Apple M3 Max 40-Core GPU vs GeForce GTX 980 SLI Mobile

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Primary details

GPU architecture, market segment, value for money and other general parameters compared.

Place in performance ranking109not rated
Place by popularitynot in top-100not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation80.20no data
ArchitectureMaxwell (2014−2018)no data
GPU code nameN16E-GXX SLIno data
Market segmentLaptopLaptop
Release date22 September 2015 (8 years ago)31 October 2023 (less than a year ago)
Current price$301 no data

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance to price ratio. The higher, the better.

no data

Detailed specifications

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 cores409640
Core clock speed1126 MHzno data
Boost clock speed1228 MHzno data
Number of transistors10400 Millionno data
Manufacturing process technology28 nm5 nm
Power consumption (TDP)330 Watt53 Watt

Form factor & compatibility

Information on GeForce GTX 980 SLI Mobile and Apple M3 Max 40-Core GPU compatibility with other computer components. Useful when choosing a future computer configuration or upgrading an existing one. For notebook video cards it's notebook size, connection slot and bus, if the video card is inserted into a slot instead of being soldered to the notebook motherboard.

Laptop sizelargemedium sized
SLI options+no data

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 typeGDDR5LPDDR5-6400
Maximum RAM amount2x 8 GBno data
Memory bus width256 Bitno data
Memory clock speed3500 MHzno data
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.

G-SYNC support+no data

API compatibility

List of supported graphics and general-purpose computing APIs, including their specific versions.

DirectX12_1no data
CUDA+no data

Pros & cons summary


Recency 22 September 2015 31 October 2023
Chip lithography 28 nm 5 nm
Power consumption (TDP) 330 Watt 53 Watt

We couldn't decide between GeForce GTX 980 SLI Mobile and Apple M3 Max 40-Core GPU. We've got no test results to judge.


Should you still have questions concerning choice between the reviewed GPUs, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

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NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980 SLI Mobile
GeForce GTX 980 SLI Mobile
Apple M3 Max 40-Core GPU
M3 Max 40-Core GPU

Comparisons with similar GPUs

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Community ratings

Here you can see the user ratings of the compared graphics cards, as well as rate them yourself.


3.3 65 votes

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3.4 210 votes

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Questions & comments

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