GeForce GTX 1060 3 GB vs 690
Aggregated performance score
1060 3 GB outperforms 690 by 72% based on our aggregated benchmark results.
General info
GPU architecture, market segment, value for money and other general parameters compared.
| Place in performance ranking | 331 | 202 |
| Place by popularity | not in top-100 | 28 |
| Value for money | 1.94 | 2.38 |
| Architecture | Kepler (2012−2018) | Pascal (2016−2021) |
| GPU code name | GK104 | GP106 |
| Market segment | Desktop | Desktop |
| Release date | 3 May 2012 (11 years old) | 18 August 2016 (7 years old) |
| Launch price (MSRP) | $999 | $199 |
| Current price | $411 (0.4x MSRP) | $1112 (5.6x MSRP) |
Value for money
Performance to price ratio. The higher, the better.
GTX 1060 3 GB has 23% better value for money than GTX 690.
Technical specs
General performance parameters such as number of shaders, GPU core base clock and boost clock speeds, manufacturing process, texturing and calculation speed. These parameters indirectly speak of performance, but for precise assessment you have to consider their benchmark and gaming test results. Note that power consumption of some graphics cards can well exceed their nominal TDP, especially when overclocked.
| Pipelines / CUDA cores | 1536 | 1152 |
| CUDA cores | 3072 | no data |
| Core clock speed | 915 MHz | 1506 MHz |
| Boost clock speed | 1019 MHz | 1708 MHz |
| Number of transistors | 3,540 million | 4,400 million |
| Manufacturing process technology | 28 nm | 16 nm |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 300 Watt | 120 Watt |
| Texture fill rate | 234 billion/sec | 123.0 |
| Floating-point performance | 2x 3,130 gflops | 3,935 gflops |
Size and 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).
| Bus support | PCI Express 3.0 | no data |
| Interface | PCIe 3.0 x16 | PCIe 3.0 x16 |
| Length | 11.0" (27.9 cm) | 250 mm |
| Height | 4.376" (11.1 cm) | no data |
| Width | 2-slot | 2-slot |
| Supplementary power connectors | Two 8-pin | 1x 6-pin |
| SLI options | + | no data |
Memory
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 | GDDR5 |
| Maximum RAM amount | 4 GB (4 GB per GPU) GDDR5 | 3 GB |
| Memory bus width | 512-bit (256-bit per GPU) | 192 Bit |
| Memory clock speed | 6008 MHz | 8008 MHz |
| Memory bandwidth | 384 GB/s | 192.2 GB/s |
Video outputs and ports
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 | Two Dual Link DVI-I. One Dual link DVI-D. One Mini-Displayport 1.2 | 1x DVI, 1x HDMI, 3x DisplayPort |
| Multi monitor support | 4 displays | no data |
| HDMI | Yes (via dongle) | + |
| HDCP | + | no data |
| Maximum VGA resolution | 2048x1536 | no data |
| Audio input for HDMI | Internal | no data |
Technologies
Supported technological solutions. This information will prove useful if you need some particular technology for your purposes.
| 3D Blu-Ray | + | no data |
| 3D Gaming | + | no data |
| 3D Vision Live | + | no data |
API support
List of supported graphics and general-purpose computing APIs, including their specific versions.
| DirectX | 12 (11_0) | 12 (12_1) |
| Shader Model | 5.1 | 6.4 |
| OpenGL | 4.2 | 4.6 |
| OpenCL | 1.2 | 1.2 |
| Vulkan | 1.1.126 | + |
| CUDA | + | 6.1 |
Synthetic benchmark performance
Non-gaming benchmark performance comparison. The combined score is measured on a 0-100 point scale.
Combined synthetic benchmark score
This is our combined benchmark performance 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.
1060 3 GB outperforms 690 by 72% based on our aggregated benchmark results.
Passmark
This is the most ubiquitous GPU benchmark, part of Passmark PerformanceTest suite. 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.
Benchmark coverage: 25%
1060 3 GB outperforms 690 by 72% in Passmark.
Gaming performance
Let's see how good the compared graphics cards are for gaming. Particular gaming benchmark results are measured in FPS.
Advantages and disadvantages
| Performance score | 14.43 | 24.75 |
| Recency | 3 May 2012 | 18 August 2016 |
| Cost | $999 | $199 |
| Maximum RAM amount | 4 GB (4 GB per GPU) GDDR5 | 3 GB |
| Chip lithography | 28 nm | 16 nm |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 300 Watt | 120 Watt |
The GeForce GTX 1060 3 GB is our recommended choice as it beats the GeForce GTX 690 in performance tests.
Should you still have questions concerning choice between the reviewed GPUs, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.
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