Jetson Orin Nano vs Orin NX: What Is the Difference?

The Jetson Orin Nano and Jetson Orin NX are NVIDIA’s two smaller Orin modules. They share the same 260-pin SO-DIMM connector and footprint but sit at different performance levels. With the Super power modes in JetPack 6.2, the Orin Nano gives up to 67 TOPS in a 7 to 25 W envelope, while the Orin NX reaches up to 157 TOPS in 10 to 40 W, with more memory.

The Nano suits single-camera, entry-level vision and cost-sensitive robots. The NX handles several cameras, larger models and applications that need hardware video encoding. Because the modules are pin-compatible, a carrier board designed for both lets you change tier without changing the rest of the system.

Each module comes in two memory sizes. The figures below are NVIDIA’s published specifications with the Super modes enabled.

TOPS figures are sparse INT8 peaks across the GPU and, on the NX, the DLAs. The extra NX TOPS come partly from the DLAs and partly from higher GPU clocks, so a GPU-only model gains less than the headline ratio suggests.

Beyond raw TOPS, the NX carries more memory, more CPU cores on the 16GB version and a higher power ceiling, so it sustains larger models and several concurrent pipelines. If a single camera and a single model fit comfortably on the Nano, there is no need for the NX. Once the workload grows, the NX is the step up without changing form factor.

The two modules draw very different power at their top modes: up to 25 W for the Orin Nano and up to 40 W for the Orin NX. In a fanless enclosure that difference decides the size of the heatsink and how warm a cabinet the system can sit in. A design rated for the Nano at 25 W may need to cap an NX at a lower power mode, which gives away part of its advantage.

Plan the thermal design for the module and power mode you intend to ship, and validate it at the highest ambient temperature on site. A module that throttles under heat delivers less than its rating, whichever tier you choose.

The Orin Nano has no NVENC hardware video encoder. It can decode video in hardware, but encoding H.264 or H.265 runs on the CPU cores, which limits how many streams it can record or re-stream at once. The Orin NX keeps a hardware encoder that handles a 4K60 H.265 stream, or several lower-resolution streams.

For applications that only analyze video and send results, this rarely matters. For recorders, video gateways and systems that stream annotated video to an operator, it often decides the choice on its own.

Because the Nano and NX share a connector and form factor, a carrier board designed for one generally accepts the other. That lets you prototype on a Nano and move to an NX, or offer both tiers on one design, without a board change. Check that the carrier’s power supply and cooling are rated for the NX at its higher power modes, and that the board support package covers both modules.

Our Jetson Orin Nano computers and Jetson Orin NX computers cover both tiers, and many Jetson Orin NX carrier boards take either module. Our guide to choosing a Jetson module compares them with the AGX Orin and Thor.

We size the Jetson module to the workload and build the carrier board, storage, cooling and JetPack image around it as standard. Tell us about your cameras, models and power budget, and we will recommend the Nano or NX build that fits.