NVIDIA RTX A2000 Mobile vs NVIDIA Tesla K20c Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The benchmark database contains a single direct comparison between these two professional GPUs: Geekbench OpenCL. The results are decisive. The NVIDIA RTX A2000 Mobile scores 56,518 points, while the NVIDIA Tesla K20c scores 11,479 points. That represents a 392.4% advantage for the mobile Ampere part. In practical terms, the RTX A2000 Mobile delivers roughly five times the raw OpenCL compute throughput of the older Tesla accelerator. This is not a close contest by any metric.

The RTX A2000 Mobile also holds a clear edge in the broader performance picture. Its average benchmark score across all recorded tests is 13,821, while the Tesla K20c averages 11,479. The database shows the RTX A2000 Mobile sitting at the 55th percentile among all GPUs, versus the 51st percentile for the Tesla K20c. While both cards are mid-pack overall, the RTX A2000 Mobile is measurably further ahead of the field.

Looking at the nearest rivals for each card reinforces the gap. The RTX A2000 Mobile's closest competitor is the AMD Radeon 660M, which averages 13,812, a delta of just 0.1%. The Tesla K20c's closest rival is the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780M, which averages 11,261, meaning the K20c is 1.9% ahead of that part. The data suggests the Tesla K20c is competing with integrated and older mobile graphics, while the RTX A2000 Mobile is trading blows with modern desktop and high-end mobile parts. The head-to-head result is simply a reflection of a generation gap in compute capability.

Architecture Differences

The architectural divide between these two GPUs is vast, and it explains the benchmark outcome. The RTX A2000 Mobile is built on the GA107 chip, using the Ampere architecture on an 8 nm process from Samsung. It packs 8,700 million transistors into a 200 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 43.5 million per square millimeter. The Tesla K20c, by contrast, uses the GK110 chip, based on the Kepler architecture on a 28 nm process from TSMC. It contains 7,080 million transistors spread across a much larger 561 mm² die, with a transistor density of just 12.6 million per square millimeter. The Ampere part is more than three times denser, a direct result of the newer fabrication node.

Memory configurations differ substantially. The RTX A2000 Mobile has 4 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, with a bandwidth of 192.0 GB/s and an effective memory clock of 12 Gbps. The Tesla K20c has 5 GB of GDDR5 memory on a wider 320-bit bus, achieving 208.0 GB/s of bandwidth at 5.2 Gbps effective. The Tesla holds a modest bandwidth advantage of 16 GB/s, but the RTX A2000 Mobile compensates with far faster memory technology and a vastly higher compute throughput.

Compute resources tell the real story. The RTX A2000 Mobile has 2,560 shading units, 80 texture mapping units, and 48 raster operation pipelines. It also includes 20 ray tracing cores and 80 tensor cores, features entirely absent from the Tesla K20c. The Tesla K20c has 2,496 shading units, 208 TMUs, and 40 ROPs. While the shading unit count is close, the TMU count favors the Tesla. However, the RTX A2000 Mobile's pixel rate is 80.98 GPixel/s versus 36.71 GPixel/s for the Tesla, and its texture rate is 135.0 GTexel/s versus 146.8 GTexel/s. The Tesla wins texture rate, but loses pixel rate.

The FP32 performance gap is enormous. The RTX A2000 Mobile delivers 8.637 TFLOPS of FP32 compute, while the Tesla K20c manages 3.524 TFLOPS. The RTX A2000 Mobile also has FP16 capability at 8.637 TFLOPS (1:1), while the Tesla K20c has no recorded FP16 support. Clock speeds also differ: the RTX A2000 Mobile has a base clock of 1215 MHz and a boost clock of 1687 MHz, while the Tesla K20c has no base or boost clocks recorded in the database, only a 1300 MHz memory clock.

The form factors and power profiles are polar opposites. The RTX A2000 Mobile is an IGP (integrated graphics package) with no power connectors, drawing 95 W TDP. The Tesla K20c is a dual-slot board, 267 mm in length, requiring a 1x 6-pin and 1x 8-pin power connector, with a 225 W TDP and a suggested PSU of 550 W. The Tesla also has no display outputs, making it a pure compute accelerator, while the RTX A2000 Mobile's display outputs are portable device dependent. In terms of connectivity, the RTX A2000 Mobile uses PCIe 4.0 x16, while the Tesla K20c is limited to PCIe 2.0 x16. The API support also differs: the RTX A2000 Mobile supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) and Vulkan 1.4, while the Tesla K20c supports DirectX 12 (11_0) and Vulkan 1.2.175.

Where Each One Wins

Based on the recorded data, the RTX A2000 Mobile wins the only direct benchmark comparison. It is also the stronger overall performer in the database, with a higher average score, a higher percentile ranking, and vastly superior FP32 compute. The RTX A2000 Mobile is the clear choice for any workload that relies on modern API features, ray tracing, tensor operations, or high raw compute throughput. Its 8.637 TFLOPS FP32 and 8.637 TFLOPS FP16 performance, combined with DirectX 12 Ultimate support, makes it suitable for contemporary rendering pipelines and compute tasks that leverage these features.

The Tesla K20c does hold a few narrow advantages in the specs. It has more memory capacity at 5 GB versus 4 GB, a wider 320-bit memory bus, and higher memory bandwidth at 208.0 GB/s versus 192.0 GB/s. It also has significantly more texture mapping units, 208 versus 80, and a higher texture rate of 146.8 GTexel/s versus 135.0 GTexel/s. These characteristics could favor workloads that are heavily texture-bound or that require larger working sets than 4 GB can accommodate. The Tesla K20c also carries a launch MSRP of 3,199 USD, which is a historical data point, not a current evaluation metric.

However, the Tesla K20c's advantages are narrow and come with severe trade-offs. The higher TDP of 225 W, the dual-slot form factor, the lack of display outputs, and the older PCIe 2.0 interface all limit its practicality in modern systems. The RTX A2000 Mobile, with its 95 W TDP, IGP form factor, and PCIe 4.0 support, is far more flexible in deployment. The data does not indicate any benchmark where the Tesla K20c outperforms the RTX A2000 Mobile. Its only recorded score is the Geekbench OpenCL result, which it loses by a wide margin.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has higher FP32 compute performance?

A: The NVIDIA RTX A2000 Mobile delivers 8.637 TFLOPS of FP32 compute, while the NVIDIA Tesla K20c delivers 3.524 TFLOPS. The RTX A2000 Mobile is approximately 145% faster in this metric.

Q: What is the difference in memory bandwidth?

A: The Tesla K20c has a higher memory bandwidth of 208.0 GB/s, compared to 192.0 GB/s for the RTX A2000 Mobile. The Tesla also has a wider 320-bit bus and 5 GB of memory, versus 4 GB on a 128-bit bus for the RTX A2000 Mobile.

Q: Does the Tesla K20c support ray tracing or tensor cores?

A: No. The Tesla K20c has no ray tracing cores and no tensor cores. The RTX A2000 Mobile includes 20 ray tracing cores and 80 tensor cores, which are part of its Ampere architecture.

Q: What is the TDP of each card?

A: The RTX A2000 Mobile has a TDP of 95 W and uses no power connectors, while the Tesla K20c has a TDP of 225 W and requires a 1x 6-pin and 1x 8-pin power connector, with a suggested PSU of 550 W.

Q: Which API versions are supported?

A: The RTX A2000 Mobile supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The Tesla K20c supports DirectX 12 (11_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.175.

Q: What is the release timeline for these GPUs?

A: The RTX A2000 Mobile was released on April 11, 2021, while the Tesla K20c was released on November 11, 2012. Both are now end-of-life products. The Tesla K20c had a launch MSRP of 3,199 USD.

The Verdict

The data presents a one-sided picture. The NVIDIA RTX A2000 Mobile outperforms the NVIDIA Tesla K20c in the only head-to-head benchmark, Geekbench OpenCL, by 392.4%. It also has a higher average benchmark score, a higher percentile rank, more than double the FP32 throughput, and modern architectural features including ray tracing cores, tensor cores, and support for DirectX 12 Ultimate and Vulkan 1.4.

The Tesla K20c is an older compute accelerator from 2012, built on the Kepler architecture. Its advantages are limited to memory capacity, memory bandwidth, texture units, and texture rate. These specs may benefit certain niche workloads, but the recorded benchmark data does not show any scenario where the Tesla K20c wins. Its 51st percentile ranking and average score of 11,479 place it below the RTX A2000 Mobile, which sits at the 55th percentile with an average score of 13,821.

Who should pick which? Strictly from the data, the RTX A2000 Mobile is the superior choice for almost any modern compute or graphics workload. Its lower power draw, compact IGP form factor, and PCIe 4.0 interface make it easier to integrate into current systems. The Tesla K20c, with its dual-slot design, 225 W TDP, and lack of display outputs, is only suitable for legacy compute installations where its wider memory bus and 5 GB frame buffer are required. The database indicates that the RTX A2000 Mobile is the stronger, more versatile part, and the Tesla K20c is best left to the past.