Notebookcheck

NVIDIA Quadro K3000M

NVIDIA Quadro K3000M

The NVIDIA Quadro K3000M is a performance-class, DirectX 11.1-compatible graphics card for mobile workstations. It is a Kepler-based GPU built on the GK104 chip (but using only 576 shader cores) and is manufactured in 28nm at TSMC. The Quadro K3000M is built for the Intel Chief River generation (Ivy Bridge) and is the successor to the Fermi-based Quadro 3000M (Huron River platform).

The Quadro series offers certified drivers that are optimized for stability and performance in professional applications like CAD or DCC. OpenGL performance, for example, should be significantly better than GeForce graphics cards of similar specifications.

Architecture

The Kepler architecture is the successor to the Fermi architecture that first appeared in laptops with the GeForce 400M series. The GK104 Kepler core offers eight shader blocks, called SMX, that are clocked at the same speed as the central core. In the K3000M, 3 blocks are active leading to the 576 CUDA cores. Although more shader cores are available in the Kepler architecture as compared to the Fermi design, the Kepler shaders are still expected to be up to twice as power efficient. However, due to the missing hot clock of the shader domain, two shaders of a Kepler chip provide similar performance to just one shader of a Fermi chip (as the latter is clocked twice as fast). 

PCIe 3.0 is now supported by the mobile Kepler series and an optional Turbo mode can automatically overclock the Nvidia card by a theoretical 15 percent if the laptop cooling system allows it. The implementation of this boost mode is done in the BIOS, but it is ultimately dependent upon the manufacturer of the laptop.

Performance

The performance is slightly above the older Quadro 4000M based on the fermi architecture. Compared to consumer cards, the K3000M performs similar to the GeForce GT 750M. Games of 2013 can be played fluently in medium or high detail and resolution settings.

Features

The improved feature set now includes support for up to 4 active displays. Furthermore, high resolution monitors of up to 3840x2160 pixels can now be connected using DisplayPort 1.2 or HDMI 1.4a if available. HD-Audio codecs, such as Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD, can be transmitted via bitstream mode through the HDMI port. However, as most laptops will feature Optimus, the integrated GPU will likely have direct control over the display ports and may limit the feature set available by the Nvidia Kepler cards.

The 5th generation PureVideo HD video processor (VP5) is also integrated in the GK107 core and offers hardware decoding of HD videos. Common codecs such as MPEG-1/2, MPEG-4 ASP, H.264 and VC1/WMV9 are fully supported up to 4K resolutions while VC1 and MPEG-4 are supported up to 1080p. Two streams can be decoded in parallel for features such as Picture-in-Picture. Another novelty is the inclusion of a dedicated video encoding engine similar to Intel QuickSync that can be accessed by the NVENC API.

The power consumption of the K3000M is rated at 75 Watt (TGP according to Nvidia) and is therefore suited for medium-sized notebooks 17-inches or greater.

ManufacturerNVIDIA
Quadro K Series
Quadro K5100M (compare) 1536 @ 771 MHz256 Bit @ 3600 MHz
Quadro K5000M (compare) 1344 @ 706 MHz256 Bit @ 3000 MHz
Quadro K4100M (compare) 1152 @ 706 MHz256 Bit @ 3200 MHz
Quadro K4000M (compare) 960 @ 600 MHz256 Bit @ 2800 MHz
Quadro K3100M (compare) 768 @ 706 MHz256 Bit @ 3200 MHz
Quadro K3000M 576 @ 654 MHz256 Bit @ 2800 MHz
Quadro K2100M (compare) 576 @ 667 MHz128 Bit @ 3000 MHz
Quadro K1100M (compare) 384 @ 705 MHz128 Bit @ 2800 MHz
Quadro K620M (compare) 384 @ 1029 - 1124 (Boost) MHz64 Bit @ 2000 MHz
Quadro K2000M (compare) 384 @ 745 MHz128 Bit @ 1800 MHz
Quadro K1000M (compare) 192 @ 850 MHz128 Bit @ 1800 MHz
Quadro K610M (compare) 192 @ 954 MHz64 Bit @ 2600 MHz
Quadro K510M (compare) 192 @ 846 MHz64 Bit @ 2400 MHz
Quadro K500M (compare) 192 @ 850 MHz64 Bit @ 1800 MHz
CodenameN14E-Q1
ArchitectureKepler
Pipelines576 - unified
Core Speed654 MHz
Memory Speed2800 MHz
Memory Bus Width256 Bit
Memory TypeGDDR5
Max. Amount of Memory4096 MB
Shared Memoryno
DirectXDirectX 11, Shader 5.0
technology28 nm
FeaturesOptimus, PhysX, Verde Drivers, CUDA, 3D Vision, 3DTV Play
Notebook Sizelarge
Date of Announcement01.06.2012

Benchmarks

3DMark 11 - Performance 1280x720
min: 2645     avg: 2747     median: 2767 (9%)     max: 2809 points
+ 4 benchmarks and specifications   + Show comparison chart
3DMark 11 - Performance GPU 1280x720
min: 2383     avg: 2427     median: 2427 (5%)     max: 2471 points
+ 2 benchmarks and specifications   - Hide comparison chart
3DMark Vantage
P Result 1280x1024 +
P GPU no PhysX 1280x1024 +
3DMark 06 Standard 1280x1024 +
Unigine Heaven 2.1 - high, Tesselation (normal), DirectX11 1280x1024
min: 33.2     avg: 34.1     median: 34.1 (15%)     max: 35 fps
+ 2 benchmarks and specifications   + Show comparison chart
SPECviewperf 11
Siemens NX 1920x1080 +
Tcvis 1920x1080 +
SolidWorks 1920x1080 +
Pro/ENGINEER 1920x1080 +
Maya 1920x1080 +
Lightwave 1920x1080 +
Ensight 1920x1080 +
Catia 1920x1080 +
Windows 7 Experience Index - Gaming graphics
7.3 points (92%)
+ 2 benchmarks and specifications   + Show comparison chart
Windows 7 Experience Index - Graphics
7.3 points (92%)
+ 2 benchmarks and specifications   + Show comparison chart
Cinebench R10 Shading 32Bit +
Cinebench R11.5 OpenGL 64Bit +
- Range of benchmark values for this graphics card
- Average benchmark values for this graphics card
* Smaller numbers mean a higher performance

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 detailled information on the benchmark results, click on the fps number.

World of Tanks v8

World of Tanks v8

2012
low 1024x768
71  fps    + Compare
med. 1366x768
36  fps    + Compare
high 1366x768
28  fps    + Compare
ultra 1920x1080
11  fps    + Compare
» With all tested laptops playable in detail settings med..
F1 2012

F1 2012

2012
low 1024x768
168  fps    + Compare
med. 1366x768
141  fps    + Compare
high 1366x768
125  fps    + Compare
ultra 1920x1080
52  fps    + Compare
» With all tested laptops playable in detail settings ultra.
Torchlight 2

Torchlight 2

2012
low 1024x768
128 132 ~ 130 fps    + Compare
med. 1366x768
92 103 ~ 98 fps    + Compare
ultra 1920x1080
87 95 ~ 91 fps    + Compare
» With all tested laptops playable in detail settings ultra.
Dirt Showdown

Dirt Showdown

2012
low 1024x768
96  fps    + Compare
med. 1366x768
84  fps    + Compare
high 1366x768
73  fps    + Compare
ultra 1920x1080
23  fps    + Compare
» With all tested laptops playable in detail settings high.
Diablo III

Diablo III

2012
low 1024x768
172 185 ~ 179 fps    + Compare
med. 1366x768
133 135 ~ 134 fps    + Compare
high 1366x768
113 118 ~ 116 fps    + Compare
ultra 1920x1080
72 73 ~ 73 fps    + Compare
» With all tested laptops playable in detail settings ultra.
Anno 2070

Anno 2070

2011
low 1024x768
159  fps    + Compare
med. 1366x768
62  fps    + Compare
high 1366x768
39  fps    + Compare
ultra 1920x1080
21  fps    + Compare
» With all tested laptops playable in detail settings high.
Batman: Arkham City

Batman: Arkham City

2011
low 1024x768
144  fps    + Compare
med. 1366x768
124  fps    + Compare
high 1366x768
80  fps    + Compare
ultra 1920x1080
40  fps    + Compare
» With all tested laptops playable in detail settings ultra.
Deus Ex Human Revolution

Deus Ex Human Revolution

2011
low 1024x768
176  fps    + Compare
high 1366x768
92  fps    + Compare
ultra 1920x1080
34  fps    + Compare