NVIDIA RTX A1000 vs NVIDIA RTX A500 Mobile Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The recorded data includes two direct comparison points between the NVIDIA RTX A500 Mobile and the NVIDIA RTX A1000. Both are compute-oriented API tests, and the RTX A1000 wins both by significant margins. In Geekbench OpenCL, the RTX A500 Mobile scores 41,263 while the RTX A1000 scores 52,078. That is a 20.8% deficit for the A500 Mobile. In Geekbench Vulkan, the gap is slightly wider: the A500 Mobile reaches 37,873 against the A1000's 49,574, putting the A500 Mobile 23.6% behind.

These deltas are not minor. A 20% to 24% performance gap in two separate APIs indicates the A1000 has a consistent compute advantage, not a driver-specific quirk. The overall benchmark tally confirms this: the RTX A1000 wins 2 out of 2 head-to-head tests, while the RTX A500 Mobile records zero wins.

Looking at average benchmark scores, the database shows the A500 Mobile averages 39,568 across all its recorded tests, while the A1000 averages 34,207. This is an unusual inversion: the A1000 wins the direct head-to-head tests but has a lower average score. The explanation lies in the benchmark mix. The A1000 includes a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 result of 969, which is a much different workload than Geekbench's OpenCL or Vulkan compute tests. That low DX12 score drags down the A1000's average, even though it dominates the A500 Mobile in the shared tests.

For context, the A500 Mobile's average score of 39,568 places it at the 82nd percentile among all GPUs in the database. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon Pro 575 (avg 39,555, 0% delta), the AMD Radeon Pro 575X (avg 39,116, 1.2% ahead of the A500), the AMD Radeon Pro WX 7100 (avg 40,063, 1.2% behind the A500), and the AMD Radeon Pro 580 (avg 40,318, 1.9% behind the A500). These deltas are all within 2%, meaning the A500 Mobile sits in a tightly packed cluster of mid-range workstation GPUs.

The A1000's average of 34,207 puts it at the 79th percentile, slightly lower than the A500 Mobile. Its nearest rivals tell a similar story of close competition: the NVIDIA RTX A2000 12 GB (avg 34,154, 0.2% ahead of the A1000), the AMD Radeon RX 560 XT (avg 34,133, 0.2% ahead), the NVIDIA TITAN V (avg 34,355, 0.4% behind the A1000), and the AMD Radeon RX 480 (avg 33,997, 0.6% ahead of the A1000). The A1000 is also within a narrow band of rivals, but they are mostly consumer or older prosumer cards.

Architecture Differences

Both GPUs share the same Ampere architecture and are built by Samsung on an 8 nm process. Both have exactly 8,700 million transistors on a 200 mm² die, which works out to a transistor density of 43.5 million per square millimeter. The silicon is effectively identical in scale; the differences come from how each chip is configured and packaged.

The chip names differ: the A500 Mobile uses the GA107S, while the A1000 uses the GA107. This is not a full die vs. cut-down die story, since both report the same transistor count and die size. The functional unit counts diverge. The A500 Mobile has 2,048 shading units, 64 texture mapping units, and 32 ROPs. The A1000 has 2,304 shading units, 72 TMUs, and the same 32 ROPs. The A1000 also has more ray tracing cores (18 vs. 16) and more tensor cores (72 vs. 64).

Clock speeds are lower on the A1000. The A500 Mobile runs at 832 MHz base and 1537 MHz boost, while the A1000 runs at 727 MHz base and 1462 MHz boost. Despite the lower clocks, the A1000's larger shader count pushes its FP32 throughput to 6.737 TFLOPS, versus 6.296 TFLOPS for the A500 Mobile. FP16 is identical to FP32 on both (1:1 ratio), so the A1000 also leads there at 6.737 TFLOPS vs. 6.296 TFLOPS.

Memory is a major differentiator. The A500 Mobile has 4 GB of GDDR6 on a 64-bit bus, yielding 96.00 GB/s of bandwidth. The A1000 has 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus, yielding 192.0 GB/s, exactly double the A500 Mobile's bandwidth. Both run the same memory clock of 1500 MHz with 12 Gbps effective data rate. The A1000's wider bus is the key advantage here.

The A1000 is a physically larger card. It is a single-slot design measuring 163 mm in length and 69 mm in height, with four mini-DisplayPort 1.4a outputs. The A500 Mobile is labeled as an IGP (integrated graphics processor) with a slot width of "IGP" and display outputs listed as "Portable Device Dependent." The A500 Mobile has no power connectors, while the A1000 also has none, but the A1000 lists a suggested PSU of 250 W. The A1000's TDP is 50 W versus 30 W for the A500 Mobile. Both use a PCIe 4.0 x8 bus interface.

The A1000 is an active product with an April 15, 2024 release date, while the A500 Mobile is end-of-life with a March 21, 2022 release date. Their predecessor and successor naming differs slightly: the A500 Mobile follows Quadro Turing-M and leads to Ada-MW, while the A1000 follows Quadro Turing and leads to Workstation Ada.

Where Each One Wins

The RTX A1000 is the clear winner in raw compute performance. It beats the A500 Mobile by 20.8% in Geekbench OpenCL and 23.6% in Geekbench Vulkan. It also has double the VRAM (8 GB vs. 4 GB) and double the memory bandwidth (192.0 GB/s vs. 96.00 GB/s). For any workload that stresses compute shaders, OpenCL, or Vulkan, the A1000 is the better choice.

The A1000 also has more shading units, TMUs, RT cores, and tensor cores, which gives it a theoretical advantage in texture-heavy rendering and ray tracing tasks. Its higher FP32 and FP16 throughput (6.737 TFLOPS vs. 6.296 TFLOPS) supports this.

The A500 Mobile's advantages are narrower. It has a higher boost clock (1537 MHz vs. 1462 MHz) and a higher base clock (832 MHz vs. 727 MHz). It also has a higher pixel rate at 49.18 GPixel/s versus 46.78 GPixel/s for the A1000, despite having the same 32 ROPs. This is a clock speed effect. The A500 Mobile also has a lower TDP at 30 W vs. 50 W, which matters in thermally constrained mobile chassis.

The A500 Mobile's average benchmark score is higher (39,568 vs. 34,207) and its percentile rank is better (82nd vs. 79th). However, this is skewed by the A1000's inclusion of the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test, which scores 969 and pulls the average down. In the two tests they share, the A500 Mobile has no wins.

For a pure compute workload, the A1000 wins. For a power-sensitive mobile application where the GPU is soldered to the board and has no discrete card footprint, the A500 Mobile is the only one of the two that fits that form factor. The A1000 is a single-slot card, not an IGP.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU is faster in OpenCL?

A: The NVIDIA RTX A1000 is faster, scoring 52,078 in Geekbench OpenCL versus 41,263 for the RTX A500 Mobile, a 20.8% advantage.

Q: Which GPU is faster in Vulkan?

A: The NVIDIA RTX A1000 is faster, scoring 49,574 in Geekbench Vulkan versus 37,873 for the RTX A500 Mobile, a 23.6% advantage.

Q: How much VRAM does each GPU have?

A: The RTX A500 Mobile has 4 GB of GDDR6, while the RTX A1000 has 8 GB of GDDR6.

Q: Do they use the same memory bandwidth?

A: No. The RTX A500 Mobile has 96.00 GB/s of bandwidth on a 64-bit bus, while the RTX A1000 has 192.0 GB/s on a 128-bit bus.

Q: Are these GPUs the same size?

A: No. The RTX A500 Mobile is an IGP (integrated graphics processor) with no slot width, while the RTX A1000 is a single-slot card measuring 163 mm by 69 mm.

Q: What is the power draw difference?

A: The RTX A500 Mobile has a TDP of 30 W, while the RTX A1000 has a TDP of 50 W. The A1000 also lists a suggested PSU of 250 W, while the A500 Mobile does not list one.

Specification Differences

| Specification | NVIDIA RTX A500 Mobile | NVIDIA RTX A1000 |

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

| Chip | GA107S | GA107 |

| Generation | Ampere-MW (Ax000) | Workstation Ampere (Ax000) |

| Base Clock | 832 MHz | 727 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 1537 MHz | 1462 MHz |

| Memory Size | 4 GB | 8 GB |

| Memory Bus Width | 64 bit | 128 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | 96.00 GB/s | 192.0 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 2048 | 2304 |

| TMUs | 64 | 72 |

| RT Cores | 16 | 18 |

| Tensor Cores | 64 | 72 |

| Pixel Rate | 49.18 GPixel/s | 46.78 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 98.37 GTexel/s | 105.3 GTexel/s |

| FP32 / FP16 | 6.296 TFLOPS | 6.737 TFLOPS |

| TDP | 30 W | 50 W |

| Slot Width | IGP | Single-slot |

| Suggested PSU | None | 250 W |

| Display Outputs | Portable Device Dependent | 4x mini-DisplayPort 1.4a |

| Dimensions | Not available | 163 mm x 69 mm |

| Production Status | End-of-life | Active |

| Release Date | 2022-03-21 | 2024-04-15 |

| Predecessor | Quadro Turing-M | Quadro Turing |

| Successor | Ada-MW | Workstation Ada |

| Avg Benchmark Score | 39,568 | 34,207 |

| Percentile vs All GPUs | 82 | 79 |

The Verdict

The data points to the NVIDIA RTX A1000 as the stronger compute GPU. It wins both shared benchmarks by over 20%, has double the VRAM and double the memory bandwidth, and packs more shading units, TMUs, RT cores, and tensor cores. Its higher FP32 throughput (6.737 TFLOPS) directly supports its benchmark wins. The A1000 is also an active product with a 2024 release date, while the A500 Mobile is end-of-life from 2022.

The RTX A500 Mobile is not without purpose. Its higher clocks deliver a better pixel rate (49.18 GPixel/s vs. 46.78 GPixel/s) despite the same ROP count. Its 30 W TDP makes it suitable for low-power integrated applications, and its average benchmark score is higher in the database, though that is an artifact of the A1000's low DX12 score.

Choose the RTX A1000 if you need a discrete, single-slot card with 8 GB VRAM, wide memory bandwidth, and the best compute performance in OpenCL and Vulkan. Choose the RTX A500 Mobile only if your form factor requires an IGP with no power connectors and you can tolerate a 20% to 24% compute deficit. For most workstation tasks, the A1000 is the clear pick.