GRID K120Q vs Quadro FX 3500M

GRID K120Q

2013Core: 745 MHz
VS
NVIDIA

Quadro FX 3500M

2008Core: 610 MHz

GRID K120Q vs Quadro FX 3500M Performance Spectrum

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.

GRID K120Q vs Quadro FX 3500M: Pros, Cons & Final Verdict

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

GRID K120Q

2013

Why buy it

  • Delivers 100+% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 2.3 vs 0 G3D/$ ($125 MSRP vs Unknown MSRP).
  • More future proof: Kepler (2012−2018) on 28nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.

Trade-offs

  • 2013 hardware with 512 MB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.
  • 19% higher power demand at 225W vs 189W.

Quadro FX 3500M

2008

Why buy it

  • Draws 189W instead of 225W, a 36W reduction.

Trade-offs

  • 2008 hardware with 512 MB 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 2.3 G3D/$ (Unknown MSRP vs $125 MSRP).

Quick Answers

Which GPU is faster for gaming right now?
Quadro FX 3500M is the faster gaming card right now based on the synthetic data we have. It leads by 4.4% in PassMark G3D (306 vs 293), which is the best performance signal available in this matchup.
Which GPU is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond?
GRID K120Q is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond. The case is simple: a 28nm process instead of 55nm and a newer 2013 generation instead of 2008. That makes it the less risky pick as game demands keep moving.
Which GPU is the better buy today?
GRID K120Q makes the most sense today based on the pricing and value data we have for this matchup. Quadro FX 3500M still makes more sense if max raw gaming performance matters more than value.

GRID K120Q vs Quadro FX 3500M Technical Specifications

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

NVIDIA

GRID K120Q

The GRID K120Q is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in June 28 2013. It features the Kepler architecture. The core clock speed is 745 MHz. It has 1536 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 225W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 293 points. Launch price was $937.

NVIDIA

Quadro FX 3500M

The Quadro FX 3500M 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: 306 points. Launch price was $3,499.

Graphics Performance

The GRID K120Q scores 293 and the Quadro FX 3500M reaches 306 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 4.4% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The GRID K120Q is built on Kepler while the Quadro FX 3500M uses Tesla 2.0, both on 28 nm vs 55 nm. Shader units: 1,536 (GRID K120Q) vs 240 (Quadro FX 3500M). Raw compute: 2.289 TFLOPS (GRID K120Q) vs 0.6221 TFLOPS (Quadro FX 3500M).

FeatureGRID K120QQuadro FX 3500M
G3D Mark Score
293
306+4%
Architecture
Kepler
Tesla 2.0
Process Node
28 nm
55 nm
Shading Units
1536+540%
240
Compute (TFLOPS)
2.289 TFLOPS+268%
0.6221 TFLOPS
ROPs
32
32
TMUs
128+60%
80
L2 Cache
512 KB+100%
256 KB

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

FeatureGRID K120QQuadro FX 3500M
Upscaling Tech
Upscaling support
Upscaling support
Frame Generation
Not Supported
Not Supported
Ray Reconstruction
No
No
Low Latency
Standard
Standard
💾

Video Memory (VRAM)

Both cards ship with 512 MB of GDDR5. Memory bus width is 64-bit on the GRID K120Q and 64-bit on the Quadro FX 3500M. L2 Cache: 512 KB (GRID K120Q) vs 256 KB (Quadro FX 3500M) — the GRID K120Q has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

FeatureGRID K120QQuadro FX 3500M
VRAM Capacity
0.5 GB
0.5 GB
Memory Type
GDDR5
GDDR5
Bus Width
64-bit
64-bit
L2 Cache
512 KB+100%
256 KB
🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 12 (11_0) (GRID K120Q) vs 9.0c (Quadro FX 3500M). OpenGL: 4.6 vs 2.1. Maximum simultaneous displays: 0 vs 1.

FeatureGRID K120QQuadro FX 3500M
DirectX
12 (11_0)+33%
9.0c
OpenGL
4.6+119%
2.1
Max Displays
0
1
🎬

Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: NVENC 1 (GRID K120Q) vs None (Quadro FX 3500M). Decoder: NVDEC 1 vs VP1. Supported codecs: H.264,MPEG-2,VC-1 (GRID K120Q) vs MPEG-2,WMV9 (Quadro FX 3500M).

FeatureGRID K120QQuadro FX 3500M
Encoder
NVENC 1
None
Decoder
NVDEC 1
VP1
Codecs
H.264,MPEG-2,VC-1
MPEG-2,WMV9
🔌

Power & Dimensions

The GRID K120Q draws 225W versus the Quadro FX 3500M's 189W — a 17.4% difference. The Quadro FX 3500M is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 350W (GRID K120Q) vs 350W (Quadro FX 3500M). Power connectors: PCIe-powered vs PCIe-powered.

FeatureGRID K120QQuadro FX 3500M
TDP
225W
189W-16%
Recommended PSU
350W
350W
Power Connector
PCIe-powered
PCIe-powered
Slots
0
0
Temp (Load)
75°C
Perf/Watt
1.3
1.6+23%
💰

Value Analysis

The newer card here is GRID K120Q (2013 vs 2008).

FeatureGRID K120QQuadro FX 3500M
MSRP
$125
Codename
GK104
GT200B
Release
June 28 2013
November 11 2008
Ranking
#589
#815

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