NVIDIA GeForce GT 740M vs NVIDIA RTX 5000 Mobile Ada Generation Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The benchmark comparison between the NVIDIA GeForce GT 740M and the NVIDIA RTX 5000 Mobile Ada Generation is unusual because the two GPUs have no overlapping test results in the data. The GT 740M was evaluated with Geekbench OpenCL and Vulkan tests, producing scores of 3974 and 3459 respectively, which average to 3717. The RTX 5000 Mobile Ada Generation was tested only with 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, where it scored 3596. Because the test suites differ entirely, a direct apples-to-apples comparison is impossible from the available figures. Instead, the data reveals how each GPU positions against its own nearest rivals, and that context is revealing.

The GT 740M’s average benchmark score of 3717 places it in the 22nd percentile of all GPUs. Its closest rival, the NVIDIA Quadro 3000M, scores 3718, a delta of 0 percent — effectively identical performance. The GT 740M edges out the GeForce 825M (3694, 0.6 percent ahead) and the AMD Radeon HD 6770 (3649, 1.9 percent ahead), but trails the GeForce GT 635M (3740, 0.6 percent behind). These are all sub-2 percent gaps, indicating that the GT 740M sits in a tightly packed performance tier where no single GPU dominates. In OpenCL, the GT 740M scores 3974, and in Vulkan it scores 3459; the gap between these two tests suggests the GPU is notably stronger in compute-oriented OpenCL workloads than in Vulkan graphics tasks.

The RTX 5000 Mobile Ada Generation’s single 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 3596 puts it in the 21st percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rival is the GeForce GT 545, which scores 3594 — a 0.1 percent delta, meaning the RTX 5000 is essentially tied with a GPU from a much older generation. The RTX 5000 also sits slightly behind the GeForce GT 735M (3616, 0.6 percent behind) and the GeForce GTX 1050 (3629, 0.9 percent behind), while trailing the AMD Radeon HD 6770 (3649, 1.5 percent behind). These small deltas are surprising for a modern workstation-class mobile GPU, but the data is clear: in the Steel Nomad DX12 test, the RTX 5000 Mobile Ada Generation does not outpace these older or lower-tier cards by any meaningful margin. The percentile ranking of 21 confirms that this is not a top-tier result despite the hardware’s advanced specifications.

Neither GPU records a win in the head-to-head benchmark field, as the data shows zero wins for both. This is a direct consequence of the disjoint test sets. The practical takeaway is that any comparison must rely on architectural context and specification differences rather than shared benchmark numbers. For a builder choosing between an old GT 740M laptop and a new RTX 5000 Mobile Ada workstation, the benchmark scores alone do not tell the full story — they only show that both GPUs land near the same percentile range in their respective tests, which is misleading given the massive specification gap.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has a higher average benchmark score?

A: The GeForce GT 740M has an average benchmark score of 3717, while the RTX 5000 Mobile Ada Generation has an average score of 3596. The GT 740M leads by 121 points, or approximately 3.4 percent, based on the available data.

Q: How do these GPUs compare to their nearest rivals?

A: The GT 740M is within 1.9 percent of all its nearest rivals, ranging from 0.6 percent ahead of the GeForce 825M to 1.9 percent ahead of the AMD Radeon HD 6770, and 0.6 percent behind the GeForce GT 635M. The RTX 5000 Mobile Ada Generation is within 1.5 percent of its rivals, ranging from 0.1 percent ahead of the GeForce GT 545 to 1.5 percent behind the AMD Radeon HD 6770.

Q: What is the percentile ranking for each GPU?

A: The GeForce GT 740M sits in the 22nd percentile of all GPUs. The RTX 5000 Mobile Ada Generation sits in the 21st percentile. These are nearly identical percentile positions, despite the vast differences in their underlying hardware.

Q: Which GPU has more memory and bandwidth?

A: The RTX 5000 Mobile Ada Generation has 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus with 576.0 GB/s bandwidth. The GT 740M has 2 GB of DDR3 memory on a 64-bit bus with 14.40 GB/s bandwidth. The RTX 5000 offers 8 times the memory capacity and 40 times the bandwidth.

Q: What are the production statuses of these GPUs?

A: The GeForce GT 740M is end-of-life, released on 2013-06-19. The RTX 5000 Mobile Ada Generation is active, released on 2023-03-20. The GT 740M’s predecessor is the GeForce 600M and its successor is the GeForce 800M; the RTX 5000’s predecessor is Ampere-MW and its successor is Blackwell-MW.

Q: Do both GPUs support the same APIs?

A: No. The GT 740M supports DirectX 12 (11_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.175. The RTX 5000 Mobile Ada Generation supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The RTX 5000 also includes hardware ray tracing cores and tensor cores, which the GT 740M lacks entirely.

Architecture Differences

The architectural gap between these two GPUs is immense, reflecting nearly a decade of silicon evolution. The GT 740M uses the GK208 chip built on Kepler 2.0 architecture, manufactured by TSMC on a 28 nm process. It contains 1,020 million transistors on an 87 mm² die, resulting in a transistor density of 11.7 million per square millimeter. The RTX 5000 Mobile Ada Generation uses the AD103 chip built on Ada Lovelace architecture, also manufactured by TSMC but on a 5 nm process. It packs 45,900 million transistors on a 379 mm² die, achieving a transistor density of 121.1 million per square millimeter. That is a 45-fold increase in transistor count and a 10-fold increase in density, made possible by the much more advanced process node.

The compute resources differ dramatically. The GT 740M has 384 shading units, 32 texture mapping units, and 8 raster output units. The RTX 5000 Mobile Ada Generation has 9,728 shading units, 304 texture mapping units, and 112 raster output units — roughly 25 times more shading units, 9.5 times more TMUs, and 14 times more ROPs. The RTX 5000 also adds 76 ray tracing cores and 304 tensor cores, which are entirely absent from the GT 740M. These features enable hardware-accelerated ray tracing and AI-driven tensor operations, capabilities the Kepler GPU cannot perform in hardware.

Memory architecture is similarly divergent. The GT 740M uses 2 GB of DDR3 on a 64-bit bus with 14.40 GB/s bandwidth. The RTX 5000 uses 16 GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus with 576.0 GB/s bandwidth. The memory clock also differs: the GT 740M runs at 900 MHz (1800 Mbps effective), while the RTX 5000 runs at 2250 MHz (18 Gbps effective). This 40-fold bandwidth advantage is critical for modern workloads that demand rapid data movement.

Clock speeds and power characteristics also reflect the generational leap. The GT 740M has a base clock of 980 MHz and a boost clock of 1033 MHz, with a TDP of 33 W. The RTX 5000 has a base clock of 1425 MHz and a boost clock of 2115 MHz, with a TDP of 120 W. The RTX 5000 boosts at more than double the GT 740M’s base clock, while consuming nearly 4 times the power. The GT 740M uses an MXM Module slot width with no power connectors, while the RTX 5000 uses an IGP slot width with no power connectors, indicating different physical integration paths (removable module versus integrated graphics package).

Specification Differences

The two GPUs differ on nearly every specification field. Process node: 28 nm versus 5 nm. Transistors: 1,020 million versus 45,900 million. Die size: 87 mm² versus 379 mm². Transistor density: 11.7M / mm² versus 121.1M / mm². Base clock: 980 MHz versus 1425 MHz. Boost clock: 1033 MHz versus 2115 MHz. Memory size: 2 GB versus 16 GB. Memory type: DDR3 versus GDDR6. Bus width: 64 bit versus 256 bit. Bandwidth: 14.40 GB/s versus 576.0 GB/s. Shading units: 384 versus 9,728. TMUs: 32 versus 304. ROPs: 8 versus 112. Ray tracing cores: none versus 76. Tensor cores: none versus 304. Pixel rate: 8.264 GPixel/s versus 236.9 GPixel/s. Texture rate: 33.06 GTexel/s versus 643.0 GTexel/s. FP32 performance: 793.3 GFLOPS versus 41.15 TFLOPS. FP16: not listed versus 41.15 TFLOPS (1:1). TDP: 33 W versus 120 W. Bus interface: PCIe 3.0 x8 versus PCIe 4.0 x16. DirectX support: 12 (11_0) versus 12 Ultimate (12_2). Vulkan support: 1.2.175 versus 1.4. Release date: 2013-06-19 versus 2023-03-20. Production status: end-of-life versus active. Predecessor: GeForce 600M versus Ampere-MW. Successor: GeForce 800M versus Blackwell-MW. The only specs that match are the manufacturer (NVIDIA), foundry (TSMC), OpenGL version (4.6), display outputs (Portable Device Dependent), and the absence of power connectors and suggested PSU ratings.

The Verdict

The data presents a paradox. The RTX 5000 Mobile Ada Generation is overwhelmingly superior in every architectural and specification metric — 45 times more transistors, 25 times more shading units, 40 times more memory bandwidth, and 52 times more FP32 compute throughput. Yet its benchmark score of 3596 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 lands in the 21st percentile, nearly identical to the GT 740M’s 22nd percentile position. The GT 740M even has a higher average benchmark score (3717 versus 3596). This suggests one of two things: either the Steel Nomad test is not representative of the RTX 5000’s capabilities, or the RTX 5000’s performance in that specific workload is genuinely modest. The GT 740M’s scores in OpenCL and Vulkan may also reflect different workload characteristics that favor its older architecture.

For a builder, the choice is not about benchmark numbers alone. The RTX 5000 Mobile Ada Generation is an active product from 2023 with modern API support including DirectX 12 Ultimate and Vulkan 1.4, hardware ray tracing, and tensor cores. It is designed for professional mobile workstations where FP32 and FP16 compute, large memory capacity, and high bandwidth matter. The GT 740M is an end-of-life product from 2013 with legacy DirectX 12 (11_0) support, no ray tracing, and no tensor cores. Its 2 GB DDR3 memory and 14.40 GB/s bandwidth are inadequate for modern workloads. The data shows that in a single DX12 benchmark, the RTX 5000 does not dominate its rivals, but the specification sheet makes its intended role clear. The GT 740M is only suitable for basic legacy tasks, while the RTX 5000 is built for demanding compute and graphics workloads despite its underwhelming Steel Nomad result.

Where Each One Wins

The GeForce GT 740M wins in the specific benchmark categories where it was tested: Geekbench OpenCL (3974) and Geekbench Vulkan (3459). Its average score of 3717 also exceeds the RTX 5000’s 3596, and it holds a higher percentile ranking (22nd versus 21st). The GT 740M is also more power-efficient in absolute terms, with a 33 W TDP versus 120 W, making it suitable for thin-and-light laptops without dedicated cooling. It wins on legacy compatibility, supporting PCIe 3.0 x8 which is fine for older systems, and its smaller die size (87 mm²) means lower manufacturing complexity.

The RTX 5000 Mobile Ada Generation wins on every meaningful hardware specification. It offers 16 GB of GDDR6 memory versus 2 GB of DDR3, a 256-bit bus versus 64-bit, and 576.0 GB/s bandwidth versus 14.40 GB/s. Its FP32 throughput of 41.15 TFLOPS dwarfs the GT 740M’s 793.3 GFLOPS, and it adds FP16 performance at a 1:1 ratio. The RTX 5000 has 76 ray tracing cores and 304 tensor cores, enabling features the GT 740M cannot perform at all. It supports PCIe 4.0 x16, double the bus lanes and a newer protocol. Its DirectX 12 Ultimate and Vulkan 1.4 API support future-proof it for modern games and compute applications. The 5 nm process with 121.1M / mm² density represents a 10-fold improvement in integration. For professional workloads involving AI inference, ray-traced rendering, or large datasets, the RTX 5000 is the only viable choice. The GT 740M’s benchmark wins are artifacts of the disjoint test suite, not indications of real-world superiority.