Gigabyte GeForce GT 1030 Silent Low Profile 2G (GV-N1030SL-2GL)
A silent display card for slim PCs, but too dated for gaming or long driver support.
The short version
- Small form factor or office PCs that need an extra display or a GPU without a power cable
- Home theater PCs where silence matters more than speed
- You want to play current games
- You need DisplayPort or more than two monitors
- Your slim case only has room for a single slot card
What owners like
- Silent operation thanks to the passive cooler
- No PSU cable needed, so it fits office PCs with small power supplies
- GDDR5 version runs light esports games far better than the DDR4 GT 1030
Common complaints
- Too slow for current demanding games
- Only two outputs, DVI-D and HDMI, with no DisplayPort
- Heatsink takes two slots even on the low profile bracket
Based on GamersNexus GDDR5 versus DDR4 testing, the Newegg listing specs, GPU Specs data, and XDA's report on NVIDIA's driver plans.
Research scores
Scored from the maker's specs and what owners report. Drew's own notes and photos will refine these.
Ownership
Drew's hands-on notes for this product are on the way. Long-term updates will be added to this timeline.
What it does
A fanless, low profile entry graphics card with 2GB of GDDR5 that runs off the PCIe slot with no power cable.
- Fanless heatsink makes no noise
- Draws all its power from the PCIe slot
- Full height and low profile brackets for slim desktops
- GDDR5 memory, the faster of the two GT 1030 memory types
A reasonable pick for adding display outputs and video playback to a small office PC or home theater box, with no fan noise and no power cable needed. It is a weak gaming card limited to older, lighter titles, NVIDIA has ended Game Ready driver support for its Pascal family, and the card was out of stock at Newegg, so newer low profile cards make more sense for most buyers.
How it compares
Specs
- GPU
- NVIDIA GeForce GT 1030, Pascal, 384 CUDA cores
- Boost clock
- 1506 MHz (OC mode), 1468 MHz (gaming mode)
- Base clock
- 1252 MHz (OC mode), 1227 MHz (gaming mode)
- Memory
- 2GB GDDR5, 64-bit, 6008 MHz effective, 48 GB/s
- Outputs
- 1 x DVI-D, 1 x HDMI 2.0b
- Max resolution
- 4096 x 2160, up to 2 displays
- Cooling
- Passive heatsink, no fan
- Slot width
- 2 slots
- Power
- No power connector, 30 W TDP, 300 W PSU recommended
- Bracket
- Low profile bracket included
Worth knowing
- Takes two expansion slots even in low profile form
Questions
Does the GT 1030 Silent need a power connector?
No. It draws its 30 W from the PCIe slot. Gigabyte's listing recommends a 300 W power supply.
Is the GT 1030 GDDR5 or DDR4?
This model, GV-N1030SL-2GL, uses GDDR5. GamersNexus found DDR4 versions roughly half as fast, so check the memory type on any GT 1030.
Can the GT 1030 play games?
Only lighter titles. GamersNexus tested the GDDR5 card in Rocket League, Dota 2 and CS:GO, and it is not suited to modern demanding games.
Does the GT 1030 still get NVIDIA driver updates?
NVIDIA has ended new Game Ready driver support for Pascal GPUs, the family the GT 1030 belongs to. Older cards typically still receive critical security fixes.
Sources
- Newegg: GIGABYTE GeForce GT 1030 Silence Low Profile 2GB, GV-N1030SL-2GL
- GPU Specs: Gigabyte GeForce GT 1030 Silent Low Profile 2G
- GamersNexus: GT 1030 DDR4 vs. GDDR5 benchmark
- XDA Developers: Nvidia is giving trusty GTX 10-series GPUs the boot
Researched 2026-10-01. We bought this product; our page is built from the maker's details and what owners report across reviews and forums. We never copy Amazon customer reviews.
