GeForce GTX 280M vs Quadro FX 3800M

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 280M vs Quadro FX 3800M 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 280M vs Quadro FX 3800M: 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 280M

2008

Why buy it

✅0.5% more average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.

Trade-offs

❌2008 hardware with 1 GB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.
❌24.9% higher power demand at 236W vs 189W.

Quadro FX 3800M

2008

Why buy it

✅Draws 189W instead of 236W, a 47W reduction.
✅More future proof: Tesla 2.0 (2007−2013) on 55nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.

Trade-offs

❌Lower average FPS than GeForce GTX 280M across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
❌2008 hardware with 1 GB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.

Quick Answers

Which GPU is faster for gaming right now?

GeForce GTX 280M is the faster gaming card right now. In our data, it leads by 0.5% in average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data and by 0.7% in PassMark G3D (576 vs 572), so the answer here is pretty clean.

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

GeForce GTX 280M is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond because it comes out ahead on the available hardware-headroom signals for this matchup.

Which GPU is the better buy today?

GeForce GTX 280M makes the most sense today based on the pricing and value data we have for this matchup.

GeForce GTX 280M vs Quadro FX 3800M Technical Specifications

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

GeForce GTX 280M

The GeForce GTX 280M is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in June 16 2008. It features the Tesla 2.0 architecture. The core clock speed is 602 MHz. It has 240 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 236W. Manufactured using 65 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 576 points. Launch price was $649.

Quadro FX 3800M

The Quadro FX 3800M is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in November 11 2008. It features the Tesla 2.0 architecture. The core clock speed is 610 MHz. It has 240 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 189W. Manufactured using 55 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 572 points. Launch price was $3,499.

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Graphics Performance

The GeForce GTX 280M scores 576 and the Quadro FX 3800M reaches 572 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 0.7% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The GeForce GTX 280M is built on Tesla 2.0 while the Quadro FX 3800M uses Tesla 2.0, both on 65 nm vs 55 nm. Shader units: 240 (GeForce GTX 280M) vs 240 (Quadro FX 3800M). Raw compute: 0.6221 TFLOPS (GeForce GTX 280M) vs 0.6221 TFLOPS (Quadro FX 3800M).

Feature	GeForce GTX 280M	Quadro FX 3800M
G3D Mark Score	576	572
Architecture	Tesla 2.0	Tesla 2.0
Process Node	65 nm	55 nm
Shading Units	240	240
Compute (TFLOPS)	0.6221 TFLOPS	0.6221 TFLOPS
ROPs	32	32
TMUs	80	80
L2 Cache	256 KB	256 KB

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Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The GeForce GTX 280M gets NVIDIA DLSS, which still tends to look cleaner in motion. The Quadro FX 3800M leans on FSR, which is flexible and widely supported, but usually a bit rougher at the same settings.

Feature	GeForce GTX 280M	Quadro FX 3800M
Upscaling Tech	Upscaling support	Upscaling support
Frame Generation	Not Supported	Not Supported
Ray Reconstruction	No	No
Low Latency	NVIDIA Reflex	Standard

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Video Memory (VRAM)

Both cards ship with 1 GB of GDDR5. Memory bus width is 128-bit on the GeForce GTX 280M and 64-bit on the Quadro FX 3800M.

Feature	GeForce GTX 280M	Quadro FX 3800M
VRAM Capacity	1 GB	1 GB
Memory Type	GDDR5	GDDR5
Bus Width	128-bit+100%	64-bit
L2 Cache	256 KB	256 KB

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Display & API Support

DirectX support: 11.1 (10_0) (GeForce GTX 280M) vs 10 (Quadro FX 3800M). OpenGL: 3.3 vs 3.3. Maximum simultaneous displays: 2 vs 2.

Feature	GeForce GTX 280M	Quadro FX 3800M
DirectX	11.1 (10_0)+11%	10
OpenGL	3.3	3.3
Max Displays	2	2

🎬

Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: PureVideo HD VP2 (GeForce GTX 280M) vs None (Quadro FX 3800M). Decoder: PureVideo HD VP2 vs PureVideo HD (VP2). Supported codecs: H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2 (GeForce GTX 280M) vs H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2 (Quadro FX 3800M).

Feature	GeForce GTX 280M	Quadro FX 3800M
Encoder	PureVideo HD VP2	None
Decoder	PureVideo HD VP2	PureVideo HD (VP2)
Codecs	H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2	H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2

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Power & Dimensions

The GeForce GTX 280M draws 236W versus the Quadro FX 3800M's 189W — a 22.1% difference. The Quadro FX 3800M is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 350W (GeForce GTX 280M) vs 350W (Quadro FX 3800M). Power connectors: None vs PCIe-powered. Typical load temperature: 85°C vs 90.