Arc A770M vs GTX 980 Max-Q
Head-to-head specifications
| Metric | Arc A770M | GTX 980 Max-Q | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3DMark Time Spy | 6,140 | 1,221 | +402.9% |
| Avg FPS @ 1080p | 60 | 28 | +114.3% |
| Avg FPS @ 1440p | 36 | 15 | +140.0% |
| Avg FPS @ 4K | 20 | 8 | +150.0% |
| FP32 compute (TFLOPS) | 14.6 | 3.5 | +318.9% |
| VRAM | 16 GB GDDR6 | 4 GB GDDR5 | — |
| Memory bandwidth (GB/s) | 448 | 224 | +100.0% |
| TDP (W) | 135 | 74 | — |
- Arc A770M averages 36 fps at 1440p versus 15 fps — about 140% faster.
- GTX 980 Max-Q draws less power (74W vs 135W).
Verdict: Arc A770M or GTX 980 Max-Q?
Arc A770M advantages
- 1440p gaming (+58%)
- 4K gaming (+60%)
- Synthetic benchmark performance (+80%)
- Video memory (+75%)
- Memory bandwidth (+50%)
GTX 980 Max-Q advantages
- Power efficiency (+45%)
Which should you choose?
- Choose the Arc A770M if you game at 1440p.
- Choose the GTX 980 Max-Q if you want lower power draw, heat and noise.
- Choose the Arc A770M if you game at 4K or drive a high-resolution display.
Arc A770M vs GTX 980 Max-Q: which should you choose?
Arc A770M — Intel desktop graphics card (2022, Alchemist) with 16 GB of GDDR6, averaging 36 fps at 1440p.
GTX 980 Max-Q — NVIDIA laptop graphics card (2014, Maxwell) with 4 GB of GDDR5, averaging 15 fps at 1440p.
Arc A770M vs GTX 980 Max-Q: Arc A770M is faster for gaming. Arc A770M averages 36 fps at 1440p versus 15 fps — about 140% faster. GTX 980 Max-Q draws less power (74W vs 135W).
1080p, 1440p and 4K
At 1440p — the most common enthusiast resolution — the Arc A770M averages 36 fps against 15. At 4K (20 vs 8 fps) VRAM (16GB vs 4GB) and memory bandwidth matter more.
Power and value
Board power is 135 W versus 74 W, which affects PSU headroom, case cooling and noise.
The verdict
Both are credible choices in the graphics card comparison space; the specification table above lays out every metric so you can weigh the trade-offs that matter to you. Pick the one whose strengths line up with how you will actually use it.
Frequently asked questions
Is the Arc A770M better than the GTX 980 Max-Q?
Arc A770M is the clearly stronger overall choice, winning most of the dimensions that matter. Arc A770M averages 36 fps at 1440p versus 15 fps — about 140% faster.
What is the main difference between the Arc A770M and the GTX 980 Max-Q?
Arc A770M averages 36 fps at 1440p versus 15 fps — about 140% faster. GTX 980 Max-Q draws less power (74W vs 135W).
Which should I choose?
Choose the Arc A770M if you game at 1440p. Choose the GTX 980 Max-Q if you want lower power draw, heat and noise.
Methodology
Graphics cards are compared on 3DMark Time Spy scores, average gaming frame rates at 1080p/1440p/4K, FP32 compute throughput, VRAM capacity and type, memory bandwidth, board power (TDP) and launch MSRP — plus AI workload throughput (Stable Diffusion iterations/s and local LLM tokens/s) where measured. Vintage and server GPUs without modern benchmark results are compared on specifications only, clearly labelled. Frame rates are averages across a game suite at high settings; specific titles vary.