NVIDIA GeForce 945M vs NVIDIA Maxwell GPU Surface Book vs NVIDIA GeForce 920MX
NVIDIA GeForce 945M ► remove from comparison
The NVIDIA GeForce 945M is a mid-range, DirectX 12-compatible graphics card for laptops unveiled in March 2015. It is based on Nvidia's Maxwell architecture (GM107 chip) and manufactured in 28 nm. The 945M offers 512 shaders (compared to the 640 of the GTX 950M ) clocked at 928 MHz. The dedicated DDR3 graphics memory is connected with a 128 Bit bus clocked at 1000 MHz (effective 2000, 32 GB/s).
Architecture
Compared to Kepler, Maxwell has been optimized in several details to increase power efficiency. Smaller Streaming Multiprocessors (SMM) with only 128 ALUs (Kepler: 192) and an optimized scheduler should lead to better utilization of the shaders. Nvidia promises that a Maxwell SMM with 128 ALUs can offer 90 percent of the performance of a Kepler SMX with 192 ALUs. GM107 features 5 SMMs and thus 640 shader cores, 40 TMUs and 16 ROPs (128-bit interface).
Another optimization is the massively enlarged L2 cache (GM107: 2 MB). The increased size can handle some of the memory traffic to allow for a relatively narrow memory interface without significantly reducing the performance.
GM107 supports DirectX 12 with feature level 11_0 only.
Performance
The performance of the 945M is slightly worse than the GTX 950M but clearly faster than the 940M . The DDR3 variant of the GTX 950M is about 10 percent faster for example. Therefore, it is most suited for medium details of demanding games in 2015 (see below for benchmarks).
Features
GM107 integrates the sixth generation of the PureVideo HD video engine (VP6), offering a better decoding performance for H.264 and MPEG-2 videos. Of course, VP6 supports all features of previous generations (4K support, PIP, video encoding via NVENC API). Unfortunately, HDMI 2.0 is still not supported.
Power Consumption
The power consumption of the GeForce 945M should be somewhere around 40 Watt. Therefore it is most suited for bigger laptops from 14-inch and up.
NVIDIA Maxwell GPU Surface Book ► remove from comparison
The Nvidia Maxwell GPU is a dedicated graphics card in the Microsoft Surface Book laptop. It is based on the Maxwell GM108 chip as the Geforce 940M with 384 shaders. Instead of the DDR3 graphics memory, the Surface Book graphics card features faster GDDR5 memory (both 64 Bit though).
Thanks to the faster graphics memory, the Surface Book Geforce is performing better than the average GeForce 940M . However, the 945M and GTX 950M are still noticeably faster. Demanding games therefore only run in low settings fluently.
More details can be found in our extensive review of the 2015 Microsoft Surface Book with the dedicated Maxwell GPU .
NVIDIA GeForce 920MX ► remove from comparison
The Nvidia GeForce 920MX is an entry-level graphics card for laptops that was launched in the first quarter of 2016. In comparison to the older 920M, the 920MX is now be based on the modern Maxwell chip of the 930MX but with a reduced shader count of 265 (GM108). According to our sources the TDP of 5-12 Watt and the support for DDR3 and GDDR5 is also specified.
The performance depends on the used graphics memory. The DDR3 version was slightly slower than an average GeForce 930M in our tests (and definitely faster than the GeForce 920M ). The GDDR5 version could therefore best the 930M slightly. However, both versions are not suited for demanding games of 2017. Less demanding games, like The Sims 4, should be playable in medium to high settings (see below for benchmarks).
Thanks to the low power consumption, the GeForce 920MX is also suited for thin and light laptops.
NVIDIA GeForce 945M NVIDIA Maxwell GPU Surface Book NVIDIA GeForce 920MX GeForce 900M Series Architecture Maxwell Maxwell Maxwell Pipelines 512 - unified 384 - unified 256 - unified Core Speed 928 - 1045 (Boost) MHz 954 - 993 (Boost) MHz 965 - 993 (Boost) MHz Memory Speed 2000 MHz 5012 MHz 1800 MHz Memory Bus Width 128 Bit 64 Bit 64 Bit Memory Type DDR3 GDDR5 DDR3, GDDR5 Max. Amount of Memory 4 GB 1024 MB Shared Memory no no no API DirectX 12 (FL 11_0), Shader 5.0, OpenGL 4.5 DirectX 12 (FL 11_0), Shader 5.0, OpenGL 4.5 DirectX 12, Shader 5.0, OpenGL 4.5 Transistors 1.9 Billion technology 28 nm 28 nm 28 nm Features GPU Boost 2.0, Optimus, PhysX, CUDA, GeForce Experience GPU Boost 2.0, Optimus, PhysX, CUDA, GeForce Experience Optimus, PhysX, Verde Drivers, CUDA, 3D Vision, 3DTV Play, GameWorks Notebook Size medium sized Date of Announcement 12.03.2015 01.10.2015 25.03.2015 Codename Surface Book N16V-GMR Link to Manufacturer Page www.geforce.com
Benchmarks Performance Rating - 3DMark 11 + Fire Strike + Time Spy - GeForce 945M
1.3 pt (4%)
...
...
max:
Performance Rating - 3DMark 11 + Fire Strike + Time Spy - Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5)
0.9 pt (3%)
...
NVIDIA Maxwell GPU Surface Book
...
max:
Performance Rating - 3DMark 11 + Fire Strike + Time Spy - GeForce 920MX
0.7 pt (2%)
...
...
max:
3DMark - 3DMark Time Spy Score
472 Points (1%)
3DMark - 3DMark Time Spy Graphics
417 Points (1%)
3DMark - 3DMark Ice Storm Unlimited Graphics
193684 Points (22%)
123411 Points (14%)
min: 98596 avg: 110110 median: 110110 (12%) max: 121624 Points
3DMark - 3DMark Ice Storm Extreme Graphics
95097 Points (12%)
15597 Points (2%)
min: 49876 avg: 57473 median: 57473 (7%) max: 65070 Points
3DMark - 3DMark Cloud Gate Score
min: 7913 avg: 9643 median: 9643 (10%) max: 11373 Points
min: 7424 avg: 7465 median: 7464.5 (8%) max: 7505 Points
min: 5744 avg: 6545 median: 6545 (7%) max: 7346 Points
3DMark - 3DMark Cloud Gate Graphics
min: 17980 avg: 19405 median: 19405 (5%) max: 20830 Points
min: 11340 avg: 11380 median: 11380 (3%) max: 11420 Points
min: 7733 avg: 9114 median: 9113.5 (2%) max: 10494 Points
3DMark - 3DMark Fire Strike Standard Score
min: 2434 avg: 2505 median: 2504.5 (4%) max: 2575 Points
min: 1886 avg: 1919 median: 1919 (3%) max: 1952 Points
min: 1154 avg: 1337 median: 1336.5 (2%) max: 1519 Points
3DMark - 3DMark Fire Strike Standard Graphics
min: 2816 avg: 2850 median: 2850 (3%) max: 2884 Points
min: 2031 avg: 2076 median: 2075.5 (2%) max: 2120 Points
min: 1282 avg: 1448 median: 1448 (2%) max: 1614 Points
3DMark - 3DMark Ice Storm Graphics
min: 55858 avg: 85596 median: 85595.5 (10%) max: 115333 Points
min: 54088 avg: 54397 median: 54397 (7%) max: 54706 Points
min: 73997 avg: 83643 median: 83642.5 (10%) max: 93288 Points
3DMark 11 - 3DM11 Performance Score
min: 2877 avg: 3451 median: 3451 (5%) max: 4025 Points
min: 2711 avg: 2736 median: 2736 (4%) max: 2761 Points
min: 1800 avg: 1993 median: 1983 (3%) max: 2200 Points
3DMark 11 - 3DM11 Performance GPU
min: 2759 avg: 3310 median: 3309.5 (3%) max: 3860 Points
min: 2548 avg: 2577 median: 2577 (2%) max: 2606 Points
min: 1747 avg: 1823 median: 1835 (2%) max: 1887 Points
3DMark Vantage 3DM Vant. Perf. total + NVIDIA GeForce 945M 3DMark Vantage - 3DM Vant. Perf. total
13507 Points (4%)
3DM Vant. Perf. total + NVIDIA GeForce 920MX
min: 6584 avg: 7408 median: 7407.5 (2%) max: 8231 Points
3DM Vant. Perf. GPU no PhysX + NVIDIA GeForce 945M 3DMark Vantage - 3DM Vant. Perf. GPU no PhysX
12567 Points (7%)
3DM Vant. Perf. GPU no PhysX + NVIDIA GeForce 920MX
min: 5850 avg: 6665 median: 6665 (4%) max: 7480 Points
3DMark 03 - 3DMark 03 - Standard
30702 Points (16%)
3DMark 05 - 3DMark 05 - Standard
21185 Points (23%)
3DMark 06 3DMark 06 - Standard 1280x1024 + NVIDIA GeForce 945M
20209 Points (26%)
3DMark 06 - Standard 1280x1024 + NVIDIA Maxwell GPU Surface Book
15111 Points (20%)
3DMark 06 - Standard 1280x1024 + NVIDIA GeForce 920MX
min: 10781 avg: 12206 median: 12205.5 (16%) max: 13630 Points
Unigine Valley 1.0 - Unigine Valley 1.0 DX
8.7 fps (3%)
Unigine Heaven 3.0 - Unigine Heaven 3.0 DX 11
21.2 fps (7%)
Unigine Heaven 3.0 - Unigine Heaven 3.0 OpenGL
20.3 fps (9%)
Unigine Heaven 2.1 - Heaven 2.1 high
min: 26.4 avg: 27.9 median: 27.9 (5%) max: 29.4 fps
Cinebench R10 Cinebench R10 Shading (32bit) + NVIDIA GeForce 945M Cinebench R10 - Cinebench R10 Shading (32bit)
min: 5106 avg: 5899 median: 5899 (4%) max: 6692 Points
Cinebench R10 Shading (32bit) + NVIDIA Maxwell GPU Surface Book
min: 5247 avg: 5704 median: 5703.5 (4%) max: 6160 Points
Cinebench R10 Shading (32bit) + NVIDIA GeForce 920MX
min: 2632 avg: 4406 median: 4366 (3%) max: 6219 Points
Cinebench R11.5 Cinebench R11.5 OpenGL 64 Bit + NVIDIA GeForce 945M Cinebench R11.5 - Cinebench R11.5 OpenGL 64 Bit
min: 27.2 avg: 32.6 median: 32.6 (11%) max: 38.01 fps
Cinebench R11.5 OpenGL 64 Bit + NVIDIA Maxwell GPU Surface Book
min: 29.03 avg: 30.3 median: 30.3 (10%) max: 31.49 fps
Cinebench R15 Cinebench R15 OpenGL 64 Bit + NVIDIA GeForce 945M Cinebench R15 - Cinebench R15 OpenGL 64 Bit
min: 33.74 avg: 39.3 median: 39.3 (2%) max: 44.9 fps
Cinebench R15 OpenGL 64 Bit + NVIDIA Maxwell GPU Surface Book
min: 32.35 avg: 35 median: 35 (2%) max: 37.6 fps
Cinebench R15 OpenGL 64 Bit + NVIDIA GeForce 920MX
min: 36.81 avg: 47.1 median: 47.7 (3%) max: 56.9 fps
Cinebench R15 OpenGL Ref. Match 64 Bit + NVIDIA GeForce 945M Cinebench R15 - Cinebench R15 OpenGL Ref. Match 64 Bit
99.6 % (100%)
Cinebench R15 OpenGL Ref. Match 64 Bit + NVIDIA Maxwell GPU Surface Book
99.6 % (100%)
Cinebench R15 OpenGL Ref. Match 64 Bit + NVIDIA GeForce 920MX
99.6 % (100%)
GFXBench - GFXBench Car Chase Offscreen
min: 29.9 avg: 32.7 median: 32.7 (4%) max: 35.4 fps
GFXBench 3.1 - GFXBench Manhattan ES 3.1 Offscreen
min: 42.8 avg: 47.4 median: 47.4 (1%) max: 52 fps
GFXBench 3.0 - GFXBench 3.0 Manhattan Offscreen
113.6 fps (7%)
min: 55.7 avg: 62.9 median: 62.9 (4%) max: 70 fps
GFXBench (DX / GLBenchmark) 2.7 GFXBench T-Rex HD Offscreen C24Z16 + NVIDIA GeForce 945M GFXBench (DX / GLBenchmark) 2.7 - GFXBench T-Rex HD Offscreen C24Z16
208.5 fps (2%)
GFXBench T-Rex HD Offscreen C24Z16 + NVIDIA GeForce 920MX
min: 103.1 avg: 115.2 median: 115.2 (1%) max: 127.3 fps
LuxMark v2.0 64Bit - LuxMark v2.0 Room GPU
439 Samples/s (2%)
513 Samples/s (2%)
min: 210 avg: 230 median: 230 (1%) max: 250 Samples/s
LuxMark v2.0 64Bit - LuxMark v2.0 Sala GPU
733 Samples/s (1%)
1065 Samples/s (2%)
min: 400 avg: 427 median: 427 (1%) max: 454 Samples/s
ComputeMark v2.1 - ComputeMark v2.1 Result
1676 Points (2%)
min: 1066 avg: 1139 median: 1139 (1%) max: 1212 Points
Average Benchmarks NVIDIA GeForce 945M → 100% n=15 Average Benchmarks NVIDIA Maxwell GPU Surface Book → 81% n=15 Average Benchmarks NVIDIA GeForce 920MX → 68% n=15
- Range of benchmark values for this graphics card
- Average benchmark values for this graphics card
* Smaller numbers mean a higher performance
1 This benchmark is not used for the average calculation
Game Benchmarks The following benchmarks stem from our benchmarks of review laptops. The performance depends on the used graphics memory, clock rate, processor, system settings, drivers, and operating systems. So the results don't have to be representative for all laptops with this GPU. For detailed information on the benchmark results, click on the fps number.
52%
GeForce 920MX:
27.9 fps
53%
GeForce 920MX:
17.4 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
63.3 fps
60%
GeForce 920MX:
38.1 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
37.8 fps
51%
GeForce 920MX:
19.1 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
17.2 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
7.3 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
201 fps
45%
GeForce 920MX:
91.2 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
103.7 fps
49%
GeForce 920MX:
51.2 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
69.3 fps
46%
GeForce 920MX:
31.7 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
130.2 fps
75%
GeForce 920MX:
97.5 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
113.7 fps
58%
GeForce 920MX:
65.9 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
65.6 fps
45%
GeForce 920MX:
29.7 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
43.7 fps
70%
Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5):
42 fps
100%
GeForce 920MX:
60 fps
60%
Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5):
35.9 fps
73%
GeForce 920MX:
43.6 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
35.2 fps
56%
Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5):
19.7 fps
44%
GeForce 920MX:
15.4 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
23.7 fps
56%
Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5):
13.3 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
65.3 fps
40%
GeForce 920MX:
26.2 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
31.6 fps
46%
GeForce 920MX:
14.6 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
29.4 fps
49%
Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5):
23 fps
36%
Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5):
14 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
51.9 fps
43%
GeForce 920MX:
22.1 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
30.6 fps
44%
GeForce 920MX:
13.6 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
9.3 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
229 fps
74%
GeForce 920MX:
170.3 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
98.5 fps
45%
GeForce 920MX:
44.4 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
52.7 fps
43%
GeForce 920MX:
22.6 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
22.1 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
117.8 fps
55%
GeForce 920MX:
65.1 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
89.8 fps
50%
GeForce 920MX:
44.6 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
32.3 fps
48%
GeForce 920MX:
15.6 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
20.4 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
59.9 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
36.8 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
20.9 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
98.4 fps
46%
GeForce 920MX:
45.4 fps
47%
GeForce 920MX:
29.2 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
21.2 fps
77%
GeForce 920MX:
16.4 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
72.3 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
23.9 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
19.1 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
44.8 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
30.1 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
18.1 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
12.4 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
114.9 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
28.6 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
15.7 fps
Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5):
117 fps
Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5):
94 fps
Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5):
76 fps
Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5):
49 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
130.2 fps
45%
GeForce 920MX:
58.9 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
85.9 fps
45%
GeForce 920MX:
38.8 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
43.7 fps
46%
GeForce 920MX:
19.9 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
30.2 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
75.4 fps
47%
GeForce 920MX:
35.2 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
47.2 fps
48%
GeForce 920MX:
22.6 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
26.1 fps
48%
GeForce 920MX:
12.4 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
184 fps
93%
GeForce 920MX:
171.4 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
101.1 fps
63%
GeForce 920MX:
63.4 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
57.7 fps
59%
GeForce 920MX:
34.1 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
45.5 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
198.7 fps
89%
GeForce 920MX:
176.6 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
118.8 fps
58%
GeForce 920MX:
68.4 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
68.5 fps
45%
GeForce 920MX:
30.7 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
33.2 fps
45%
GeForce 920MX:
14.9 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
53.2 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
19.4 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
13.7 fps
64%
Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5):
45.6 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
44.7 fps
63%
Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5):
28.2 fps
60%
Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5):
22.3 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
18.5 fps
51%
Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5):
9.4 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
111.9 fps
49%
GeForce 920MX:
54.5 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
78.3 fps
48%
GeForce 920MX:
37.8 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
54.4 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
21.6 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
133 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
101 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
81.5 fps
73%
Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5):
59.6 fps
53%
GeForce 920MX:
42.9 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
66.7 fps
67%
Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5):
44.7 fps
49%
GeForce 920MX:
32.4 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
38.6 fps
80%
Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5):
30.7 fps
48%
GeForce 920MX:
18.4 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
18.8 fps
84%
Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5):
15.7 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
148.5 fps
63%
Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5):
94.2 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
92.9 fps
70%
Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5):
64.8 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
78.7 fps
72%
Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5):
56.5 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
26.4 fps
79%
Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5):
20.8 fps
Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5):
258 fps
Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5):
141.2 fps
Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5):
74.2 fps
Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5):
37.5 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
233.3 fps
69%
Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5):
161.5 fps
45%
GeForce 920MX:
104.2 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
117.6 fps
70%
Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5):
82.8 fps
45%
GeForce 920MX:
52.6 fps
81%
Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5):
55.2 fps
45%
GeForce 920MX:
30.6 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
31.4 fps
82%
Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5):
25.8 fps
46%
GeForce 920MX:
14.6 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
85.7 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
50.4 fps
44%
GeForce 920MX:
22.2 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
33.9 fps
47%
GeForce 920MX:
15.9 fps
100%
GeForce 945M:
12.6 fps
Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5):
112.4 fps
Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5):
85.6 fps
Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5):
42.8 fps
Maxwell GPU (940M, GDDR5):
10.9 fps
114%
GeForce 920MX:
57 fps
90%
GeForce 920MX:
43.1 fps
58%
GeForce 920MX:
23.3 fps
Average Gaming NVIDIA GeForce 945M → 100% Average Gaming 30-70 fps → 100%
Average Gaming NVIDIA Maxwell GPU Surface Book → 66% Average Gaming 30-70 fps → 71%
Average Gaming NVIDIA GeForce 920MX → 54% Average Gaming 30-70 fps → 56%