What Is The Nintendo Switch GPU Equivalent? Answered!
When comparing Nintendo Switch performance, one of the key features to look at is the GPU and what the closest equivalent GPU available is. A poor-performing GPU will decay quickly, leading to screen flickering, lousy performance, and off-color graphics. But when you examine consoles like the Nintendo Switch, you can be sure these are high-quality so finding the equivalent is a solid strategy.
Table of Contents
- What is the Nintendo Switch GPU equivalent?
- What You Need To Know About The Nintendo Switch GPU
- What GPU Does The Nintendo Switch Use?
- What Are The NVIDIA Tegra X1 GPU Specs & Features?
- What Are The GTX 1650 GPU Specs & Features?
- Is The Nintendo Switch GPU Better Than The Tegra X1 GPU?
- Is The Nintendo Switch GPU Better Than The GTX 1650 GPU?
What is the Nintendo Switch GPU equivalent?
The Nintendo Switch GPU equivalent is the NVIDIA Tegra X1 processor GPU. There are also some similarities between the GM20B GPU in the Switch and the GTX 1650 GPU. These processors have a similar design, clocking speed, and maximum performance capability.
The Nintendo Switch was designed with an NVIDIA Custom Tegra processor GPU, which allows for its portability and ability to play games on the go or at home. This processor has many similarities to other NVIDIA GPUs, and this guide will explain what those are and how these processors compare to one another.
We have compiled research comparing the Nintendo Switch GPU with other consoles and available GPUs based on speed and performance. This will help you understand the similarities and give you the answer you need to decide.
What You Need To Know About The Nintendo Switch GPU
Video gaming consoles like the Nintendo Switch are unique because they have customized components.
This includes the GPU used to create specialized images for this gaming experience. But based on its performance, it is possible to identify a GPU equivalent that can be purchased for your needs.
It is necessary to identify key performance components like TFLOPS to help identify the equivalent GPU. The Nintendo Switch runs at 393.2 or 500 GFLOPS with a GM20B GPU.
The Nintendo Switch is a hybrid console that can be played on the go and at home. You will notice an increase in processing, speed, and performance when it is docked.
Its GPU is equivalent to Nvidia’s Tegra X1, which has a maximum performance of 1 teraflop. However, there are also some similarities to the GTX 1650 GPU too.
There is more performance and power in this graphics card. It includes a maximum performance of 3 teraflops.
What GPU Does The Nintendo Switch Use?
The Nintendo Switch is a video game console and a handheld hybrid with plenty of capabilities. The console is portable and can be played on a TV.
This gaming console is designed with a NVIDIA Custom Tegra processor GPU known as the GM20B GPU. This GPU is built on the 20nm process with an average chip size and strong memory.
Clock Speeds
The base clock speed of this GPU is 385 MHz. The boost clock speed is 768 Mhz. Both are strong, but this is extremely slow compared to other consoles like Xbox.
This GPU also has a memory clock speed of 1,600 MHz. This includes a 3.2 Gbps effective speed.
Graphics Design
This GM20B graphics card includes a 20 nm process size with 256 shading units. Some key graphics features include:
- 4.6 OpenGL
- 1.2 OpenCL
- 5.3 CUDA
This GPU is not perfect, but you can expect plenty of graphics support.
Performance
The performance on this GPU is reliable but not overly impressive compared to other gaming consoles. This includes a pixel rate and texture rate of 12.29 GPixel/s.
The FP16 performance also provides 393.2 GFLOPS. This ranks in the middle of the pack among gaming consoles too.
Architecture
This GPU has a Maxwell 2.0 architecture, and this design represents the next generation of CUDA for NVIDIA.
However, this release was years ago, and newer designs have received better features that make this chip look outdated in some areas.
What Are The NVIDIA Tegra X1 GPU Specs & Features?
The NVIDIA Tegra X1 is one of the world’s most reliable GPUs. This GPU has been designed for high performance and low power consumption, which makes it a perfect fit for mobile devices.
The best way to compare it to the Nintendo Switch GPU is by understanding what it can offer.
We analyze each GPU by looking at the clock speeds, graphics, caching, and architecture to best compare them.
Clock Speeds
The GPU maximum clock speed on this GPU is 1,000 Mhz. The memory clock is a system shared, so it may vary.
This closely resembles the speeds you get on the Nintendo Switch.
Graphics Design
This is also a GM20B GPU with a TM670D-A1 GPU variant. It is a part of the Tegra generation with an IGP bus interface.
There are also 256 cores with 4.6 OpenGL, 1.2 OpenCL, and 5.3 CUDA.
Performance
The performance is harder to compare because it is not a gaming chip. However, you can expect 4 GB of memory.
This design also provides 512.0 GFLOPS with a pixel rate and texture rate of 16.00 GPixel/s and GTexel/s.
Architecture
Similar to the Nintendo Switch, this GPU also has a Maxwell 2.0 architecture.
What Are The GTX 1650 GPU Specs & Features?
The GTX 1650 is a solid graphics card that balances power and price well. It offers high-quality graphics and can be used for gaming, video streaming, and more on your mobile device.
But you might be wondering how it compares to the Nintendo Switch GPU? We will show you exactly how it compares and differs below.
Clock Speeds
This chip was released a few years after the Nintendo Switch chip, so these speeds are much more impressive.
This GPU provides a base clock speed of 1,485 MHz, boost clock speed of 1,665 MHz, and memory clock of 2,001 MHz.
Graphics Design
One of the most notable changes in this chip is the process size. It is built on a 12nm process size.
It also has 896 cores, 32 ROPS, and 128-bit bus width. The dual-slot cooling solution is another upgrade too.
Performance
You will also notice much higher pixel and texture rates. The pixel rate is 53.28 GPixel/s, and the texture rate is 93.24 GTexel/s.
The maximum performance is 93.24 GFLOPS.
Architecture
This GPU was built with Turing architecture and is a part of the GeForce 16 generation.
Is The Nintendo Switch GPU Better Than The Tegra X1 GPU?
It is not easy to compare them because the Switch GPU is custom-made for a gaming console. The Tegra X1 GPU is for computers, so the exact design differs.
However, these two GPUs are far too similar to consider one better than the other. They have the same architecture with the same process size.
The Tegra X1 one has faster clock speeds, but both GPUs have the same number of cores and similar sizes.
Despite these similarities, you will spend almost double the price on the Tegra X1 GPU.
Is The Nintendo Switch GPU Better Than The GTX 1650 GPU?
The GTX 1650 GPU is better than the Nintendo Switch GPU in terms of performance. This is true based on both memory and speed.
For example, the GTX 1650 has a boost clock speed of 1590 Mhz which is double what the Switch GPU can offer. This also includes nearly ten times more transistors.
The GTX 1650 GPU has more CUDA cores and can also run your favorite Nintendo Switch games at higher resolutions. There are much fewer similarities between these two GPUs.