GeForce 940M vs GeForce GTX 280
If you are going to buy a new graphics card and are choosing between GeForce 940M and GeForce GTX 280, there are a couple of things to consider. Cards with more VRAM in general perform better and allow you to play on higher graphics settings. Size also makes a difference. A model with a large heatsink can occupy up to three expansion slots on a motherboard. Be sure you have enough room in your PC case. When comparing GPUs with different architectures, more processing cores and even higher TFLOPS will not always translate to better performance. To help you decide which GPU you need, we have measured frame rates in a number of popular games. For more on how the GeForce 940M stacks up against GeForce GTX 280, check out specs charts below.
GeForce GTX 280
GeForce 940M is a Laptop Graphics Card
Note: GeForce 940M is only used in laptop graphics. It has lower GPU clock speed compared to the desktop variant, which results in lower power consumption, but also 10-30% lower gaming performance. Check available laptop models with GeForce 940M here:
Main Specs
| GeForce 940M | GeForce GTX 280 | |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 75 Watt | 236 Watt |
| Interface | PCIe 3.0 x8 | PCIe 2.0 x16 |
| Supplementary power connectors | 6-pin & 8-pin | |
| Memory type | DDR3 | GDDR3 |
| Maximum RAM amount | 4 GB | 1 GB |
| Display Connectors | No outputs | 2x DVI, 1x S-Video |
| Check Price |
- GeForce GTX 280 has 214% more power consumption, than GeForce 940M.
- GeForce 940M is connected by PCIe 3.0 x8, and GeForce GTX 280 uses PCIe 2.0 x16 interface.
- GeForce 940M has 3 GB more memory, than GeForce GTX 280.
- GeForce 940M is used in Laptops, and GeForce GTX 280 - in Desktops.
- GeForce 940M is build with Maxwell architecture, and GeForce GTX 280 - with Tesla 2.0.
- Core clock speed of GeForce GTX 280 is 224 MHz higher, than GeForce 940M.
- GeForce 940M is manufactured by 28 nm process technology, and GeForce GTX 280 - by 65 nm process technology.
- Memory clock speed of GeForce 940M is 893 MHz higher, than GeForce GTX 280.
Game benchmarks
| high / 1080p | 2−3 | 1−2 |
| ultra / 1080p | 1−2 | 0−1 |
| QHD / 1440p | 0−1 | 0−1 |
| low / 720p | 12−14 | 12−14 |
| medium / 1080p | 4−5 | 3−4 |
| GeForce 940M and GeForce GTX 280 have the same average FPS in Assassin's Creed Odyssey. | ||
| high / 1080p | 6−7 | − |
| ultra / 1080p | 4−5 | 4−5 |
| QHD / 1440p | 0−1 | 0−1 |
| low / 720p | 16−18 | 16−18 |
| medium / 1080p | 6−7 | 5−6 |
| GeForce 940M and GeForce GTX 280 have the same average FPS in Battlefield 5. | ||
| low / 768p | 50−55 | 45−50 |
| high / 1080p | 40−45 | 40−45 |
| QHD / 1440p | 0−1 | 0−1 |
| The average gaming FPS of GeForce 940M in Call of Duty: Warzone is 4% more, than GeForce GTX 280. | ||
| low / 768p | 120−130 | 120−130 |
| medium / 768p | 90−95 | 90−95 |
| ultra / 1080p | 40−45 | 40−45 |
| QHD / 1440p | 24−27 | 21−24 |
| 4K / 2160p | 18−20 | 18−20 |
| high / 768p | 65−70 | 65−70 |
| The average gaming FPS of GeForce 940M in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive is 1% more, than GeForce GTX 280. | ||
| low / 768p | 70−75 | 85−90 |
| ultra / 1080p | 18−20 | 16−18 |
| medium / 1080p | 45−50 | 40−45 |
| The average gaming FPS of GeForce GTX 280 in Cyberpunk 2077 is 6% more, than GeForce 940M. | ||
| low / 768p | 70−75 | 75−80 |
| medium / 768p | 50−55 | 50−55 |
| ultra / 1080p | 24−27 | 24−27 |
| The average gaming FPS of GeForce GTX 280 in Dota 2 is 2% more, than GeForce 940M. | ||
| high / 1080p | 3−4 | 2−3 |
| ultra / 1080p | 3−4 | 2−3 |
| 4K / 2160p | 2−3 | 0−1 |
| low / 720p | 12−14 | 10−12 |
| medium / 1080p | 4−5 | 3−4 |
| The average gaming FPS of GeForce 940M in Far Cry 5 is 50% more, than GeForce GTX 280. | ||
| high / 1080p | 10−11 | 10−11 |
| ultra / 1080p | 5−6 | 5−6 |
| QHD / 1440p | 2−3 | 2−3 |
| low / 720p | 50−55 | 50−55 |
| medium / 1080p | 12−14 | 10−12 |
| GeForce 940M and GeForce GTX 280 have the same average FPS in Fortnite. | ||
| high / 1080p | 7−8 | 4−5 |
| ultra / 1080p | 6−7 | − |
| QHD / 1440p | 2−3 | 0−1 |
| low / 720p | 20−22 | 16−18 |
| medium / 1080p | 9−10 | 7−8 |
| The average gaming FPS of GeForce 940M in Forza Horizon 4 is 33% more, than GeForce GTX 280. | ||
| low / 768p | 45−50 | 40−45 |
| medium / 768p | 35−40 | − |
| high / 1080p | 6−7 | 5−6 |
| ultra / 1080p | 3−4 | 2−3 |
| QHD / 1440p | 0−1 | 0−1 |
| medium / 720p | − | 35−40 |
| The average gaming FPS of GeForce 940M in Grand Theft Auto V is 18% more, than GeForce GTX 280. | ||
| high / 1080p | 1−2 | 1−2 |
| ultra / 1080p | 0−1 | 0−1 |
| 4K / 2160p | 0−1 | 0−1 |
| low / 720p | 6−7 | 5−6 |
| medium / 1080p | 3−4 | 3−4 |
| GeForce 940M and GeForce GTX 280 have the same average FPS in Metro Exodus. | ||
| low / 768p | 90−95 | 90−95 |
| high / 1080p | 85−90 | 85−90 |
| ultra / 1080p | 75−80 | 70−75 |
| medium / 1080p | 90−95 | 90−95 |
| The average gaming FPS of GeForce 940M in Minecraft is 1% more, than GeForce GTX 280. | ||
| high / 1080p | 14−16 | − |
| ultra / 1080p | 12−14 | 12−14 |
| low / 720p | 24−27 | 27−30 |
| medium / 1080p | 16−18 | 14−16 |
| GeForce 940M and GeForce GTX 280 have the same average FPS in PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS. | ||
| ultra / 1080p | 4−5 | 4−5 |
| QHD / 1440p | 0−1 | 0−1 |
| low / 720p | 5−6 | 6−7 |
| GeForce 940M and GeForce GTX 280 have the same average FPS in Red Dead Redemption 2. | ||
| low / 768p | 14−16 | 12−14 |
| medium / 768p | 10−11 | 8−9 |
| high / 1080p | 5−6 | 4−5 |
| ultra / 1080p | 4−5 | 3−4 |
| 4K / 2160p | 1−2 | 0−1 |
| The average gaming FPS of GeForce 940M in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is 14% more, than GeForce GTX 280. | ||
| low / 768p | 75−80 | 75−80 |
| medium / 768p | 40−45 | 35−40 |
| ultra / 1080p | 14−16 | 16−18 |
| high / 768p | 30−35 | 30−35 |
| GeForce 940M and GeForce GTX 280 have the same average FPS in World of Tanks. | ||
Full Specs
| GeForce 940M | GeForce GTX 280 | |
| Architecture | Maxwell | Tesla 2.0 |
| Code name | N16S-GT-S/B | GT200 |
| Type | Laptop | Desktop |
| Release date | 12 March 2015 | 16 June 2008 |
| Pipelines | 384 | 240 |
| Core clock speed | 1072 MHz | 1296 MHz |
| Boost Clock | 1176 MHz | |
| Transistor count | 1,870 million | 1,400 million |
| Manufacturing process technology | 28 nm | 65 nm |
| Texture fill rate | 28.22 | 48.2 billion/sec |
| Floating-point performance | 903.2 gflops | 622.1 gflops |
| Length | 10.5" (267 mm) (26.7 cm) | |
| Memory bus width | 64 Bit | 512 Bit |
| Memory clock speed | 2000 MHz | 1107 MHz |
| Memory bandwidth | 14.4 GB/s | 141.7 GB/s |
| Shared memory | - | |
| DirectX | 12 (11_0) | 11.1 (10_0) |
| Shader Model | 5.1 | 4.0 |
| OpenGL | 4.5 | 2.1 |
| OpenCL | 1.2 | 1.1 |
| Vulkan | 1.1.126 | N/A |
| CUDA | + | + |
| CUDA cores | 240 | |
| Bus support | PCI Express 3.0 | |
| Height | 4.376" (111 mm) (11.1 cm) | |
| SLI options | + | |
| Multi monitor support | + | |
| Maximum VGA resolution | 2048x1536 | |
| Audio input for HDMI | S/PDIF | |
| Bitcoin / BTC (SHA256) | 101 Mh/s | |
| Laptop size | medium sized | |
| Optimus | + | |
| GPU Boost | 2.0 | |
| GameWorks | + | |
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