G3D Mark is a standard benchmark that measures graphics performance in real-world gaming scenarios. It simplifies comparing cards from different brands, where higher scores directly correlate with better fps and smoother gaming experiences.

Head-to-Head Verdict, Benchmarks, Value & Long-Term Outlook

This comparison brings together gaming FPS, raw graphics performance, VRAM, feature set, power efficiency, pricing context, and long-term value so you can see which GPU actually makes more sense.

FirePro M5100

2013

Why buy it

✅300% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (2 GB vs 512 MB).

Trade-offs

❌Very weak future-proofing: 2013-era hardware with 2 GB of VRAM is already obsolete for modern gaming and is hard to recommend today.
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 0 vs 18.5 G3D/$ (Unknown MSRP vs $100 MSRP).
❌354.5% higher power demand at 150W vs 33W.

GeForce 945A

2015

Why buy it

✅Delivers 100+% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 18.5 vs 0 G3D/$ ($100 MSRP vs Unknown MSRP).
✅Draws 33W instead of 150W, a 117W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Less VRAM, with 512 MB vs 2 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
❌Very weak future-proofing: 2015-era hardware with 512 MB of VRAM is already obsolete for modern gaming and is hard to recommend today.

FirePro M5100

2013

GeForce 945A

2015

Why buy it

✅300% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (2 GB vs 512 MB).

Why buy it

✅Delivers 100+% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 18.5 vs 0 G3D/$ ($100 MSRP vs Unknown MSRP).
✅Draws 33W instead of 150W, a 117W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Very weak future-proofing: 2013-era hardware with 2 GB of VRAM is already obsolete for modern gaming and is hard to recommend today.
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 0 vs 18.5 G3D/$ (Unknown MSRP vs $100 MSRP).
❌354.5% higher power demand at 150W vs 33W.

Trade-offs

❌Less VRAM, with 512 MB vs 2 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
❌Very weak future-proofing: 2015-era hardware with 512 MB of VRAM is already obsolete for modern gaming and is hard to recommend today.

Quick Answers

So, is FirePro M5100 better than GeForce 945A?

Yes, but this is not really about a huge raw performance gap. The broader synthetic picture is also very close at 1,874 vs 1,852 in G3D Mark. The bigger reason to prefer FirePro M5100 is the overall package: you are getting no meaningful modern upscaling stack.

Which one is more future-proof for 2026 and beyond?

FirePro M5100 is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting more VRAM at 2 GB instead of 512 MB. That extra memory headroom makes it the safer pick for newer games, heavier textures, and higher settings over time.

Which one is the smarter buy today, not just the cheaper card?

FirePro M5100 is the smarter buy by a wide margin. FirePro M5100 is priced in an unclear MSRP range at an unclear MSRP versus $100 MSRP, and you are getting 1.2% higher G3D Mark. GeForce 945A really only makes sense now as a very cheap stopgap or a used-market placeholder.

When does GeForce 945A make more sense than FirePro M5100?

Yes. GeForce 945A is still an excellent gaming GPU in 2026: it is still comfortable for 1080p and decent for 1440p, though 4K is more situational. It makes more sense if your priority is newer architecture, lower power draw (33W vs 150W), and staying closer to $100 MSRP more than squeezing out the extra headroom of FirePro M5100. The trade-off is that FirePro M5100 currently gives you 1.2% higher G3D Mark. GeForce 945A still holds the G3D-per-dollar lead, so the performance win comes with a real value premium.

Games Benchmarks

Real-world benchmarks and performance projections based on comprehensive hardware analysis and comparative metrics. Values represent expected performance on High/Ultra settings at 1080p, 1440p, and 4K. Modeled using a Ryzen 7 9800X3D reference profile to minimize specific CPU bottlenecks.

Note: Performance behavior can vary per game. Specific architectures may perform better or worse depending on game engine optimizations and API implementation.

FirePro M5100 Benchmark Check

GeForce 945A Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	FirePro M5100	GeForce 945A
1080p
low	28 FPS	26 FPS
medium	17 FPS	17 FPS
high	10 FPS	11 FPS
ultra	5 FPS	7 FPS
1440p
low	13 FPS	16 FPS
medium	7 FPS	10 FPS
high	3 FPS	5 FPS
ultra	2 FPS	3 FPS
4K
low	5 FPS	7 FPS
medium	3 FPS	5 FPS
high	1 FPS	3 FPS
ultra	1 FPS	2 FPS

Open FirePro M5100 Open GeForce 945A

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	FirePro M5100	GeForce 945A
1080p
low	40 FPS	63 FPS
medium	21 FPS	36 FPS
high	15 FPS	25 FPS
ultra	11 FPS	16 FPS
1440p
low	18 FPS	19 FPS
medium	10 FPS	12 FPS
high	6 FPS	8 FPS
ultra	5 FPS	6 FPS
4K
low	5 FPS	6 FPS
medium	3 FPS	3 FPS
high	3 FPS	3 FPS
ultra	2 FPS	2 FPS

Open FirePro M5100 Open GeForce 945A

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	FirePro M5100	GeForce 945A
1080p
low	84 FPS	83 FPS
medium	67 FPS	67 FPS
high	56 FPS	56 FPS
ultra	42 FPS	42 FPS
1440p
low	63 FPS	63 FPS
medium	51 FPS	50 FPS
high	42 FPS	42 FPS
ultra	32 FPS	31 FPS
4K
low	42 FPS	42 FPS
medium	34 FPS	33 FPS
high	28 FPS	28 FPS
ultra	21 FPS	21 FPS

Open FirePro M5100 Open GeForce 945A

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	FirePro M5100	GeForce 945A
1080p
low	84 FPS	70 FPS
medium	67 FPS	58 FPS
high	56 FPS	47 FPS
ultra	42 FPS	41 FPS
1440p
low	63 FPS	54 FPS
medium	51 FPS	44 FPS
high	42 FPS	37 FPS
ultra	32 FPS	31 FPS
4K
low	41 FPS	38 FPS
medium	31 FPS	30 FPS
high	26 FPS	24 FPS
ultra	17 FPS	18 FPS

Open FirePro M5100 Open GeForce 945A

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of FirePro M5100 and GeForce 945A

FirePro M5100

The FirePro M5100 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in October 16 2013. It features the GCN 1.0 architecture. The core clock ranges from 725 MHz to 775 MHz. It has 640 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 150W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 1,874 points.

GeForce 945A

The GeForce 945A is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in March 13 2015. It features the Maxwell architecture. The core clock ranges from 1006 MHz to 1189 MHz. It has 384 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 33W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 1,852 points.

⚡

Graphics Performance

The FirePro M5100 scores 1,874 and the GeForce 945A reaches 1,852 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 1.2% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The FirePro M5100 is built on GCN 1.0 while the GeForce 945A uses Maxwell, both on a 28 nm process. Shader units: 640 (FirePro M5100) vs 384 (GeForce 945A). Raw compute: 0.992 TFLOPS (FirePro M5100) vs 0.9132 TFLOPS (GeForce 945A). Boost clocks: 775 MHz vs 1189 MHz.

Feature	FirePro M5100	GeForce 945A
G3D Mark Score	1,874+1%	1,852
Architecture	GCN 1.0	Maxwell
Process Node	28 nm	28 nm
Shading Units	640+67%	384
Compute (TFLOPS)	0.992 TFLOPS+9%	0.9132 TFLOPS
Boost Clock	775 MHz	1189 MHz+53%
ROPs	16+100%	8
TMUs	40+67%	24
L1 Cache	160 KB	192 KB+20%
L2 Cache	0.25 MB	1 MB+300%

✨

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The GeForce 945A gives access to NVIDIA DLSS (Deep Learning Super Sampling), widely regarding as the superior upscaling method for image quality. The FirePro M5100 relies on FSR (FidelityFX Super Resolution), which is capable but generally slightly noisier than DLSS in motion.

Feature	FirePro M5100	GeForce 945A
Upscaling Tech	Upscaling support	Upscaling support
Frame Generation	Not Supported	Not Supported
Ray Reconstruction	No	No
Low Latency	Standard	NVIDIA Reflex

💾

Video Memory (VRAM)

The FirePro M5100 comes with 2 GB of VRAM, while the GeForce 945A has 512 MB. The FirePro M5100 offers 300% more capacity, crucial for higher resolutions and texture-heavy games. Bus width: 64-bit vs 128-bit. L2 Cache: 0.25 MB (FirePro M5100) vs 1 MB (GeForce 945A) — the GeForce 945A has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

Feature	FirePro M5100	GeForce 945A
VRAM Capacity	2 GB+300%	0.5 GB
Memory Type	GDDR5	GDDR5
Bus Width	64-bit	128-bit+100%
L2 Cache	0.25 MB	1 MB+300%

🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 12 (FL11_1) (FirePro M5100) vs 12 (11_0) (GeForce 945A). Vulkan: 1.2 vs 1.3. OpenGL: 4.6 vs 4.6. Maximum simultaneous displays: 1 vs 2.

Feature	FirePro M5100	GeForce 945A
DirectX	12 (FL11_1)	12 (11_0)
Vulkan	1.2	1.3+8%
OpenGL	4.6	4.6
Max Displays	1	2+100%

🎬

Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: VCE 1.0 (FirePro M5100) vs 4th Gen NVENC (Maxwell) (GeForce 945A). Decoder: UVD 4.0 vs PureVideo HD VP6. Supported codecs: H.264,VC-1 (FirePro M5100) vs H.264,HEVC (GeForce 945A).

Feature	FirePro M5100	GeForce 945A
Encoder	VCE 1.0	4th Gen NVENC (Maxwell)
Decoder	UVD 4.0	PureVideo HD VP6
Codecs	H.264,VC-1	H.264,HEVC

🔌

Power & Dimensions

The FirePro M5100 draws 150W versus the GeForce 945A's 33W — a 127.9% difference. The GeForce 945A is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 350W (FirePro M5100) vs 350W (GeForce 945A). Power connectors: PCIe-powered vs Legacy. Typical load temperature: 75°C vs 80°C.

Feature	FirePro M5100	GeForce 945A
TDP	150W	33W-78%
Recommended PSU	350W	350W
Power Connector	PCIe-powered	Legacy
Length	82mm	—
Height	70mm	—
Slots	1	0-100%
Temp (Load)	75°C-6%	80°C
Perf/Watt	12.5	56.1+349%

💰

Value Analysis

The FirePro M5100 launched at $0 MSRP, while the GeForce 945A launched at $100. The FirePro M5100 costs 100+% less ($100 savings) on MSRP. Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): Infinity (FirePro M5100) vs 18.5 (GeForce 945A) — the FirePro M5100 offers Infinity% better value. The GeForce 945A is the newer GPU (2015 vs 2013).