NVIDIA N1 16SM vs NVIDIA RTX A1000 Comparison

FAQ

Q: What is the NVIDIA N1 16SM?

A: The NVIDIA N1 16SM is an integrated graphics processor (IGP) built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture using the GB20B chip, manufactured on a 5 nm process at TSMC. It features 2048 shading units, 128 texture mapping units, 24 ROPs, 16 RT cores, and 64 tensor cores.

Q: What is the NVIDIA RTX A1000?

A: The NVIDIA RTX A1000 is a workstation graphics card based on the Ampere architecture with the GA107 chip, manufactured on an 8 nm process at Samsung. It contains 2304 shading units, 72 TMUs, 32 ROPs, 18 RT cores, and 72 tensor cores.

Q: How do their memory configurations compare?

A: The N1 16SM carries 128 GB of LPDDR5X memory on a 256-bit bus, delivering 273.2 GB/s bandwidth. The RTX A1000 offers 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, providing 192.0 GB/s bandwidth. The N1 16SM has both larger capacity and higher bandwidth.

Q: What are the benchmark scores for the RTX A1000?

A: The RTX A1000 scores 969 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, 52078 in Geekbench OpenCL, and 49574 in Geekbench Vulkan. Its average benchmark score is 34207, placing it in the 79th percentile of all GPUs.

Q: How does the RTX A1000 compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The RTX A1000 sits 0.2% ahead of the NVIDIA RTX A2000 12 GB (avg score 34154) and the AMD Radeon RX 560 XT (avg score 34133). It trails the NVIDIA TITAN V by 0.4% (avg score 34355) and leads the AMD Radeon RX 480 by 0.6% (avg score 33997).

Q: What are the physical specifications of each card?

A: The N1 16SM is an integrated processor with no slot width, power connectors, or dimensions listed. The RTX A1000 is a single-slot card measuring 163 mm in length and 69 mm in height, with a 50 W TDP and no power connectors required.

Architecture Differences

The N1 16SM and RTX A1000 represent two distinct NVIDIA architecture generations. The N1 16SM uses the Blackwell 2.0 architecture with the GB20B chip, fabricated on a 5 nm process at TSMC. The RTX A1000 relies on the older Ampere architecture with the GA107 chip, produced on an 8 nm process at Samsung. This process gap is substantial; the 5 nm node allows significantly higher transistor density and power efficiency.

The die sizes differ considerably. The N1 16SM measures 382 mm², while the RTX A1000 is only 200 mm². The RTX A1000 has a known transistor count of 8,700 million and a transistor density of 43.5 million per square millimeter. The N1 16SM's transistor count is listed as unknown, so direct density comparisons cannot be made from the database.

Clock behavior diverges sharply between the two. The N1 16SM has a base clock of 741 MHz and a boost clock of 2346 MHz, a substantial 1605 MHz boost range. The RTX A1000 runs at 727 MHz base and 1462 MHz boost, a much smaller 735 MHz range. The N1 16SM's higher boost clock directly contributes to its superior compute throughput.

Memory architecture is a major differentiator. The N1 16SM integrates 128 GB of LPDDR5X memory on a 256-bit bus, running at 1067 MHz with 8.5 Gbps effective speed. The RTX A1000 uses 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus at 1500 MHz with 12 Gbps effective speed. While the RTX A1000's memory clock is faster, the N1 16SM's wider bus and larger capacity produce higher overall bandwidth: 273.2 GB/s versus 192.0 GB/s.

Compute resources are organized differently. The N1 16SM has fewer shading units (2048 versus 2304) but more TMUs (128 versus 72) and fewer ROPs (24 versus 32). RT core counts are close (16 versus 18), as are tensor core counts (64 versus 72). The N1 16SM's TMU advantage directly explains its texture rate of 300.3 GTexel/s, nearly triple the RTX A1000's 105.3 GTexel/s.

API support represents a notable gap. The RTX A1000 supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The N1 16SM lists N/A for all three APIs. This indicates the RTX A1000 is designed for general graphics workloads, while the N1 16SM may target specialized compute or embedded scenarios.

The bus interfaces differ as well. The N1 16SM uses PCIe 5.0 x16, while the RTX A1000 uses PCIe 4.0 x8. The newer, wider interface on the N1 16SM provides higher host communication bandwidth. Display outputs also differ: the N1 16SM has a single HDMI port, while the RTX A1000 has four mini-DisplayPort 1.4a outputs.

Production status for both is active. The N1 16SM was released on 2026-05-31, while the RTX A1000 shipped on 2024-04-15. The RTX A1000 lists a predecessor (Quadro Turing) and successor (Workstation Ada), while the N1 16SM has neither listed.

The Verdict

The recorded data indicates two fundamentally different products. The N1 16SM is an integrated processor with massive memory capacity (128 GB) and high compute throughput (9.609 TFLOPS FP32), but no benchmark scores, no API support, and no percentile ranking beyond the 50th percentile of all GPUs. The RTX A1000 is an established workstation card with measured performance data, API compatibility, and a 79th percentile ranking.

For workloads requiring substantial memory capacity, the N1 16SM's 128 GB LPDDR5X on a 256-bit bus delivers 273.2 GB/s of bandwidth, which is 42% higher than the RTX A1000's 192.0 GB/s. The N1 16SM also provides 42.6% higher FP32 throughput (9.609 versus 6.737 TFLOPS) and nearly triples the texture rate (300.3 versus 105.3 GTexel/s). Its boost clock of 2346 MHz far exceeds the RTX A1000's 1462 MHz.

However, the RTX A1000 is the only option with documented benchmark results. Its 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 969, Geekbench OpenCL score of 52078, and Geekbench Vulkan score of 49574 demonstrate real-world graphics capability. The average benchmark score of 34207 places it in the 79th percentile, well above the N1 16SM's 50th percentile classification.

The RTX A1000 also offers complete API support (DirectX 12 Ultimate, OpenGL 4.6, Vulkan 1.4) and four display outputs, making it suitable for standard workstation graphics tasks. The N1 16SM lists no API support and only one HDMI output, suggesting a narrower application scope.

Buyers needing a self-contained graphics card with proven performance should select the RTX A1000. Its single-slot form factor, 50 W TDP, and no power connector requirement make installation straightforward. The N1 16SM, as an IGP, requires a motherboard with the GB20B chip integrated, and its lack of benchmark data means its real-world performance cannot be quantified from this database.

The RTX A1000's nearest rivals show it is competitive within its class. It is 0.2% faster than the RTX A2000 12 GB and the RX 560 XT, and 0.6% faster than the RX 480. Only the TITAN V edges it out, by 0.4%. This placement confirms the RTX A1000 fits in the mid-range workstation segment.

Specification Differences

| Specification | NVIDIA N1 16SM | NVIDIA RTX A1000 |

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

| Architecture | Blackwell 2.0 | Ampere |

| Chip | GB20B | GA107 |

| Process Node | 5 nm (TSMC) | 8 nm (Samsung) |

| Die Size | 382 mm² | 200 mm² |

| Transistors | Unknown | 8,700 million |

| Transistor Density | N/A | 43.5M / mm² |

| Base Clock | 741 MHz | 727 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 2346 MHz | 1462 MHz |

| Memory Size | 128 GB | 8 GB |

| Memory Type | LPDDR5X | GDDR6 |

| Memory Bus | 256 bit | 128 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | 273.2 GB/s | 192.0 GB/s |

| Memory Clock | 1067 MHz (8.5 Gbps) | 1500 MHz (12 Gbps) |

| Shading Units | 2048 | 2304 |

| TMUs | 128 | 72 |

| ROPs | 24 | 32 |

| RT Cores | 16 | 18 |

| Tensor Cores | 64 | 72 |

| Pixel Rate | 56.30 GPixel/s | 46.78 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 300.3 GTexel/s | 105.3 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 9.609 TFLOPS | 6.737 TFLOPS |

| FP16 | 9.609 TFLOPS (1:1) | 6.737 TFLOPS (1:1) |

| TDP | Unknown | 50 W |

| Slot Width | IGP | Single-slot |

| Power Connectors | None | None |

| Bus Interface | PCIe 5.0 x16 | PCIe 4.0 x8 |

| Display Outputs | 1x HDMI | 4x mini-DisplayPort 1.4a |

| DirectX | N/A | 12 Ultimate (12_2) |

| OpenGL | N/A | 4.6 |

| Vulkan | N/A | 1.4 |

| Dimensions | Not listed | 163 mm x 69 mm |

| Release Date | 2026-05-31 | 2024-04-15 |

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The database contains no direct head-to-head benchmark comparisons between the N1 16SM and RTX A1000. The head-to-head benchmark list is empty, and neither item records wins. This absence of direct comparative data means the analysis must rely on the individual specification and performance metrics recorded for each product.

The RTX A1000 stands alone with measured benchmark data. Its 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 969, Geekbench OpenCL score of 52078, and Geekbench Vulkan score of 49574 provide concrete reference points. The average benchmark score of 34207 places it in the 79th percentile, indicating better-than-average performance across the database's GPU population.

The N1 16SM has no benchmark entries in the database. Its average benchmark score is recorded as 0, and its percentile ranking is 50. Without benchmark data, the N1 16SM's real-world graphics performance cannot be compared numerically to the RTX A1000.

Specification-based comparisons can still be made. In FP32 compute, the N1 16SM delivers 9.609 TFLOPS, which is 42.6% higher than the RTX A1000's 6.737 TFLOPS. The FP16 performance matches each card's FP32 figure at a 1:1 ratio, so the same proportional difference applies. The N1 16SM also leads in texture rate by a wide margin: 300.3 GTexel/s versus 105.3 GTexel/s, a 185% advantage. Pixel rates are closer, with the N1 16SM at 56.30 GPixel/s versus 46.78 GPixel/s for the RTX A1000, a 20.3% lead for the N1 16SM.

Memory bandwidth favors the N1 16SM at 273.2 GB/s versus 192.0 GB/s, a 42.3% advantage. The RTX A1000 compensates with a higher effective memory clock (12 Gbps versus 8.5 Gbps), but the N1 16SM's 256-bit bus doubles the RTX A1000's 128-bit bus width, which is the dominant factor.

The RTX A1000 counters with more shading units (2304 versus 2048), more ROPs (32 versus 24), more RT cores (18 versus 16), and more tensor cores (72 versus 64). These advantages, combined with full API support and proven benchmark scores, make the RTX A1000 the more versatile and validated product.

The RTX A1000's nearest rival data further contextualizes its position. It leads the RTX A2000 12 GB by 0.2%, leads the RX 560 XT by 0.2%, trails the TITAN V by 0.4%, and leads the RX 480 by 0.6%. These small deltas confirm the RTX A1000 sits in a tightly competitive performance cluster.

Given the absence of head-to-head data, the verdict rests on the recorded specifications and the RTX A1000's benchmark results. The N1 16SM offers superior raw compute and memory figures, while the RTX A1000 provides validated, measurable performance in established graphics workloads.