GeForce GT 520M vs FirePro W4170M
Aggregate performance score
We've compared FirePro W4170M with GeForce GT 520M, including specs and performance data.
W4170M outperforms GT 520M by a whopping 266% based on our aggregate benchmark results.
Primary details
GPU architecture, market segment, value for money and other general parameters compared.
| Place in the ranking | 809 | 1162 |
| Place by popularity | not in top-100 | not in top-100 |
| Cost-effectiveness evaluation | no data | 0.01 |
| Power efficiency | no data | 4.25 |
| Architecture | GCN 1.0 (2011−2020) | Fermi (2010−2014) |
| GPU code name | Opal | GF108 |
| Market segment | Mobile workstation | Laptop |
| Release date | 23 April 2015 (9 years ago) | 5 January 2011 (14 years ago) |
| Launch price (MSRP) | no data | $59.99 |
Cost-effectiveness evaluation
Performance to price ratio. The higher, the better.
Detailed specifications
General parameters such as number of shaders, GPU core base clock and boost clock speeds, manufacturing process, texturing and calculation speed. Note that power consumption of some graphics cards can well exceed their nominal TDP, especially when overclocked.
| Pipelines / CUDA cores | 384 | 48 |
| Core clock speed | 825 MHz | 600 MHz |
| Boost clock speed | 900 MHz | no data |
| Number of transistors | 950 million | 585 million |
| Manufacturing process technology | 28 nm | 40 nm |
| Power consumption (TDP) | no data | 12 Watt |
| Texture fill rate | 21.60 | 4.800 |
| Floating-point processing power | 0.6912 TFLOPS | 0.1152 TFLOPS |
| ROPs | 8 | 4 |
| TMUs | 24 | 8 |
Form factor & compatibility
Information on compatibility with other computer components. Useful when choosing a future computer configuration or upgrading an existing one. For desktop graphics cards it's interface and bus (motherboard compatibility), additional power connectors (power supply compatibility).
| Laptop size | medium sized | no data |
| Interface | PCIe 3.0 x8 | PCIe 2.0 x16 |
| Supplementary power connectors | None | None |
VRAM capacity and type
Parameters of VRAM installed: its type, size, bus, clock and resulting bandwidth. Integrated GPUs have no dedicated video RAM and use a shared part of system RAM.
| Memory type | GDDR5 | DDR3 |
| Maximum RAM amount | 2 GB | 1 GB |
| Memory bus width | 128 Bit | 64 Bit |
| Memory clock speed | 1000 MHz | 800 MHz |
| Memory bandwidth | 64 GB/s | 12.8 GB/s |
| Shared memory | - | - |
Connectivity and outputs
Types and number of video connectors present on the reviewed GPUs. As a rule, data in this section is precise only for desktop reference ones (so-called Founders Edition for NVIDIA chips). OEM manufacturers may change the number and type of output ports, while for notebook cards availability of certain video outputs ports depends on the laptop model rather than on the card itself.
| Display Connectors | Portable Device Dependent | Portable Device Dependent |
Supported technologies
Supported technological solutions. This information will prove useful if you need some particular technology for your purposes.
| AppAcceleration | + | - |
| Optimus | - | + |
API compatibility
List of supported 3D and general-purpose computing APIs, including their specific versions.
| DirectX | 12 (11_1) | 12 API |
| Shader Model | 6.5 (5.1) | 5.1 |
| OpenGL | 4.6 | 4.5 |
| OpenCL | 2.1 (1.2) | 1.1 |
| Vulkan | 1.2.170 | N/A |
| CUDA | - | + |
Synthetic benchmark performance
Non-gaming benchmark results comparison. The combined score is measured on a 0-100 point scale.
Combined synthetic benchmark score
This is our combined benchmark score. We are regularly improving our combining algorithms, but if you find some perceived inconsistencies, feel free to speak up in comments section, we usually fix problems quickly.
Passmark
This is the most ubiquitous GPU benchmark. It gives the graphics card a thorough evaluation under various types of load, providing four separate benchmarks for Direct3D versions 9, 10, 11 and 12 (the last being done in 4K resolution if possible), and few more tests engaging DirectCompute capabilities.
3DMark 11 Performance GPU
3DMark 11 is an obsolete DirectX 11 benchmark by Futuremark. It used four tests based on two scenes, one being few submarines exploring the submerged wreck of a sunken ship, the other is an abandoned temple deep in the jungle. All the tests are heavy with volumetric lighting and tessellation, and despite being done in 1280x720 resolution, are relatively taxing. Discontinued in January 2020, 3DMark 11 is now superseded by Time Spy.
Gaming performance
Let's see how good the compared graphics cards are for gaming. Particular gaming benchmark results are measured in FPS.
Average FPS across all PC games
Here are the average frames per second in a large set of popular games across different resolutions:
| 900p | 27−30
+238%
| 8
−238%
|
| Full HD | 21
+75%
| 12
−75%
|
| 1200p | 24−27
+243%
| 7
−243%
|
Cost per frame, $
| 1080p | no data | 5.00 |
FPS performance in popular games
Full HD
Low Preset
| Counter-Strike 2 | 10−11
+11.1%
|
9−10
−11.1%
|
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 6−7
+100%
|
3−4
−100%
|
| Elden Ring | 5−6
+400%
|
1−2
−400%
|
Full HD
Medium Preset
| Battlefield 5 | 6−7
+500%
|
1−2
−500%
|
| Counter-Strike 2 | 10−11
+11.1%
|
9−10
−11.1%
|
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 6−7
+100%
|
3−4
−100%
|
| Forza Horizon 4 | 12−14
+85.7%
|
7−8
−85.7%
|
| Metro Exodus | 4−5
+300%
|
1−2
−300%
|
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | 10−11
+100%
|
5−6
−100%
|
Full HD
High Preset
| Battlefield 5 | 6−7
+500%
|
1−2
−500%
|
| Counter-Strike 2 | 10−11
+11.1%
|
9−10
−11.1%
|
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 6−7
+100%
|
3−4
−100%
|
| Dota 2 | 7−8
+600%
|
1−2
−600%
|
| Elden Ring | 5−6
+400%
|
1−2
−400%
|
| Far Cry 5 | 16−18
+100%
|
8−9
−100%
|
| Fortnite | 14−16
+650%
|
2−3
−650%
|
| Forza Horizon 4 | 12−14
+85.7%
|
7−8
−85.7%
|
| Grand Theft Auto V | 7−8
+600%
|
1−2
−600%
|
| Metro Exodus | 4−5
+300%
|
1−2
−300%
|
| PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS | 24−27
+150%
|
10−11
−150%
|
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | 10−11
+100%
|
5−6
−100%
|
| The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt | 10−11
+66.7%
|
6−7
−66.7%
|
| World of Tanks | 45−50
+158%
|
18−20
−158%
|
Full HD
Ultra Preset
| Battlefield 5 | 6−7
+500%
|
1−2
−500%
|
| Counter-Strike 2 | 10−11
+11.1%
|
9−10
−11.1%
|
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 6−7
+100%
|
3−4
−100%
|
| Dota 2 | 7−8
+600%
|
1−2
−600%
|
| Far Cry 5 | 16−18
+100%
|
8−9
−100%
|
| Forza Horizon 4 | 12−14
+85.7%
|
7−8
−85.7%
|
| PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS | 24−27
+150%
|
10−11
−150%
|
1440p
High Preset
| Dota 2 | 0−1 | 0−1 |
| Elden Ring | 2−3 | 0−1 |
| Grand Theft Auto V | 1−2 | 0−1 |
| PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS | 18−20
+375%
|
4−5
−375%
|
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | 2−3 | 0−1 |
| World of Tanks | 18−20
+500%
|
3−4
−500%
|
1440p
Ultra Preset
| Battlefield 5 | 2−3 | 0−1 |
| Counter-Strike 2 | 9−10
+0%
|
9−10
+0%
|
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 3−4
+50%
|
2−3
−50%
|
| Far Cry 5 | 7−8
+75%
|
4−5
−75%
|
| Forza Horizon 4 | 0−1 | 0−1 |
| The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt | 4−5
+100%
|
2−3
−100%
|
| Valorant | 9−10
+80%
|
5−6
−80%
|
4K
High Preset
| Dota 2 | 16−18
+6.7%
|
14−16
−6.7%
|
| Elden Ring | 1−2 | 0−1 |
| Grand Theft Auto V | 14−16
+0%
|
14−16
+0%
|
| PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS | 8−9
+300%
|
2−3
−300%
|
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | 1−2 | 0−1 |
| The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt | 14−16
+0%
|
14−16
+0%
|
4K
Ultra Preset
| Battlefield 5 | 2−3
+100%
|
1−2
−100%
|
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 1−2
+0%
|
1−2
+0%
|
| Dota 2 | 16−18
+6.7%
|
14−16
−6.7%
|
| Far Cry 5 | 2−3 | 0−1 |
| Fortnite | 1−2 | 0−1 |
| Valorant | 3−4
+200%
|
1−2
−200%
|
This is how W4170M and GT 520M compete in popular games:
- W4170M is 238% faster in 900p
- W4170M is 75% faster in 1080p
- W4170M is 243% faster in 1200p
Here's the range of performance differences observed across popular games:
- in Fortnite, with 1080p resolution and the High Preset, the W4170M is 650% faster.
All in all, in popular games:
- W4170M is ahead in 31 test (89%)
- there's a draw in 4 tests (11%)
Pros & cons summary
| Performance score | 2.71 | 0.74 |
| Recency | 23 April 2015 | 5 January 2011 |
| Maximum RAM amount | 2 GB | 1 GB |
| Chip lithography | 28 nm | 40 nm |
W4170M has a 266.2% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 4 years, a 100% higher maximum VRAM amount, and a 42.9% more advanced lithography process.
The FirePro W4170M is our recommended choice as it beats the GeForce GT 520M in performance tests.
Be aware that FirePro W4170M is a mobile workstation card while GeForce GT 520M is a mobile workstation one.
Should you still have questions concerning choice between the reviewed GPUs, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.
Other comparisons
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