NVIDIA Quadro RTX 8000 vs NVIDIA T550 Mobile Comparison

The Verdict

The data is unambiguous: the NVIDIA Quadro RTX 8000 is the dominant performer in this comparison, winning both recorded head-to-head benchmarks by massive margins. The NVIDIA T550 Mobile, while possessing a higher percentile ranking among all GPUs (77th versus 74th), cannot match the raw compute output of the RTX 8000. The RTX 8000 leads by 65.1% in Geekbench OpenCL and by 74.9% in Geekbench Vulkan, making it the clear choice for any workload that prioritizes absolute throughput. The T550 Mobile, by contrast, is an integrated-class mobile part (IGP slot width, 23 W TDP) meant for portable devices, and its average benchmark score of 33,161 reflects a competent but far less powerful class of hardware. The RTX 8000's average score sits at 28,421, but this figure is dragged down by its inclusion of legacy DirectX 9, 10, 11, and 12 tests, where it scores very low (211, 137, 188, and 79 respectively), while its Geekbench scores and Passmark G3D score of 19,799 tell the real story. For a workstation needing 48 GB of memory, ray tracing cores, and tensor cores, the RTX 8000 is the only rational selection. For a thin-and-light laptop where power draw and physical size are the constraints, the T550 Mobile is the only one that fits.

Architecture Differences

Both GPUs are built on the Turing architecture and use TSMC's 12 nm process node, but they diverge sharply in scale and capability. The T550 Mobile uses the TU117 chip, measuring 200 mm² with 4,700 million transistors (a density of 23.5M per mm²). The RTX 8000 uses the TU102 chip, a much larger die at 754 mm² with 18,600 million transistors (24.7M per mm²). The RTX 8000 packs 4,608 shading units, 288 texture mapping units, and 96 ROPs, while the T550 Mobile has 1,024 shading units, 64 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. Critically, the RTX 8000 includes 72 ray tracing cores and 576 tensor cores; the T550 Mobile has none. Both support DirectX 12, but the RTX 8000 supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) while the T550 Mobile is limited to DirectX 12 (12_1). Both support OpenGL 4.6 and Vulkan 1.4. The RTX 8000 also offers significantly higher peak rates: 169.9 GPixel/s pixel rate and 509.8 GTexel/s texture rate versus 53.28 GPixel/s and 106.6 GTexel/s on the T550 Mobile. FP32 compute is 16.31 TFLOPS versus 3.410 TFLOPS, and FP16 is 32.62 TFLOPS versus 6.820 TFLOPS, both using a 2:1 ratio. The RTX 8000 is a dual-slot card with a 260 W TDP, a 600 W suggested PSU, and requires 1x 6-pin plus 1x 8-pin power connectors; the T550 Mobile is an IGP with a 23 W TDP and no power connectors. The RTX 8000 has four DisplayPort 1.4a outputs and one USB Type-C port, whereas the T550 Mobile's display outputs are described as portable device dependent.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The recorded head-to-head data contains only two tests, and the RTX 8000 wins both. In Geekbench OpenCL, the RTX 8000 scores 101,883 against the T550 Mobile's 35,521, a delta of negative 65.1% from the RTX 8000's perspective, meaning the T550 Mobile trails by that amount. In Geekbench Vulkan, the gap widens: 122,637 versus 30,801, a delta of negative 74.9%. These are not marginal differences; they represent a fundamentally higher tier of compute capability. The Vulkan result is particularly telling, as the RTX 8000's score is nearly four times that of the T550 Mobile. The T550 Mobile's standalone Geekbench scores are 35,521 (OpenCL) and 30,801 (Vulkan), which align closely with its average of 33,161, indicating consistency across runs. The RTX 8000's Geekbench OpenCL score of 101,883 is over triple the T550 Mobile's, and its Vulkan score of 122,637 is nearly quadruple. The Passmark suite, only available for the RTX 8000, shows a G3D score of 19,799 and a GPU compute score of 9,992, with legacy DirectX tests scoring between 79 and 211. These legacy scores are low, but they do not reflect modern workload performance; the Geekbench results are the more relevant comparison.

Specification Differences

The two GPUs differ in nearly every measurable specification. The T550 Mobile uses the TU117 chip; the RTX 8000 uses TU102. Transistor counts are 4,700 million versus 18,600 million. Die size is 200 mm² versus 754 mm². Base clock is 1065 MHz versus 1395 MHz. Boost clock is 1665 MHz versus 1770 MHz. Memory clock is 1500 MHz (12 Gbps effective) versus 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective). Memory size is 4 GB versus 48 GB, both GDDR6. Bus width is 64 bit versus 384 bit. Memory bandwidth is 96.00 GB/s versus 672.0 GB/s. Shading units are 1,024 versus 4,608. TMUs are 64 versus 288. ROPs are 32 versus 96. RT cores: none versus 72. Tensor cores: none versus 576. Pixel rate is 53.28 GPixel/s versus 169.9 GPixel/s. Texture rate is 106.6 GTexel/s versus 509.8 GTexel/s. FP32 is 3.410 TFLOPS versus 16.31 TFLOPS. FP16 is 6.820 TFLOPS versus 32.62 TFLOPS. TDP is 23 W versus 260 W. Slot width is IGP versus dual-slot. Power connectors are none versus 1x 6-pin plus 1x 8-pin. Suggested PSU is not listed for the T550 Mobile, while the RTX 8000 lists 600 W. Both use PCIe 3.0 x16. DirectX support: 12 (12_1) versus 12 Ultimate (12_2). The RTX 8000 has a physical length of 267 mm (10.5 inches) and height of 111 mm (4.4 inches); the T550 Mobile has no listed dimensions. The RTX 8000 has a release date of 2018-08-12 and a launch MSRP of 9,999 USD; the T550 Mobile has no release date or launch MSRP. The RTX 8000's predecessor is Quadro Volta and successor is Workstation Ampere; the T550 Mobile's predecessor is Quadro Pascal-M and successor is Ampere-MW. Both are end-of-life.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has more memory?

A: The NVIDIA Quadro RTX 8000 has 48 GB of GDDR6 memory, while the NVIDIA T550 Mobile has 4 GB of GDDR6 memory.

Q: Does the T550 Mobile support ray tracing?

A: No. The T550 Mobile has no ray tracing cores, while the RTX 8000 has 72 RT cores.

Q: Which GPU has a higher memory bandwidth?

A: The RTX 8000 has a memory bandwidth of 672.0 GB/s over a 384-bit bus, compared to the T550 Mobile's 96.00 GB/s over a 64-bit bus.

Q: What is the TDP difference?

A: The T550 Mobile has a 23 W TDP and is an IGP, while the RTX 8000 has a 260 W TDP and is a dual-slot card requiring 1x 6-pin plus 1x 8-pin power connectors and a 600 W suggested PSU.

Q: Which GPU scores higher in Geekbench Vulkan?

A: The RTX 8000 scores 122,637 in Geekbench Vulkan, versus 30,801 for the T550 Mobile, a 74.9% lead.

Q: Are both GPUs on the same architecture?

A: Yes, both use the Turing architecture and are fabricated on TSMC's 12 nm process, but the RTX 8000 uses the TU102 chip while the T550 Mobile uses the TU117 chip.

Where Each One Wins

The RTX 8000 wins in every category that matters for raw performance. Its 16.31 TFLOPS FP32 compute is nearly five times the T550 Mobile's 3.410 TFLOPS. Its 672.0 GB/s memory bandwidth is seven times higher. Its 48 GB memory capacity is twelve times larger. Its 72 RT cores and 576 tensor cores enable hardware-accelerated ray tracing and AI workloads that the T550 Mobile cannot attempt. Its 169.9 GPixel/s pixel rate and 509.8 GTexel/s texture rate are over three and nearly five times higher, respectively. The RTX 8000's Geekbench OpenCL score is 101,883 versus 35,521, and its Geekbench Vulkan score is 122,637 versus 30,801. It also has a higher base and boost clock, more shading units, more TMUs, more ROPs, a wider memory bus, and a larger die. The RTX 8000 is the clear winner for workstation rendering, scientific compute, and any task that can use its tensor cores or large memory pool. Its Passmark G3D score of 19,799 and GPU compute score of 9,992 reinforce its strength in sustained 3D workloads.

The T550 Mobile wins in portability and power efficiency. At 23 W TDP with no power connectors and an IGP slot width, it is designed for mobile devices where the RTX 8000's 260 W TDP, dual-slot size, 267 mm length, and 600 W suggested PSU are impossible to accommodate. The T550 Mobile's percentile ranking of 77th among all GPUs is actually higher than the RTX 8000's 74th, reflecting that its performance is well above average for its class, even though it loses decisively in absolute terms. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Mobile (average score 33,170, delta 0%), AMD Radeon Pro 570 (33,207, delta -0.1%), NVIDIA P104-100 (32,982, delta 0.5%), and NVIDIA T600 Mobile (32,849, delta 1%), showing it sits in a competitive mid-range mobile segment. The RTX 8000's nearest rivals are the AMD Radeon R9 M295X (28,580, delta -0.6%), AMD FirePro S7150 (28,117, delta 1.1%), AMD Radeon RX 570 (28,766, delta -1.2%), and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980 Ti (28,020, delta 1.4%), indicating its average score is dragged down by legacy tests but its peak performance is far higher. For anyone needing a GPU that fits in a laptop and runs on battery power, the T550 Mobile is the only viable option. For anyone needing maximum compute, memory capacity, and modern feature support, the RTX 8000 is the definitive choice. The two GPUs do not compete for the same user; they occupy opposite ends of the mobile-to-workstation spectrum, and the data reflects that divide clearly.