD Radeon R7 M460 (avg 6612, delta 1.3), and the AMD FirePro M5100 (avg 6830, delta -1.9). The GT 1010 is roughly 11% slower than the GRID K2's nearest rival, which puts it in a much lower performance tier.

In summary, the GRID K2 is the clear compute winner, with a 58.3% higher Geekbench OpenCL score and a dominant position across every measured throughput metric. The GT 1010 offers modern display outputs, a much lower power draw, and a compact physical design, but it cannot match the K2 in raw computational performance. The benchmark data shows no scenario where the GT 1010 outperforms the GRID K2 in recorded tests.