Nvidia GeForce GTX 980 Notebook Review
For the original German review, see here.
Deliberate confusion at Nvidia: While notebook chips had been marked with an "M" in their name in the past, the GeForce GTX 980 has the same name as its desktop counterpart. This might be due to almost identical specs and equal performance. However, we have heard that Nvidia wants to completely omit the M in the future, which would be disadvantageous for laymen (Google search). Accordingly we would have named the high-end GPU GTX 985M or GTX 990M. Name aside: It is the performance that is most important. Is the GTX 980 ready for the 4K era?
Test System
Are you a techie who knows how to write? Then join our Team! Wanted:
- News Writer (Romania based)
Details here
We used the P870DM chassis of the Taiwanese gaming expert, Clevo, as test model. It weighs almost five kilograms and is four centimeters thick and will be available at barebone resellers (e.g. Schenker Technologies) soon.
In order to deal with the waste heat of the GeForce GTX 980 well, the 17-inch giant uses three case fans. One of them is dedicated to the desktop CPU. Our test model houses a Skylake Core i7-6700 with a clock rate of 3.4-4.0 GHz, which contains 8 MB L3 cache and can process up to eight threads simultaneously with Hyper-Threading (14 nm, 65 Watt TDP). Thanks to the powerful cooling, the Turbo Boost is fully active - as is shown in the screenshots below.
In addition, there is 32 GB of DDR4 RAM, consisting of two 16 GB modules (2133 MHz). The operating system, i.e. Windows 10 Pro 64-bit, is installed on a PCIe x4 SSD from Samsung. Currently, the SM951 belongs to the fastest models on the market. Since 512 GB is not sufficient for all games, an HDD with a capacity of 2 TB is used in addition (Spinpoint M9T @5400 rpm).
Test model |
Clevo P870DM |
---|---|
Display |
17.3" UHD non-glare IPS without G-Sync |
Mainboard |
Intel Z170 chipset |
Processor |
Intel Core i7-6700 Desktop |
RAM |
2x 16 GB SO-DIMM DDR4-RAM (2.133 MHz) |
Graphics Card |
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980 (ForceWare 355.98) |
Primary Storage Device |
Samsung SM951 MZHPV512HDGL (512 GB PCIe x4 SSD) |
Secundary Storage Device |
Samsung Spinpoint M9T ST2000LM003 (2 TByte HDD @5400 rpm) |
Operating System |
Windows 10 Pro 64 Bit |
Technology
It is surprising that Clevo uses two variants of the GTX 980. On the one hand there is the standard model with a TDP of 180 Watt. Its size is reminiscent of the cheaper high-end siblings GTX 980M and GTX 970M and evenly fills the MXM slot. On the other hand there is the 200-Watt variant, which we had under review, which covers a port of the secondary MXM slot in the P870DM (the barebone is also available with two GTX 970M chips in SLI).
While the 200-Watt model needs - as expected - a more powerful cooling, the GeForce GTX 980 should be able to clock higher. Nvidia specifies a core clock of 1064-1190 MHz, which is almost on par with the desktop GPU's, whose reference design clocks at 1126-1216 MHz. According to GPU-Z, the GPU reaches 1228 MHz under load in the P870DM barebone, which is slightly higher. Even better: By means of the preinstalled Control Center the processor, RAM and graphics card can be further overclocked. However, depending on the barebone reseller, this can have an impact on warranty.
All our measurements were done in factory state. This also applies to the old ForceWare 355.98 GPU driver (replaced by ForceWare 358.50 in the meanwhile), which did not cause any graphics error or system crashes - and this is not to be undervalued. Due to different drivers and processors, the results of the other notebooks mentioned in this review are not fully comparable. As we reviewed a plethora of (gaming) benchmarks, the ranking and the evaluation should be meaningful, anyway.
Regardless whether 180 or 200 Watt: Most of the specs are identical. Thus, the GTX 980 uses - alike its desktop counterpart - 2048 shaders and a 3500 MHz GDDR5 VRAM. The old top model, the GTX 980M, only features 1536 CUDA cores (-25%) and 2500 MHz (-29%).
The VRAM capacity remained the same. This is not surprising, since the 8 GB of the GTX 980M was already ample. Since the desktop model only features 4 GB, the mobile variant takes the lead at very high resolutions. Even the current desktop top model, the GTX 980 Ti (2816 shaders, 1000-1075 MHz @core), cannot completely keep up with 6 GB, but its memory interface is 50% wider. The three previously mentioned GPUs have to make do with 256 instead of 384-bit. All models share the Maxwell architecture processed in 28 nm.
We do not know yet whether a soldered model of the GTX 980 will also be available (see weaker GPUs). Aorus could be a pioneer here again. In theory, a 165-Watt model (see desktop CPU) could also be possible. In short, the performance could be notably different depending on the notebook.
Graphics Card |
GeForce GTX 960M | GeForce GTX 965M | GeForce GTX 970M | GeForce GTX 980M | GeForce GTX 980 Notebook | GeForce GTX 980 Desktop | GeForce GTX 980 Ti |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Process |
28 nm | 28 nm | 28 nm | 28 nm | 28 nm | 28 nm | 28 nm |
Chip |
GM107 | GM204 | GM204 | GM204 | GM204 | GM204 | GM200 |
Architecture |
Maxwell | Maxwell | Maxwell | Maxwell | Maxwell | Maxwell | Maxwell |
CUDA Cores |
640 | 1024 | 1280 | 1536 | 2048 | 2048 | 2816 |
Core Clock Base |
1097 MHz | 924 MHz | 924 MHz | 1038 MHz | 1064 MHz | 1126 MHz | 1000 MHz |
Core Clock Turbo |
1202 MHz | 950 MHz | 1038 MHz | 1127 MHz | 1190 MHz | 1216 MHz | 1075 MHz |
Memory Clock |
2500 MHz | 2500 MHz | 2500 MHz | 2500 MHz | 3500 MHz | 3500 MHz | 3500 MHz |
Maximum VRAM |
4096 MByte | 4096 MByte | 6144 MByte | 8192 MByte | 8192 MByte | 4096 MByte | 6144 MByte |
VRAM Type |
GDDR5 | GDDR5 | GDDR5 | GDDR5 | GDDR5 | GDDR5 | GDDR5 |
Memory Interface |
128 Bit | 128 Bit | 192 Bit | 256 Bit | 256 Bit | 256 Bit | 384 Bit |
Synthetic Benchmarks
As in the review of the successful GeForce GTX 960M, we focus on the aspect important for gamers in this article, the performance. First, the GeForce GTX 980 can also run the Unigine Heaven 4.0 benchmark with Extreme preset at a very smooth 78.7 fps. With this result, the new top model ranks in just behind two GTX 970Ms, which reach 85.1 fps in SLI mode (+8% @Schenker W724). It is 36% faster than the GTX 980M (58 fps @MSI GT72S-6QE) and an enormous 152% faster than the GTX 965M (31.2 fps @Medion Erazer X7615). In addition, it can also beat the desktop representatives GTX 960 (45 fps @Schenker XMG Prime) and GTX 970 (66.7 fps @MSI Gaming Dock) by 75 and 18%, respectively.
The situation is similar in the Fire Strike test of the current 3DMark. A GPU score of 3052 points in the ultra run is almost identical to the result of the desktop GTX 980. A GTX 980M falls behind by about 26%, while the GeForce GTX 970M in dual GPU connection is faster by a few percent again.
We want to use 3DMark 11 for a comparison to other SLI solutions. 17474 points is about the average of the Aorus X5 (14428 points @GTX 965M SLI) and the MSI GT80-2QE (21901 points @GTX 980M SLI). All benchmarks considered, the GTX 980 is the most powerful single GPU for notebooks and only two GTX 980Ms or GTX 970Ms can stand up against it.
3DMark | |
1920x1080 Fire Strike Graphics (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
MSI GT80-2QES32SR311BW | |
SCHENKER W724 | |
Aorus X5 | |
MSI GT72S-6QEG16SR421BW | |
SCHENKER XMG P506 | |
Medion Erazer X7615-MD99293 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GamingDock | |
SCHENKER XMG Prime | |
3840x2160 Fire Strike Ultra Graphics (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
SCHENKER W724 | |
MSI GT72S-6QEG16SR421BW | |
Desktop-PC | |
SCHENKER XMG Prime |
3DMark 11 - 1280x720 Performance GPU (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
MSI GT80-2QES32SR311BW | |
SCHENKER W724 | |
Aorus X5 | |
MSI GT72S-6QEG16SR421BW | |
SCHENKER XMG P506 | |
Medion Erazer X7615-MD99293 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GamingDock | |
SCHENKER XMG Prime |
Unigine Heaven 4.0 - Extreme Preset DX11 (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
SCHENKER W724 | |
MSI GT72S-6QEG16SR421BW | |
Medion Erazer X7615-MD99293 | |
MSI GamingDock | |
SCHENKER XMG Prime |
SPECviewperf 12 | |
1900x1060 Catia (catia-04) (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
MSI GT80-2QES32SR311BW | |
SCHENKER XMG Prime | |
1900x1060 Creo (creo-01) (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
MSI GT80-2QES32SR311BW | |
SCHENKER XMG Prime | |
1900x1060 Energy (energy-01) (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
MSI GT80-2QES32SR311BW | |
SCHENKER XMG Prime | |
1900x1060 Maya (maya-04) (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
MSI GT80-2QES32SR311BW | |
SCHENKER XMG Prime | |
1900x1060 Medical (medical-01) (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
MSI GT80-2QES32SR311BW | |
SCHENKER XMG Prime | |
1900x1060 Showcase (showcase-01) (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
MSI GT80-2QES32SR311BW | |
SCHENKER XMG Prime | |
1900x1060 Siemens NX (snx-02) (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
MSI GT80-2QES32SR311BW | |
SCHENKER XMG Prime | |
1900x1060 Solidworks (sw-03) (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
MSI GT80-2QES32SR311BW | |
SCHENKER XMG Prime |
Gaming Performance
Recently, more and more notebooks have come with 4K panels, which support 3840x2160 pixels (= 4x FHD). The Clevo P870DM is not an exception in this regard. For a surcharge, the 17-incher will be available with UHD display in many places. Our test device comes with the AU B173ZAN01.0 IPS model and not only convinces with high contrast and wide viewing angles but also with an especially big color space (88% of AdobeRGB!).
Those who like playing computer games in this resolution can go absolutely right with the GTX 980. Apart from Batman: Arkham Knight and The Witcher 3, which tend to stutter at high details, all tested games ran with above 40 fps (Battlefield 4, GTA V, Dirt Rally, Metal Gear Solid V, Mad Max & FIFA 16). Thus, the GTX 980 is ready for 4K as long as you do not configure the highest settings. The situation is different with the GTX 980M and GTX 970M, which quickly reach their limits at 3840x2160 pixels.
With a "standard resolution" of 1920x1080 almost all high-end GPUs are suitable for demanding gamers, whereas the price-performance ratio of the GTX 970M is best. The GTX 980M and the GTX 965M are quite expensive for what they offer. A combination of maximum details, multiple anti-aliasing and 1920x1080 pixels is mostly not challenging for the GTX 980. Even resource hungry games like Assassin's Creed Unity, Crysis 3 and Watch Dogs run smoothly at highest level.
Battlefield 4 | |
3840x2160 High Preset (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
SCHENKER W724 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GamingDock | |
1920x1080 Ultra Preset AA:4x MS (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
MSI GT80-2QES32SR311BW | |
MSI GT72-2QE32SR311BW | |
SCHENKER XMG P505 | |
SCHENKER XMG P705 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GamingDock | |
MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G Desktop-PC |
FIFA 16 | |
3840x2160 High Preset AA:2x MS (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
Schenker W504 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G Desktop-PC | |
1920x1080 High Preset AA:4x MS (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
Schenker W504 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Desktop-PC |
Mad Max | |
3840x2160 High Preset AF:6x (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
Schenker W504 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G Desktop-PC | |
1920x1080 Very High Preset AF:12x (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
Schenker W504 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G Desktop-PC | |
1920x1080 High Preset AF:6x (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
Schenker W504 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G Desktop-PC |
Metal Gear Solid V | |
3840x2160 High / On (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
Schenker W504 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G Desktop-PC | |
1920x1080 Extra High / On (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
Schenker W504 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G Desktop-PC | |
1920x1080 High / On (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
Schenker W504 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G Desktop-PC |
Batman: Arkham Knight | |
3840x2160 High / On (Interactive Smoke & Paper Debris Off) AA:SM AF:8x (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
Schenker W504 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G Desktop-PC | |
1920x1080 High / On AA:SM AF:16x (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
Aorus X5 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G Desktop-PC | |
1920x1080 High / On (Interactive Smoke & Paper Debris Off) AA:SM AF:8x (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
Aorus X5 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G Desktop-PC |
The Witcher 3 | |
3840x2160 High Graphics & Postprocessing (Nvidia HairWorks Off) (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
SCHENKER W724 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Desktop-PC | |
1920x1080 Ultra Graphics & Postprocessing (HBAO+) (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
SCHENKER W724 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G Desktop-PC | |
1920x1080 High Graphics & Postprocessing (Nvidia HairWorks Off) (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
SCHENKER W724 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G Desktop-PC |
Dirt Rally | |
3840x2160 High Preset (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
SCHENKER W724 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G Desktop-PC | |
1920x1080 Ultra Preset AA:4x MS (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
SCHENKER W724 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G Desktop-PC | |
1920x1080 High Preset (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
SCHENKER W724 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G Desktop-PC |
GTA V | |
3840x2160 High/On (Advanced Graphics Off) AA:FX AF:8x (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
Schenker W504 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GamingDock | |
1920x1080 Highest Settings possible AA:4xMSAA + FX AF:16x (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
Schenker W504 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GamingDock | |
MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G Desktop-PC | |
1920x1080 High/On (Advanced Graphics Off) AA:2xMSAA + FX AF:8x (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
Schenker W504 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GamingDock | |
MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G Desktop-PC |
Battlefield Hardline | |
1920x1080 Ultra Graphics Quality (DX11) AA:4x MS (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
SCHENKER W724 | |
Aorus X5 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GamingDock | |
MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G Desktop-PC | |
1920x1080 High Graphics Quality (DX11) (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
SCHENKER W724 | |
Aorus X5 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GamingDock | |
MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G Desktop-PC |
Evolve | |
1920x1080 Very High Graphics Quality AA:1TX SM (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
SCHENKER W724 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GamingDock | |
MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G Desktop-PC | |
1920x1080 High Graphics Quality AA:FX (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
SCHENKER W724 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Schenker W504 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GamingDock | |
MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G Desktop-PC |
Dragon Age: Inquisition | |
1920x1080 Ultra Graphics Quality AA:2x MS (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
MSI GT80-2QES32SR311BW | |
SCHENKER W724 | |
Aorus X5 | |
SCHENKER XMG P705 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GamingDock | |
SCHENKER XMG Prime | |
1920x1080 High Graphics Quality (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
MSI GT80-2QES32SR311BW | |
SCHENKER W724 | |
Aorus X5 | |
SCHENKER XMG P705 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GamingDock | |
SCHENKER XMG Prime |
Far Cry 4 | |
1920x1080 Ultra Graphics Quality AA:SM (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
MSI GT80-2QES32SR311BW | |
SCHENKER W724 | |
SCHENKER XMG P705 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GamingDock | |
SCHENKER XMG Prime | |
1920x1080 High Graphics Quality AA:SM (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
MSI GT80-2QES32SR311BW | |
SCHENKER W724 | |
SCHENKER XMG P705 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GamingDock | |
SCHENKER XMG Prime |
Assassin's Creed Unity | |
1920x1080 Ultra High Graphics Quality AA:4x MS (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
MSI GT80-2QES32SR311BW | |
SCHENKER W724 | |
SCHENKER XMG P705 | |
Desktop-PC | |
SCHENKER XMG Prime | |
1920x1080 High Graphics Quality AA:2x MS (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
MSI GT80-2QES32SR311BW | |
SCHENKER W724 | |
Desktop-PC | |
SCHENKER XMG Prime |
Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare | |
1920x1080 Extra / On (Cache Shadow Maps Off), 2x Supersampling AA:2x SM (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
MSI GT80-2QES32SR311BW | |
SCHENKER W724 | |
SCHENKER XMG P705 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GamingDock | |
MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G Desktop-PC | |
1920x1080 High / On (Cache Shadow Maps Off) AA:FX (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
MSI GT80-2QES32SR311BW | |
SCHENKER W724 | |
SCHENKER XMG P705 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GamingDock | |
MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G Desktop-PC |
Alien: Isolation | |
1920x1080 Ultra, On, Shadow Map 2048, HDAO AA:2x SM AF:16x (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
MSI GT80-2QES32SR311BW | |
MSI GT72-2QE32SR311BW | |
SCHENKER XMG P505 | |
SCHENKER XMG P705 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GamingDock | |
MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G Desktop-PC | |
1920x1080 High, On, Shadow Map 1536, Standard SSAO AA:FX AF:8x (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
MSI GT80-2QES32SR311BW | |
MSI GT72-2QE32SR311BW | |
SCHENKER XMG P505 | |
SCHENKER XMG P705 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GamingDock | |
MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G Desktop-PC |
Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor | |
1920x1080 Ultra Preset (HD Package) (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
MSI GT80-2QES32SR311BW | |
Aorus X5 | |
MSI GT72-2QE32SR311BW | |
SCHENKER XMG P505 | |
SCHENKER XMG P705 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GamingDock | |
SCHENKER XMG Prime | |
1920x1080 High Preset (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
MSI GT80-2QES32SR311BW | |
Aorus X5 | |
MSI GT72-2QE32SR311BW | |
SCHENKER XMG P505 | |
SCHENKER XMG P705 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GamingDock | |
SCHENKER XMG Prime |
Sims 4 | |
1920x1080 Ultra Preset (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
MSI GT80-2QES32SR311BW | |
MSI GT72-2QE32SR311BW | |
SCHENKER XMG P505 | |
SCHENKER XMG P705 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GamingDock | |
MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G Desktop-PC | |
1920x1080 High Preset (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
MSI GT80-2QES32SR311BW | |
MSI GT72-2QE32SR311BW | |
SCHENKER XMG P505 | |
SCHENKER XMG P705 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GamingDock | |
MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G Desktop-PC |
GRID: Autosport | |
1920x1080 Ultra Preset AA:4x MS (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
MSI GT80-2QES32SR311BW | |
MSI GT72-2QE32SR311BW | |
SCHENKER XMG P505 | |
SCHENKER XMG P705 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GamingDock | |
MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G Desktop-PC | |
1920x1080 High Preset (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
MSI GT80-2QES32SR311BW | |
MSI GT72-2QE32SR311BW | |
SCHENKER XMG P505 | |
SCHENKER XMG P705 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GamingDock | |
MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G Desktop-PC |
Watch Dogs | |
1920x1080 Ultra Overall Quality, Ultra Textures AA:4x MS (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
MSI GT80-2QES32SR311BW | |
MSI GT72-2QE32SR311BW | |
SCHENKER XMG P505 | |
SCHENKER XMG P705 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GamingDock | |
SCHENKER XMG Prime | |
1920x1080 High Overall Quality, High Textures AA:2x MS (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
MSI GT80-2QES32SR311BW | |
MSI GT72-2QE32SR311BW | |
SCHENKER XMG P505 | |
SCHENKER XMG P705 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GamingDock | |
SCHENKER XMG Prime |
Thief - 1920x1080 Very High Preset AA:FXAA & High SS AF:8x (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
MSI GT80-2QES32SR311BW | |
Aorus X5 | |
MSI GT72-2QE32SR311BW | |
SCHENKER XMG P505 | |
SCHENKER XMG P705 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GamingDock | |
MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G Desktop-PC |
Metro: Last Light - 1920x1080 Very High (DX11) AF:16x (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
MSI GT80-2QES32SR311BW | |
Aorus X5 | |
MSI GT72-2QE32SR311BW | |
SCHENKER XMG P505 | |
SCHENKER XMG P705 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GamingDock | |
SCHENKER XMG Prime |
BioShock Infinite - 1920x1080 Ultra Preset, DX11 (DDOF) (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
MSI GT80-2QES32SR311BW | |
Aorus X5 | |
MSI GT72-2QE32SR311BW | |
SCHENKER XMG P505 | |
SCHENKER XMG P705 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GamingDock | |
SCHENKER XMG Prime |
Tomb Raider - 1920x1080 Ultra Preset AA:FX AF:16x (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
MSI GT80-2QES32SR311BW | |
Aorus X5 | |
MSI GT72-2QE32SR311BW | |
SCHENKER XMG P505 | |
SCHENKER XMG P705 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GamingDock | |
MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G Desktop-PC |
Crysis 3 - 1920x1080 Very High Preset AA:2xSM AF:16x (sort by value) | |
Clevo P870DM | |
MSI GT80-2QES32SR311BW | |
MSI GT72-2QE32SR311BW | |
SCHENKER XMG P505 | |
SCHENKER XMG P705 | |
Desktop-PC | |
MSI GamingDock | |
MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G Desktop-PC |
low | med. | high | ultra | 4K | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Crysis 3 (2013) | 146.9 | 133.7 | 104 | 60.4 | |
Tomb Raider (2013) | 487.7 | 464.4 | 338.7 | 162.4 | |
BioShock Infinite (2013) | 276 | 241 | 238.1 | 116.6 | |
Metro: Last Light (2013) | 147.3 | 143.7 | 135.8 | 91.8 | |
Battlefield 4 (2013) | 200 | 200 | 199.9 | 98.4 | 52.9 |
Thief (2014) | 122.6 | 119.6 | 116.9 | 84.4 | |
Watch Dogs (2014) | 119.6 | 102.7 | 83.1 | 64.6 | |
GRID: Autosport (2014) | 304.7 | 177.4 | 154.2 | 130.7 | |
Sims 4 (2014) | 182.3 | 158.9 | 132.3 | 124.7 | |
Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor (2014) | 226.7 | 188 | 121.2 | 92.2 | |
Alien: Isolation (2014) | 271.2 | 255.2 | 190.2 | 136.7 | |
Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare (2014) | 246.1 | 187.6 | 114.9 | 71.5 | |
Assassin's Creed Unity (2014) | 139.4 | 114.9 | 79 | 43.2 | |
Far Cry 4 (2014) | 116.1 | 111.2 | 93.7 | 78.6 | |
Dragon Age: Inquisition (2014) | 186.4 | 172.8 | 97.4 | 65.4 | |
Evolve (2015) | 198.2 | 182.1 | 114.6 | 101.1 | |
Battlefield Hardline (2015) | 165.8 | 163.6 | 151.5 | 98.9 | |
GTA V (2015) | 166.8 | 158.8 | 115.7 | 51.1 | 60.9 |
Dirt Rally (2015) | 388.3 | 156.4 | 124 | 92.9 | 81.8 |
The Witcher 3 (2015) | 220.3 | 146.5 | 83 | 43.8 | 30.1 |
Batman: Arkham Knight (2015) | 153 | 142 | 102 | 66 | 35 |
Metal Gear Solid V (2015) | 59.9 | 59.9 | 59.9 | 59.9 | 51.6 |
Mad Max (2015) | 259.9 | 149.4 | 136.6 | 47.9 | |
FIFA 16 (2015) | 352.3 | 316.5 | 276.4 | 122.7 |
Emissions
Since temperature and system noise depend on the chassis, we omit an analysis of the emissions. The same is true for energy demand and battery life. Information about these will be available in the review of the barebone (will be published in a few days).
Verdict
Premium performance for a premium price: The GeForce GTX 980 meets the claim of a premium model. Passionate gamers, who prefer a laptop to a desktop PC, will appreciate the sheer performance of the Maxwell GPU especially in the 4K range. While the GeForce GTX 980M was the ultimate solution a short time ago, fps junkies can no longer come around the GTX 980 now.
Although a few dual GPU solutions (e.g. GTX 970M SLI) are still slightly faster and even cheaper, we would advise against an SLI connection. Even if you keep the GPU driver up-to-date, there are often problems, for example micro stuttering, image errors or other bugs. Not to mention the waste heat and the energy demand, which often result in a loud system noise and short battery runtimes.
At least in the P870DM barebone, Clevo is able to control the GTX 980 surprisingly well. As our review will show, the massive cooling system ensures a comfortable use without heat accumulation or turbine-like fans. In addition, the chassis is ideal for OC or optimizing fans (manual fan control, several overclocking functions, etc.).
It remains to be seen how the GTX 980 performs in other chassis. Apart from Clevo, MSI, Asus and Gigabyte (Aorus) will also use the new top model - despite the steep price. Anyway, it does not lack sufficient performance for computationally demanding games.
Graphics Card |
Total performance in Games (4K & FHD combined) |
---|---|
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980M SLI |
+16 % |
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970M SLI |
+2 % |
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980 Notebook |
base |
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980M |
-28 % |
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 965M SLI |
-32 % |
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970M |
-40 % |
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 965M |
-58 % |