GeForce GTX 1080 with Max-Q Design vs GeForce RTX 4060 La...

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.

GeForce GTX 1080 with Max-Q Design vs GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU FPS Benchmarks

Predicted gaming performance across popular games. Tested paired with Ryzen 7 9800X3D to isolate GPU performance.

Search any supported game below to compare 1080p FPS for both components.

GeForce GTX 1080 with Max-Q Design vs GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU: Pros, Cons & Final Verdict

See where each GPU makes more sense in practice: raw FPS, VRAM, features, power draw, pricing, and long-term headroom.

GeForce GTX 1080 with Max-Q Design

2017

Why buy it

✅Competitive enough if your priority is price, power, or specific feature preference.

Trade-offs

❌Lower average FPS than GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
❌No equivalent frame-generation stack like DLSS 3.5 + Frame Generation (2023).
❌2017 hardware with 8 GB of VRAM already sits in legacy territory for modern games.

GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU

2023

Why buy it

✅59.0% more average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
✅Access to a newer frame-generation stack with DLSS 3.5 + Frame Generation (2023).
✅Better long-term bet: Ada Lovelace (2022−2024) on 5nm gives it a newer hardware base for upcoming games.

Trade-offs

❌Fewer clear downsides in this head-to-head, aside from the usual pricing and availability swings.

Quick Answers

Which GPU is faster for gaming right now?

GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU is the faster gaming card right now. In our data, it leads by 59.0% in average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data and by 50.4% in PassMark G3D (17,400 vs 11,566), so the answer here is pretty clean.

Which GPU is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond?

GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond. The case is simple: the newer feature stack, with DLSS 3.5 Super Resolution (2023) and DLSS 3.5 + Frame Generation (2023), while GeForce GTX 1080 with Max-Q Design is limited to no meaningful modern upscaling stack and no comparable frame-generation support, a 5nm process instead of 16nm, 34 vs 0 ray-tracing units, and a newer 2023 generation instead of 2017. That gives it the more rounded hardware package for newer games.

Which GPU is the better buy today?

GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU makes the most sense today based on the pricing and value data we have for this matchup.

GeForce GTX 1080 with Max-Q Design vs GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU Technical Specifications

Side-by-side specs, architecture details, clocks, memory, power, and platform differences.

GeForce GTX 1080 with Max-Q Design

The GeForce GTX 1080 with Max-Q Design is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in June 27 2017. It features the Pascal architecture. The core clock ranges from 1290 MHz to 1468 MHz. It has 2560 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 150W. Manufactured using 16 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 11,566 points.

GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU

The GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in May 18 2023. It features the Ada Lovelace architecture. The core clock ranges from 2310 MHz to 2535 MHz. It has 4352 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 160W. Manufactured using 5 nm process technology. It features 34 dedicated ray tracing cores for enhanced lighting effects. G3D Mark benchmark score: 17,400 points. Launch price was $399.

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Graphics Performance

In G3D Mark, the GeForce GTX 1080 with Max-Q Design scores 11,566 versus the GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU's 17,400 — the GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU leads by 50.4%. The GeForce GTX 1080 with Max-Q Design is built on Pascal while the GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU uses Ada Lovelace, both on 16 nm vs 5 nm. Shader units: 2,560 (GeForce GTX 1080 with Max-Q Design) vs 4,352 (GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU). Raw compute: 7.516 TFLOPS (GeForce GTX 1080 with Max-Q Design) vs 22.06 TFLOPS (GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU). Boost clocks: 1468 MHz vs 2535 MHz.

Feature	GeForce GTX 1080 with Max-Q Design	GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU
G3D Mark Score	11,566	17,400+50%
Architecture	Pascal	Ada Lovelace
Process Node	16 nm	5 nm
Shading Units	2560	4352+70%
Compute (TFLOPS)	7.516 TFLOPS	22.06 TFLOPS+194%
Boost Clock	1468 MHz	2535 MHz+73%
ROPs	64+33%	48
TMUs	160+18%	136
L1 Cache	0.94 MB	4.3 MB+357%
L2 Cache	2 MB	32 MB+1500%

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Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The clearest feature edge for the GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU is support for DLSS 3.5 + Frame Generation. In games that support it, that can smooth out motion and lift perceived FPS. The GeForce GTX 1080 with Max-Q Design does not have comparable native support in the same tier.The GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU supports the newer DLSS 3.5 Super Resolution, whereas the GeForce GTX 1080 with Max-Q Design is capped at Upscaling support.

Feature	GeForce GTX 1080 with Max-Q Design	GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU
Upscaling Tech	Upscaling support	DLSS 3.5 Super Resolution
Frame Generation	Not Supported	DLSS 3.5 + Frame Generation
Ray Reconstruction	No	Yes (DLSS 3.5)
Low Latency	NVIDIA Reflex	NVIDIA Reflex

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Video Memory (VRAM)

Both cards ship with 8 GB of video memory. Memory bus width is 256-bit on the GeForce GTX 1080 with Max-Q Design and 128-bit on the GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU. L2 Cache: 2 MB (GeForce GTX 1080 with Max-Q Design) vs 32 MB (GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU) — the GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

Feature	GeForce GTX 1080 with Max-Q Design	GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU
VRAM Capacity	8 GB	8 GB
Memory Type	GDDR5X	GDDR6
Memory Bandwidth	256 GB/s	256 GB/s
Bus Width	256-bit+100%	128-bit
L2 Cache	2 MB	32 MB+1500%

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Display & API Support

DirectX support: 12.1 (GeForce GTX 1080 with Max-Q Design) vs 12 Ultimate (GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU). Vulkan: 1.1 vs 1.4. OpenGL: 4.5 vs 4.6. Maximum simultaneous displays: 4 vs 4.

Feature	GeForce GTX 1080 with Max-Q Design	GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU
DirectX	12.1	12 Ultimate
Vulkan	1.1	1.4+27%
OpenGL	4.5	4.6+2%
Max Displays	4	4

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Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: NVENC 4.0 (GeForce GTX 1080 with Max-Q Design) vs NVENC (8th Gen) (GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU). Decoder: PureVideo HD VP6 vs NVDEC (5th Gen). Supported codecs: MPEG-2,H.264,HEVC (GeForce GTX 1080 with Max-Q Design) vs H.264,HEVC,AV1,VP9 (GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU).

Feature	GeForce GTX 1080 with Max-Q Design	GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU
Encoder	NVENC 4.0	NVENC (8th Gen)
Decoder	PureVideo HD VP6	NVDEC (5th Gen)
Codecs	MPEG-2,H.264,HEVC	H.264,HEVC,AV1,VP9

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Power & Dimensions

The GeForce GTX 1080 with Max-Q Design draws 150W versus the GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU's 160W — a 6.5% difference. The GeForce GTX 1080 with Max-Q Design is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 500W (GeForce GTX 1080 with Max-Q Design) vs 650W (GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU). Power connectors: PCIe-powered vs Mobile. Typical load temperature: 80°C vs 80°C.