GPU Comparison

The NVIDIA Quadro 2000 and the NVIDIA GeForce GT 635M are both Fermi-era GPUs, yet they are engineered for entirely different worlds. The data shows a clear, if narrow, performance gap in the single available benchmark, but the underlying specifications reveal a more profound divergence in design philosophy. The Quadro 2000 is a professional workstation card with a 62 W TDP, while the GT 635M is a 35 W mobile IGP. Their respective scores, 3898 and 3740 in Geekbench OpenCL, place them within 4.2% of each other, but the path each takes to arrive at that neighborhood is starkly different.

The Verdict

Based strictly on the data, the NVIDIA Quadro 2000 is the faster part. It wins the only head-to-head benchmark available, the Geekbench OpenCL test, with a score of 3898 against the GT 635M’s 3740, a delta of 4.2%. This places the Quadro 2000 at the 23rd percentile of all GPUs, while the GT 635M sits just one point lower at the 22nd percentile. For a user prioritizing raw compute throughput in OpenCL workloads, the Quadro 2000 is the definitive choice.

However, the NVIDIA GeForce GT 635M is not without its own merits. It offers double the memory capacity (2 GB vs 1024 MB) and a significantly lower power draw of 35 W compared to the Quadro’s 62 W. The data suggests the GT 635M is designed for a mobile, power-constrained environment where battery life and thermal output are more critical than peak performance. The Quadro 2000, on the other hand, is a desktop-centric, single-slot card that demands a 250 W suggested power supply, indicating it is meant for stationary workstations where power is plentiful.

The verdict is straightforward: the Quadro 2000 wins on performance, while the GT 635M wins on efficiency and memory capacity. A desktop user looking for the fastest OpenCL score should choose the Quadro 2000. A laptop user or anyone building a low-power system must choose the GT 635M, as the Quadro’s 178 mm length and 250 W PSU requirement make it unsuitable for such a form factor. The data does not support a single "best" card; it supports two different tools for two different jobs.

Architecture Differences

Both GPUs are built on the Fermi architecture and use the same 40 nm process node at TSMC. However, they are fundamentally different chips. The Quadro 2000 uses the GF106 chip, while the GT 635M uses the smaller GF108. This difference is significant: the GF106 contains 1,170 million transistors on a 238 mm² die, while the GF108 contains just 585 million transistors on a 116 mm² die. The transistor density is nearly identical (4.9M per mm² vs 5.0M per mm²), but the Quadro’s chip is essentially double the size.

This larger chip translates directly into a larger execution engine. The Quadro 2000 features 192 shading units, 32 texture mapping units (TMUs), and 16 raster output units (ROPs). The GT 635M is cut down to 96 shading units, 16 TMUs, and only 4 ROPs. This is the core architectural difference: the Quadro 2000 has double the shading units and TMUs, and quad the ROPs of the GT 635M. Consequently, the pixel and texture rates scale accordingly, the Quadro achieves 5.000 GPixel/s and 20.00 GTexel/s, versus the GT 635M’s 1.900 GPixel/s and 7.600 GTexel/s.

The memory subsystems also differ architecturally. The Quadro 2000 uses GDDR5 memory clocked at 650 MHz (2.6 Gbps effective), while the GT 635M uses DDR3 at 900 MHz (1800 Mbps effective). Both have a 128-bit bus, but the GDDR5’s higher effective speed yields 41.60 GB/s of bandwidth versus the GT 635M’s 28.80 GB/s. The GT 635M compensates with a larger 2 GB frame buffer, but the Quadro’s memory is fundamentally faster. Both support DirectX 12 (11_0) and OpenGL 4.6, with no Vulkan support listed for either.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The single benchmark result in the data is the Geekbench OpenCL test, and it tells a story of a narrow but decisive win for the Quadro 2000. The Quadro scores 3898, while the GT 635M scores 3740. This is a 4.2% advantage for the Quadro, a margin that aligns with its superior compute resources. The Quadro’s FP32 throughput is 480.0 GFLOPS, compared to the GT 635M’s 182.4 GFLOPS, a 2.6x advantage in raw floating-point capability. Yet, the real-world OpenCL score only reflects a 4.2% gap, suggesting that the benchmark is not purely compute-bound and may be limited by other factors such as memory latency or driver overhead.

Looking at the nearest rivals helps contextualize these scores. The Quadro 2000’s closest competitor is the AMD Radeon R5 Graphics, which scores 3883, a mere 0.4% behind. It also edges out the NVIDIA Quadro K2000D (3919, 0.5% ahead of it) and the Quadro 2000D (3930, 0.8% ahead). This indicates the Quadro 2000 is right in the middle of a tight pack of similarly-performing GPUs. The GT 635M, meanwhile, sits just ahead of the Quadro 3000M (3718, 0.6% behind) and the GeForce GT 740M (3717, 0.6% behind), but trails the Intel UHD Graphics 710 (3792, 1.4% ahead). The data shows that both cards are clustered in the lower-midrange of GPU performance, with the Quadro 2000 holding a slight edge over its mobile counterpart.

Specification Differences

The specification table reveals several clear divergences beyond the core counts already discussed.

• Process Node: Identical at 40 nm (both TSMC).
• Transistors: Quadro 2000 has 1,170 million; GT 635M has 585 million.
• Die Size: Quadro 2000 is 238 mm²; GT 635M is 116 mm².
• Memory Size: Quadro 2000 has 1024 MB; GT 635M has 2 GB.
• Memory Type: Quadro 2000 uses GDDR5; GT 635M uses DDR3.
• Memory Clock: Quadro 2000 runs at 650 MHz (2.6 Gbps effective); GT 635M runs at 900 MHz (1800 Mbps effective).
• Memory Bandwidth: Quadro 2000 achieves 41.60 GB/s; GT 635M achieves 28.80 GB/s.
• Shading Units: Quadro 2000 has 192; GT 635M has 96.
• TMUs: Quadro 2000 has 32; GT 635M has 16.
• ROPs: Quadro 2000 has 16; GT 635M has 4.
• Pixel Rate: Quadro 2000 is 5.000 GPixel/s; GT 635M is 1.900 GPixel/s.
• Texture Rate: Quadro 2000 is 20.00 GTexel/s; GT 635M is 7.600 GTexel/s.
• FP32: Quadro 2000 is 480.0 GFLOPS; GT 635M is 182.4 GFLOPS.
• TDP: Quadro 2000 is 62 W; GT 635M is 35 W.
• Slot Width: Quadro 2000 is single-slot; GT 635M is IGP (integrated).
• Suggested PSU: Quadro 2000 is 250 W; GT 635M has none listed.
• Display Outputs: Quadro 2000 has 1x DVI and 2x DisplayPort; GT 635M is "Portable Device Dependent".
• Dimensions: Quadro 2000 is 178 mm (7 inches) long and 111 mm (4.4 inches) high; GT 635M has no dimensions listed.
• Release Date: Quadro 2000 launched 2010-12-23; GT 635M launched 2012-03-21.
• Launch MSRP: Quadro 2000 was 599 USD; GT 635M has no listed MSRP.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU is faster in OpenCL benchmarks?

A: The NVIDIA Quadro 2000 is faster, scoring 3898 in Geekbench OpenCL versus the GeForce GT 635M’s 3740, a 4.2% advantage.

Q: Does the GeForce GT 635M have more memory?

A: Yes, the GT 635M has 2 GB of DDR3 memory, while the Quadro 2000 has 1024 MB of GDDR5 memory.

Q: What is the power consumption difference?

A: The Quadro 2000 has a 62 W TDP and requires a 250 W suggested power supply, while the GT 635M has a much lower 35 W TDP and no PSU requirement listed.

Q: Are both GPUs based on the same architecture?

A: Yes, both are based on the Fermi architecture and are manufactured on the same 40 nm TSMC process node.

Q: Which GPU has more shading units?

A: The Quadro 2000 has 192 shading units, exactly double the 96 found in the GT 635M.

Q: What is the memory bandwidth of each card?

A: The Quadro 2000 offers 41.60 GB/s of bandwidth, while the GT 635M offers 28.80 GB/s, despite the latter having a larger 2 GB frame buffer.

Where Each One Wins

The NVIDIA Quadro 2000 wins decisively in every compute and rendering throughput metric. It has double the shading units, TMUs, and FP32 throughput (480.0 GFLOPS vs 182.4 GFLOPS). Its pixel rate is 5.000 GPixel/s versus 1.900 GPixel/s, and its texture rate is 20.00 GTexel/s versus 7.600 GTexel/s. Its GDDR5 memory provides 44% more bandwidth (41.60 GB/s vs 28.80 GB/s), which is critical for memory-intensive tasks. It also offers dedicated display outputs (1x DVI, 2x DisplayPort), making it a plug-and-play desktop workstation solution. The data clearly shows the Quadro 2000 is the superior choice for any OpenCL compute workload, professional rendering, or multi-display desktop setup where its single-slot form factor and 250 W PSU requirement are acceptable.

The NVIDIA GeForce GT 635M wins in efficiency and capacity. Its 35 W TDP is less than 60% of the Quadro’s 62 W, making it suitable for thermally constrained environments like laptops. It offers 2 GB of memory, double the Quadro’s 1024 MB, which can be an advantage in applications that require large texture pools or datasets that fit in VRAM, even if the slower DDR3 bandwidth (28.80 GB/s) is a bottleneck. Its "IGP" slot width and "Portable Device Dependent" outputs indicate it is designed to be integrated into mobile systems, not standalone desktop cards. The GT 635M is the only viable option here for a portable or ultra-low-power system, and its benchmark score of 3740 is only 4.2% behind the Quadro, making it a surprisingly competitive performer given its drastically reduced power envelope and smaller chip.