Chipversus Index
Jump to Section

GeForce GTX 680M SLI vs Maxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5)

CPUCPUGPUGPU
NVIDIA

GeForce GTX 680M SLI

2012Core: 720 MHz
Similar parts
····
Buy on Amazon
VS

Maxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5)

2015Core: 954 MHzBoost: 993 MHz
Similar parts
·······
Buy on Amazon

GeForce GTX 680M SLI vs Maxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5) Performance Spectrum

GeForce GTX 680M SLI
2 GB 75
3,569
+2.0%
brand logoGeForce GTX 460 SE
brand logoGeForce MX250
brand logoGeForce GTX 560
brand logoGeForce GTX 470
brand logoGeForce GTX 780
brand logoGeForce RTX 2070 (Mobile)
brand logoGeForce RTX 3060 12GB
brand logoGeForce RTX 2080 Ti
Maxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5)
2 GB 30
3,500
0.0%
brand logoRadeon HD 5850
brand logoRadeon R9 M470
brand logoRadeon RX 550
brand logoGeForce GTX 860M
brand logoGeForce GTX 1060 with Max-Q Design
brand logoRadeon RX 6850M
brand logoRadeon RX 5700 XT 50th Anniversary
brand logoGeForce RTX 5060

About G3D Mark

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 680M SLI vs Maxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5): 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 680M SLI

2012

Why buy it

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

Trade-offs

  • ❌2012 hardware with 2 GB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.
  • ❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 0 vs 23.3 G3D/$ (Unknown MSRP vs $150 MSRP).
  • ❌150% higher power demand at 75W vs 30W.

Maxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5)

2015

Why buy it

  • ✅Delivers 100+% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 23.3 vs 0 G3D/$ ($150 MSRP vs Unknown MSRP).
  • ✅Draws 30W instead of 75W, a 45W reduction.
  • ✅More future proof: Maxwell (2014−2017) on 28nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.

Trade-offs

  • ❌2015 hardware with 2 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 680M SLI is the faster gaming card right now based on the synthetic data we have. It leads by 2% in PassMark G3D (3,569 vs 3,500), which is the best performance signal available in this matchup.
Which GPU is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond?
GeForce GTX 680M SLI 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?
Maxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5) makes the most sense today based on the pricing and value data we have for this matchup. If you are mainly targeting 1080p and some 1440p, Maxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5) is the easier value choice. If you care more about 1080p and some 1440p headroom, GeForce GTX 680M SLI has the stronger long-term case.

GeForce GTX 680M SLI vs Maxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5) Technical Specifications

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

NVIDIA

GeForce GTX 680M SLI

The GeForce GTX 680M SLI is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in June 4 2012. It features the Kepler architecture. The core clock speed is 720 MHz. It has 2688 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 75W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 3,569 points.

Maxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5)

The Maxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5) is manufactured by an unknown manufacturer. It was released in October 1 2015. It features the Maxwell architecture. The core clock ranges from 954 MHz to 993 MHz. It has 384 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 30W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 3,500 points.

⚡

Graphics Performance

The GeForce GTX 680M SLI scores 3,569 and the Maxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5) reaches 3,500 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 2% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The GeForce GTX 680M SLI is built on Kepler while the Maxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5) uses Maxwell, both on a 28 nm process. Shader units: 2,688 (GeForce GTX 680M SLI) vs 384 (Maxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5)).

FeatureGeForce GTX 680M SLIMaxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5)
G3D Mark Score
3,569+2%
3,500
Architecture
Kepler
Maxwell
Process Node
28 nm
28 nm
Shading Units
2688+600%
384
✨

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The GeForce GTX 680M SLI gets NVIDIA DLSS, which still tends to look cleaner in motion. The Maxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5) leans on FSR, which is flexible and widely supported, but usually a bit rougher at the same settings.

FeatureGeForce GTX 680M SLIMaxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5)
Upscaling Tech
Upscaling support
Upscaling support
Frame Generation
Not Supported
Not Supported
Ray Reconstruction
No
No
Low Latency
NVIDIA Reflex
Standard
💾

Video Memory (VRAM)

Both cards ship with 2 GB of GDDR5. Memory bus width is 256-bit on the GeForce GTX 680M SLI and 128-bit on the Maxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5).

FeatureGeForce GTX 680M SLIMaxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5)
VRAM Capacity
2 GB
2 GB
Memory Type
GDDR5
GDDR5
Memory Bandwidth
Unknown
Unknown
Bus Width
256-bit+100%
128-bit
🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 12 (11_0) (GeForce GTX 680M SLI) vs 12 (11_0) (Maxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5)). Vulkan: 1.2 vs 1.1. OpenGL: 4.6 vs 4.5. Maximum simultaneous displays: 4 vs 2.

FeatureGeForce GTX 680M SLIMaxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5)
DirectX
12 (11_0)
12 (11_0)
Vulkan
1.2+9%
1.1
OpenGL
4.6+2%
4.5
Max Displays
4+100%
2
🎬

Media & Encoding

Decoder: VP5 vs NVDEC 1st Gen. Supported codecs: H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2,MPEG-4 (GeForce GTX 680M SLI) vs H.264,MPEG-2,VC-1 (Maxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5)).

FeatureGeForce GTX 680M SLIMaxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5)
Encoder
NVENC (1st Gen)
—
Decoder
VP5
NVDEC 1st Gen
Codecs
H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2,MPEG-4
H.264,MPEG-2,VC-1
🔌

Power & Dimensions

The GeForce GTX 680M SLI draws 75W versus the Maxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5)'s 30W — a 85.7% difference. The Maxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5) is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 350W (GeForce GTX 680M SLI) vs 350W (Maxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5)). Power connectors: 1x 6-pin vs PCIe-powered. Typical load temperature: 80°C vs 75.

FeatureGeForce GTX 680M SLIMaxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5)
TDP
75W
30W-60%
Recommended PSU
350W
350W
Power Connector
1x 6-pin
PCIe-powered
Slots
—
0
Temp (Load)
80°C
75-6%
Perf/Watt
47.6
116.7+145%
💰

Value Analysis

The newer card here is Maxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5) (2015 vs 2012).

FeatureGeForce GTX 680M SLIMaxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5)
MSRP
—
$150
Codename
N13E-GTX
Surface Book
Release
June 4 2012
October 1 2015
Ranking
#385
#782
Search GeForce GTX 680M SLI on AmazonSearch Maxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5) on Amazon

Affiliate Disclosure

ChipVERSUS is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. We may earn a commission on qualifying purchases made through our links. This comes at no additional cost to you and helps support our work in providing comprehensive PC building guides and tools.

Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates.