NVIDIA RTX A4000 Mobile

The NVIDIA RTX A4000 Mobile is a professional Ampere-generation GPU designed for mobile workstations. Data indicates it occupies a specific mid-range tier within the broader GPU landscape, sitting at the 65th percentile of all GPUs. This analysis breaks down its specifications, performance metrics, and position relative to its nearest competitors.

Power and Cooling

The RTX A4000 Mobile carries a Thermal Design Power (TDP) of 115 W, which is a moderate figure for a mobile workstation part. This power envelope allows for deployment in a range of laptop chassis, though system designers must still account for adequate thermal dissipation. The data does not provide a suggested PSU rating, which is consistent with its mobile nature; power delivery is handled by the host system's adapter rather than a discrete PSU.

Regarding physical power connections, the specification lists "None" for power connectors. This indicates the card draws all its power through the PCIe 4.0 x16 slot interface and does not require auxiliary 8-pin or 6-pin connectors. This simplifies integration into mobile motherboards and reduces cabling complexity within the chassis. The absence of dedicated connectors also suggests that the 115 W TDP is delivered through the slot's capacity, which is typical for mobile GPUs that use a dedicated connector on the motherboard side rather than on the card itself.

For cooling, the data does not specify a particular cooler size or design. Given the 115 W TDP and the 8 nm process node from Samsung, the thermal solution must be capable of dissipating heat from a 17,400 million transistor die measuring 392 mm². The transistor density calculates to 44.4M per mm². In practical terms, this means a robust thermal solution is required; a capable air cooler with multiple heat pipes is likely necessary to maintain boost clocks under sustained load.

Ray Tracing and Feature Set

The RTX A4000 Mobile is built on the Ampere architecture and includes dedicated hardware for ray tracing and AI acceleration. It features 40 RT cores and 160 tensor cores. These are essential for hardware-accelerated ray tracing workloads and for leveraging DLSS or similar AI-based upscaling technologies in supported applications. The presence of these cores is a defining characteristic of the Ampere generation, distinguishing it from older Quadro Turing-M parts.

API support is comprehensive for modern workloads. The card supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), which includes features like DirectX Raytracing and Variable Rate Shading. OpenGL 4.6 and Vulkan 1.4 are also supported, ensuring compatibility across a wide range of professional and creative applications. The Vulkan 1.4 support is particularly notable for cross-platform workloads and modern game engines that utilize this low-overhead API.

The tensor cores deliver 160 units dedicated to matrix math, which accelerates FP16 operations. Notably, the FP16 throughput is listed at 17.20 TFLOPS with a 1:1 ratio to FP32, meaning the card does not have a separate, faster FP16 path. This is a specific implementation detail that affects performance in AI inference tasks that rely on FP16 precision.

Who Should Consider It

Based on benchmark data, the RTX A4000 Mobile is positioned for users who need professional-grade reliability and features without requiring top-tier absolute performance. The Passmark G3D score of 14796 and an average benchmark score of 21379 place it in the 65th percentile of all GPUs. This suggests it is a solid performer for its class, but not a flagship.

For gaming workloads, the data shows varying performance across different DirectX versions. The Passmark DirectX 9 score is 157, while DirectX 11 is 127, DirectX 10 is 105, and DirectX 12 is 66. These scores indicate that the card is more efficient in older DX9 titles relative to its own performance, but the raw numbers are not directly comparable across different tests. The low DX12 score relative to DX9 suggests that the card may not excel in the most modern, heavily threaded DX12 titles compared to its own legacy performance.

Professional users targeting 1080p and 1440p resolutions in CAD, 3D modeling, and content creation will find the performance adequate. The 8 GB VRAM and 384.0 GB/s bandwidth support high-resolution textures and complex scenes. However, for 4K workloads with maximum settings, the data suggests the card may struggle to maintain high frame rates in demanding applications, given its mid-range percentile ranking.

FAQ

Q: What is the release date and production status of the RTX A4000 Mobile?

A: The release date is 2021-04-11, and the production status is listed as "End-of-life." Its predecessor is the Quadro Turing-M, and its successor is Ada-MW.

Q: How much memory does the RTX A4000 Mobile have, and what type is it?

A: It has 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 384.0 GB/s.

Q: What is the TDP and does it require external power connectors?

A: The TDP is 115 W, and the specification lists "None" for power connectors, meaning it relies on slot power.

Q: What APIs are supported by this GPU?

A: It supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4.

Q: How many RT cores and tensor cores does it have?

A: It has 40 RT cores for ray tracing and 160 tensor cores for AI acceleration.

Q: What is the average benchmark score, and how does it compare to the AMD Radeon RX 5700?

A: The average benchmark score is 21379. It is 1.3% behind the AMD Radeon RX 5700, which has an average score of 21670.

Benchmark Performance

The RTX A4000 Mobile's performance is best understood through its average benchmark score of 21379 and its position against four nearest rivals. The data shows a tight cluster of performance, with the A4000 Mobile landing in the middle of the pack. The closest competitor is the AMD Radeon RX Vega M GL, which scores 21153, placing the A4000 Mobile 1.1% ahead. In the other direction, the AMD Radeon RX 5700 scores 21670, which puts the A4000 Mobile 1.3% behind. The AMD Radeon Pro 5700 XT scores 21054, making the A4000 Mobile 1.5% faster. Finally, the AMD Radeon RX 5600 XT scores 20925, with the A4000 Mobile leading by 2.2%.

These deltas are remarkably small, all within a 3.5% range. This indicates that the RTX A4000 Mobile is essentially performance-equivalent to these AMD offerings in aggregate synthetic benchmarks. The differences are within typical run-to-run variance and should not be the primary factor in a purchasing decision. The data suggests that any of these GPUs would deliver similar average performance across a wide suite of tests.

Looking at individual tests, the Geekbench OpenCL score is 97178, while the Vulkan score is 73002. This significant gap between OpenCL and Vulkan is noteworthy. In Geekbench's compute tests, the card shows a strong OpenCL result, suggesting good compute throughput in that API. The lower Vulkan score may indicate driver optimizations or architectural preferences. The Passmark G3D score of 14796 is the primary gaming-oriented metric, while the GPU Compute score is 6394, which is a separate measure of compute performance.

The percentile ranking of 65 means that the A4000 Mobile outperforms 65% of all GPUs in the database. This is a solid mid-range position. It is not a high-end part, but it is far from entry-level. The data suggests that for professional mobile workstations, this card offers a balanced profile of compute and graphics capabilities that align with its Ampere architecture and 115 W power envelope.

Memory Subsystem

The memory configuration is a key strength of the RTX A4000 Mobile. It utilizes 8 GB of GDDR6 memory, which is a significant capacity for professional workloads that often require large datasets to reside in VRAM. The 256-bit memory bus is wide, enabling a total bandwidth of 384.0 GB/s. This bandwidth figure is crucial for high-resolution textures, complex geometry, and compute tasks that read and write large amounts of data.

For 1080p and 1440p gaming, the 8 GB capacity is generally sufficient for current titles at high settings. However, the bandwidth of 384.0 GB/s may become a limiting factor in 4K gaming, where the GPU must move more pixels and textures. The data does not include specific 4K benchmarks, but the bandwidth figure, combined with the 17.20 TFLOPS FP32 performance, suggests that 4K performance will be moderate at best. The pixel rate of 134.4 GPixel/s and texture rate of 268.8 GTexel/s are consistent with a mid-range part.

The memory clock is listed as 1500 MHz, with a note of 12 Gbps effective. This effective data rate, combined with the 256-bit bus, yields the 384.0 GB/s bandwidth. This is a balanced configuration for the GPU's compute capabilities. The 8 GB capacity is particularly important for machine learning inference and rendering tasks that benefit from storing larger models or scenes in VRAM without spilling to system memory. The memory subsystem is clearly designed to support professional applications that demand both capacity and throughput.