Quadro P3200 vs Radeon R9 290

NVIDIA

Quadro P3200

2018Core: 1328 MHzBoost: 1543 MHz
Similar parts
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VS
AMD

Radeon R9 290

2013Core: 947 MHz
Similar parts
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Quadro P3200 vs Radeon R9 290 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.

Quadro P3200 vs Radeon R9 290 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.

Quadro P3200 vs Radeon R9 290: Pros, Cons & Final Verdict

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

Quadro P3200

2018

Why buy it

  • 4.8% more average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
  • Radeon R9 290 is already legacy-tier future-proofing, so Quadro P3200 is the less risky modern option long term.
  • Draws 75W instead of 275W, a 200W reduction.

Trade-offs

  • Older hardware, 4 GB of VRAM, and weaker feature support mean it will age faster in newer AAA releases.
  • 25.3% HIGHER MSRP
    $500 MSRPvs$399 MSRP
  • Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 17.2 vs 20.5 G3D/$ ($500 MSRP vs $399 MSRP).

Radeon R9 290

2013

Why buy it

  • Costs $101 less on MSRP ($399 MSRP vs $500 MSRP).
  • Delivers 19.6% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 20.5 vs 17.2 G3D/$ ($399 MSRP vs $500 MSRP).

Trade-offs

  • Lower average FPS than Quadro P3200 across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
  • 2013 hardware with 4 GB of VRAM already sits in legacy territory for modern games.
  • 266.7% higher power demand at 275W vs 75W.

Quick Answers

Which GPU is faster for gaming right now?
Quadro P3200 is the faster gaming card right now. In our data, it leads by 4.8% in average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data and by 4.8% in PassMark G3D (8,578 vs 8,184), so the answer here is pretty clean.
Which GPU is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond?
Quadro P3200 is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond. The case is simple: a 16nm process instead of 28nm and a newer 2018 generation instead of 2013. That makes it the less risky pick as game demands keep moving.
Which GPU is the better buy today?
Radeon R9 290 makes the most sense to buy today. It is $101 cheaper on MSRP at $399 vs $500, and it leads G3D-per-dollar by 19.6% (20.5 vs 17.2), which is enough to swing the recommendation its way. If you are mainly targeting 1080p and some 1440p, Radeon R9 290 is the easier value choice. If you care more about 1080p and some 1440p headroom, Quadro P3200 has the stronger long-term case.

Quadro P3200 vs Radeon R9 290 Technical Specifications

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

NVIDIA

Quadro P3200

The Quadro P3200 is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in February 21 2018. It features the Pascal architecture. The core clock ranges from 1328 MHz to 1543 MHz. It has 1792 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 75W. Manufactured using 16 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 8,578 points.

AMD

Radeon R9 290

The Radeon R9 290 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in November 5 2013. It features the GCN 2.0 architecture. The core clock speed is 947 MHz. It has 2560 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 275W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 8,184 points. Launch price was $399.

Graphics Performance

The Quadro P3200 scores 8,578 and the Radeon R9 290 reaches 8,184 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 4.8% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The Quadro P3200 is built on Pascal while the Radeon R9 290 uses GCN 2.0, both on 16 nm vs 28 nm. Shader units: 1,792 (Quadro P3200) vs 2,560 (Radeon R9 290). Raw compute: 5.53 TFLOPS (Quadro P3200) vs 4.849 TFLOPS (Radeon R9 290).

FeatureQuadro P3200Radeon R9 290
G3D Mark Score
8,578+5%
8,184
Architecture
Pascal
GCN 2.0
Process Node
16 nm
28 nm
Shading Units
1792
2560+43%
Compute (TFLOPS)
5.53 TFLOPS+14%
4.849 TFLOPS
ROPs
64
64
TMUs
112
160+43%
L1 Cache
672 KB+5%
640 KB
L2 Cache
1.5 MB+50%
1 MB

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

FeatureQuadro P3200Radeon R9 290
Upscaling Tech
Upscaling support
FSR Upscaling / FSR 4
Frame Generation
Not Supported
Not Supported
Ray Reconstruction
No
No
Low Latency
Standard
AMD Anti-Lag
💾

Video Memory (VRAM)

Both cards ship with 4 GB of video memory. Memory bus width is 256-bit on the Quadro P3200 and 512-bit on the Radeon R9 290. L2 Cache: 1.5 MB (Quadro P3200) vs 1 MB (Radeon R9 290) — the Quadro P3200 has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

FeatureQuadro P3200Radeon R9 290
VRAM Capacity
4 GB
4 GB
Memory Type
GDDR6
GDDR5
Bus Width
256-bit
512-bit+100%
L2 Cache
1.5 MB+50%
1 MB
🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 12 (Quadro P3200) vs 12.0 (Radeon R9 290). Vulkan: 1.3 vs 1.2. OpenGL: 4.6 vs 4.6. Maximum simultaneous displays: 4 vs 6.

FeatureQuadro P3200Radeon R9 290
DirectX
12
12.0
Vulkan
1.3+8%
1.2
OpenGL
4.6
4.6
Max Displays
4
6+50%
🎬

Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: NVENC 6th Gen (Quadro P3200) vs VCE 2.0 (Radeon R9 290). Decoder: NVDEC 3rd Gen vs UVD 4.2. Supported codecs: H.265,H.264 (Quadro P3200) vs MPEG-2,H.264,VC-1 (Radeon R9 290).

FeatureQuadro P3200Radeon R9 290
Encoder
NVENC 6th Gen
VCE 2.0
Decoder
NVDEC 3rd Gen
UVD 4.2
Codecs
H.265,H.264
MPEG-2,H.264,VC-1
🔌

Power & Dimensions

The Quadro P3200 draws 75W versus the Radeon R9 290's 275W — a 114.3% difference. The Quadro P3200 is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 500W (Quadro P3200) vs 750W (Radeon R9 290). Power connectors: PCIe-powered vs 6-pin + 8-pin. Card length: 0mm vs 275mm, occupying 0 vs 2 slots. Typical load temperature: 80 vs 95°C.

FeatureQuadro P3200Radeon R9 290
TDP
75W-73%
275W
Recommended PSU
500W-33%
750W
Power Connector
PCIe-powered
6-pin + 8-pin
Length
0mm
275mm
Height
0mm
109mm
Slots
0-100%
2
Temp (Load)
80-16%
95°C
Perf/Watt
114.4+284%
29.8
💰

Value Analysis

At launch, the Quadro P3200 came in at $500, while the Radeon R9 290 launched at $399. On MSRP, Radeon R9 290 was 20.2% cheaper ($101 less). Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 17.2 (Quadro P3200) vs 20.5 (Radeon R9 290) — the Radeon R9 290 offers 19.2% better value. The newer card here is Quadro P3200 (2018 vs 2013).

FeatureQuadro P3200Radeon R9 290
MSRP
$500
$399-20%
Performance per Dollar
17.2
20.5+19%
Codename
GP104
Hawaii
Release
February 21 2018
November 5 2013
Ranking
#304
#316

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