Act-3D

A common question we get is whether to go with a GeForce or Quadro graphics card and what the main differences are. In short, the actual graphics processor powering both series of cards is exactly the same. In fact, the processors come off of the same assembly line.

So why does the Quadro cost multiples more than the GeForce? The main reason is because the target customers for Quadro cards, namely large content production studios, oil and resource exploration companies and engineering firms can afford these cards which allows NVIDIA to charge a premium for the couple extra features they enable.

However the GeForce and Quadro cards are not quite the same. For example, NVIDIA controls the specifications and quality assurance on all Quadro cards, while with GeForce cards the specifications and quality assurance are managed by the third party board partners. Furthermore, Quadro cards are a little more reliable because NVIDIA chooses the higher quality graphics chips for them. This results in better reliability, lower power consumption and lower heat output. In addition, Quadro cards have a larger video memory frame buffer that features error correction technology.

In terms of drivers, Quadro cards also get special drivers that are validated for professional grade applications such as for 3D modeling, animation, etc.

Lastly, NVIDIA enables double precision floating point (FP64) capability on Quadro cards only (note: the new GeForce RTX also have this feature enabled). This allows for greater precision when performing calculations and drawing images.