If you’ve bought a processor and looked at its specifications, you’ve probably seen the parameter TDP. This value is important mainly when selecting the CPU heatsink. Well, for graphics cards, settings are used TGP and TBPBut do all these acronyms mean the same thing or are there differences between these values?
All of these parameters are measured in the same type of unit, watts (W). But even if we use the same type of unit, the meaning is completely different. The TDP, the TGP and the TBP give us different information according to certain criteria which we will explain.
Thermal Design Power (TDP)
It refers to a thermal parameter always represented in watts. The Thermal Design Power
Depending on the load level or processor work, a different power supply is required. The greater the load, the greater the consumption. The TDP value accurately establishes the need for heat dissipation at full load.
The TDP is mainly used to know the dissipation capacity of the CPU cooler. You should choose a heat sink that offers a TDP equal to or higher than the one marked by the CPU.
Total Graphics Power (TGP)
Value used by NVIDIA to indicate the full consumption of its graphics cards. Concretely, it tells us the consumption of the GPU, VRAM and the rest of the components installed on the PCB. Please note that this parameter does not include the consumption of the cooling system and the lighting system of the graph.
NVIDIA usually offers two values. We have the TDP, on the one hand, which refers to the power of the GPU. The TGP is used to designate the consumption of the whole, being much higher than the TDP value, which only affects the design of the heat sink.
Typical Card Power (TBP)
This is the term used by AMD refer consumption of energy of the Graphic card. The truth is that the differences between TGP and TBP are practically the same.
The big particularity is that we are talking here about “typical consumption” which would be a type of sustained load consumption. Peak values, specific times when they increase significantly in Windows 11, are eliminated from the equation.
Comparison between TDP, TGP and TBP
We can say that TGP and TBP are practically identical. What these two parameters tell us is the total power consumption of the graphics card. This allows us to choose the power supply that is most suitable for the consumption of the graphics card and the rest of the system.
Graphics cards already come standard with a heat sink, so presenting the TDP does not make much sense. Yes, the TDP of the processor is important, because later we will have to buy an independent heat sink. Therefore, we must know this value to choose an optimal heat sink that allows to maintain the temperature of the processor and thus avoid Thermal Throttling.
We therefore conclude that TDP tells us about heat generation and is used to choose the heat sink. While the TGP and/or TBP refer to the power consumption of the graphics card and are necessary for the choice of power supply.
Table of Contents
