NVIDIA GeForce4 Go 4200

The NVIDIA GeForce4 Go 4200 is an end-of-life portable GPU built on the Kelvin architecture with the NV28 chip. TSMC produced it on a 150 nm process with 63 million transistors on a 142 mm² die, giving a transistor density of 443.7K per mm². The release date in the record is 2002-11-13, and the product is listed between the GeForce2 Go and the GeForce FX Go 5 in the company’s product lineage. The database entry contains no benchmark workloads, so the analysis below is limited to the recorded specifications and the single percentile value provided.

Benchmark Performance

The benchmark section of the record is empty. No workloads are listed, the benchmarks array contains no entries, and the average benchmark score is 0. That 0 should not be read as a measured performance result; it is the absence of measured data. The only positional metric in the data is percentileVsAllGpus, which is 50. This places the GeForce4 Go 4200 at the median of all GPUs in the database. In a distribution where every GPU is ranked, exactly half of the recorded parts are above it and half are below it, but the database does not reveal the underlying score distribution around that position.

The two performance figures with units in the record are 800.0 MPixel/s pixel fill rate and 1.600 GTexel/s texture fill rate. These are the only throughput values available. The record pairs the 800.0 MPixel/s pixel rate with 4 ROPs and the 1.600 GTexel/s texture rate with 8 TMUs. The texture unit count is double the ROP count, which suggests the chip has more raw texturing capacity than final-pixel writing capacity. That ratio points toward texture-heavy scenes being less constrained by texture fetch work than by the final pixel output stage. Still, both fill rates are subject to the memory subsystem, which is the bottleneck-worthy component in this data set. Without application-level scores, these theoretical rates cannot be converted into frames per second or comparative performance deltas.

Because the nearestRivals array is empty, there are no exact percentage differences to report. No rival score and no deltaPct value exists in the record. The average benchmark score of 0 reinforces that no measured workload sits behind the 50th percentile. The fill rates and the percentile are separate pieces of evidence: one describes theoretical pixel and texture throughput, the other describes a median standing in a broad GPU distribution.

Ray Tracing and Feature Set

The feature set of this GPU is defined by the API versions and unit counts that are actually listed. The data contains no RT cores and no tensor cores. There is no ray tracing hardware count and no tensor acceleration count to report. For API support, the record shows DirectX 8.1 and OpenGL 1.5. Vulkan is not listed, so no Vulkan support can be claimed from this data.

The architecture is Kelvin, implemented in the NV28 chip. The GPU has 8 TMUs and 4 ROPs, but no shading unit count is provided. The bus interface is AGP 8x. Display outputs are described as “Portable Device Dependent,” which frames the GPU as a component inside a portable system rather than a standalone desktop card with fixed display connections.

The absence of RT and tensor fields, combined with the DirectX 8.1 and OpenGL 1.5 API support, means hardware-accelerated ray tracing and tensor-style workloads are outside the scope of this record. The feature set is oriented toward the rendering pipeline represented by the 8 TMUs and 4 ROPs. The API list is short and is anchored to the DirectX 8.1 and OpenGL 1.5 versions, with no newer API entries present.

Memory Subsystem

The memory specification is one of the clearest parts of the record. The GeForce4 Go 4200 uses 64 MB of DDR memory on a 64-bit bus. The memory clock is 200 MHz with an effective 400 Mbps data rate, producing 3.200 GB/s of bandwidth. These figures define the complete memory budget for the GPU.

A 64-bit bus is narrow, and the bandwidth of 3.200 GB/s is the maximum rate at which data can move between memory and the rest of the GPU. The DDR memory type provides the effective 400 Mbps rate from the 200 MHz base clock, meaning each clock cycle transfers data on both edges. The 64 MB capacity is a limited buffer by design. Color buffers, depth buffers, and texture data all have to fit within that capacity. Higher resolutions and higher color depths consume more of the buffer, leaving less room for the rest of the frame data. At the same time, the 3.200 GB/s bandwidth caps how quickly that data can be fed to the 8 TMUs and 4 ROPs.

The memory type is DDR, and no other memory details are present in the record. Any assessment of resolution headroom must be anchored to these values: 64 MB, 64-bit bus width, 200 MHz clock, 400 Mbps effective rate, and 3.200 GB/s bandwidth. Those numbers represent the full storage capacity and the full bandwidth ceiling for memory-bound rendering work.

How It Compares

The nearestRivals list in the fact pack is empty. No rival GPU name appears, no rival score appears, and no deltaPct value appears. Consequently, this section cannot provide percentage comparisons to any specific competitor. The only comparative statistic in the data is the 50th percentile in the percentileVsAllGpus field. In the database distribution, the GeForce4 Go 4200 sits in the middle, but the empty benchmark fields mean there is no data to show how close the median position is to the next-higher or next-lower GPU.

The record does provide product lineage. The predecessor is listed as the GeForce2 Go, and the successor is listed as the GeForce FX Go 5. These are adjacent points in the product sequence, but the database does not include scores or specifications for either part. They cannot be turned into a deltaPct, and they are not placed in the nearestRivals array. The absence of that array is the controlling fact: there are no named rivals to compare against.

If this GPU is to be compared to anything, the available data only supports a comparison to the entire database distribution through the 50th percentile. Any statement claiming the card is faster or slower than a specific GPU by a specific margin would require data beyond this record. The direct comparison summary is therefore simple: no exact rival comparisons are present, and the GPU’s median position is the only broad statement of standing that the data permits.

Power and Cooling

The record does not include a TDP value, so no thermal design power can be reported. It also does not include a suggested PSU rating. The power connector field is “None,” meaning no auxiliary power connectors are listed. Without a TDP or a PSU recommendation, the database does not specify the power-supply class required for a system using this GPU.

The missing TDP also makes a precise cooling requirement impossible to derive from the data. The manufacturing facts provide some physical context: TSMC 150 nm process, 63 million transistors, and a 142 mm² die size. These describe the chip’s construction and density, but they do not translate into a wattage target without a TDP field.

The GPU is an AGP 8x part, and its display outputs are “Portable Device Dependent.” The dimensions fields are empty, and no slot width is recorded. This pattern aligns with a mobile design in which cooling is integrated into the host portable device rather than into a separate expansion card. The only electrical connection facts in the record are the AGP 8x interface and the absence of power connectors.

FAQ

Q: What memory configuration is listed for the GeForce4 Go 4200?

A: The GPU uses 64 MB of DDR memory on a 64-bit bus, with a 200 MHz memory clock, a 400 Mbps effective data rate, and 3.200 GB/s of bandwidth.

Q: Does the GPU include RT or tensor cores?

A: The record lists no RT cores and no tensor cores. The API support is DirectX 8.1 and OpenGL 1.5, and no Vulkan support is listed.

Q: What is the manufacturing process?

A: The chip is manufactured on a TSMC 150 nm process, with 63 million transistors, a 142 mm² die size, and a transistor density of 443.7K per mm².

Q: What power connectors are required?

A: The power connector field is “None,” so no auxiliary power connectors are listed. No TDP and no suggested PSU are recorded.

Q: How does it compare to its nearest rivals?

A: No nearest rivals are present in the data. The nearestRivals array is empty, and the only comparative field is the 50th percentile across all GPUs.

Q: When was it released and is it still in production?

A: The release date is 2002-11-13, and the production status is end-of-life.