AMD Radeon 550X vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX 850M Comparison

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 850M and AMD Radeon 550X are both end-of-life mobile and entry-level desktop parts, respectively, separated by five years of release dates and fundamentally different design philosophies. The benchmark data shows a near-even split: the GTX 850M takes the OpenCL test, while the Radeon 550X counters in Vulkan, making the choice entirely dependent on your workload and API preference.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The two GPUs split their head-to-head results exactly one win apiece, with the margins being starkly different in size. In the Geekbench OpenCL test, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 850M scores 9821 against the AMD Radeon 550X's 8866. That is a 10.8% advantage for the older NVIDIA part, a substantial lead that suggests its compute architecture handles general-purpose OpenCL workloads with noticeably more efficiency. The GTX 850M's 640 shading units, despite being on a larger 28 nm process, clearly outpace the Radeon's 512 units in this specific test.

However, the tables turn in the Geekbench Vulkan test. Here, the AMD Radeon 550X scores 8970, edging out the GTX 850M's 8782 by a slim 2.1% margin. This is a narrow victory, but a significant one for AMD, as Vulkan is the modern low-level API that increasingly matters for current game engines and compute applications. The Radeon 550X's newer GCN 4.0 architecture, built on a 14 nm process, likely contributes to its better handling of Vulkan's explicit multi-threading and command-buffer management.

Looking at the broader context, the GTX 850M's average benchmark score of 9302 places it in the 46th percentile of all GPUs, while the Radeon 550X's average of 8918 lands in the 45th percentile. The overall performance gap is therefore small, which is consistent with the head-to-head results. The GTX 850M's nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 465 (avg 9294, delta 0.1%) and AMD Radeon R7 M380 (avg 9313, delta -0.1%), showing it sits in a very tight cluster of similarly-performing hardware. The Radeon 550X, meanwhile, sits close to the AMD Radeon Pro WX 5100 (avg 8863, delta 0.6%) and trails the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660 by 1.2% (avg 9022). These rival comparisons reinforce that neither card has a dominant overall lead; the differences are measured in single-digit percentages.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher raw compute throughput?

A: The AMD Radeon 550X has a higher FP32 rating of 1,247.2 GFLOPS compared to the GTX 850M's 1,154.6 GFLOPS. That is roughly an 8% advantage in theoretical peak floating-point performance, yet the GTX 850M still wins the OpenCL benchmark by 10.8%, indicating architectural efficiency matters more than raw numbers.

Q: How do they compare in memory bandwidth?

A: The Radeon 550X is the clear winner here. It uses GDDR5 memory running at 7 Gbps effective on a 128-bit bus, yielding 112.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The GTX 850M uses DDR3 at 2 Gbps effective on the same 128-bit bus, producing only 32.03 GB/s. That is a 3.5x difference in memory bandwidth, which heavily favors the AMD part for bandwidth-sensitive tasks.

Q: Which card supports the newer DirectX version?

A: The AMD Radeon 550X supports DirectX 12 (12_0), while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 850M is limited to DirectX 12 (11_0). Both cards support OpenGL 4.6, but the Radeon also has a newer Vulkan 1.3 API compared to the GTX 850M's Vulkan 1.4. The DirectX feature level difference may affect compatibility with certain modern games.

Q: What is the power consumption difference?

A: The GTX 850M has a TDP of 45 W, while the Radeon 550X has a TDP of 50 W. The difference is only 5 W, meaning neither card will stress a power supply significantly. The Radeon 550X does list a suggested PSU of 250 W, while the GTX 850M lists none, but both are low-power parts.

Q: Which GPU has a larger transistor count and die size?

A: The AMD Radeon 550X packs 2,200 million transistors on a 103 mm² die, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 850M has 1,870 million transistors on a larger 148 mm² die. The Radeon achieves a much higher transistor density of 21.4M / mm² versus 12.6M / mm², thanks to its more advanced 14 nm process versus 28 nm.

Q: In which benchmark does the GTX 850M outperform the Radeon 550X?

A: The GTX 850M wins the Geekbench OpenCL test decisively, scoring 9821 versus 8866, a 10.8% advantage. This suggests it is the better choice for OpenCL-based compute workloads like certain physics simulations, video encoding filters, or older rendering applications.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs represent distinct generations and design goals. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 850M uses the GM107 chip based on the Maxwell architecture, fabricated on a 28 nm process at TSMC. It integrates 1,870 million transistors on a 148 mm² die, resulting in a transistor density of 12.6M / mm². The chip is configured with 640 shading units, 40 texture mapping units, and 16 ROPs. Its memory subsystem uses 2 GB of DDR3 on a 128-bit bus, but the modest 1001 MHz memory clock (2 Gbps effective) caps bandwidth at 32.03 GB/s. The GTX 850M also features a pixel rate of 14.43 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 36.08 GTexel/s. It is an integrated GPU (IGP) form factor with no power connectors and is designed for portable devices, as indicated by its display outputs being "Portable Device Dependent."

The AMD Radeon 550X, in contrast, uses the Lexa chip based on GCN 4.0 architecture, part of the Polaris (RX 500X) generation. It is built on a much more modern 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries, with 2,200 million transistors on a smaller 103 mm² die, yielding a higher density of 21.4M / mm². The compute configuration is leaner in terms of shading units (512) and TMUs (32), but it retains 16 ROPs. The Radeon's memory setup is far superior: 2 GB of GDDR5 on a 128-bit bus, clocked at 1750 MHz (7 Gbps effective), delivering 112.0 GB/s of bandwidth. Its clocks are also explicitly defined with a base of 1082 MHz and a boost of 1218 MHz, whereas the GTX 850M has no listed base or boost clock. The Radeon achieves a higher pixel rate of 19.49 GPixel/s and texture rate of 38.98 GTexel/s. It also supports FP16 compute at a 1:1 ratio with FP32 (1,247.2 GFLOPS), a feature the GTX 850M does not list. The Radeon 550X is a dual-slot card, 145 mm (5.7 inches) long, with display outputs including 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 2.0b, and 1x DisplayPort 1.4a, and it connects via PCIe 3.0 x8, while the GTX 850M uses PCIe 3.0 x16.

The Verdict

The data does not declare a single outright winner; it declares two different winners for two different jobs. If your priority is OpenCL compute performance, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 850M is the clear choice, offering a 10.8% lead in that benchmark. Its Maxwell architecture, despite being older and on a larger process node, delivers better results in that specific API. The GTX 850M's higher shading unit count (640 vs 512) likely drives this advantage.

If your priority is modern gaming or Vulkan-based workloads, the AMD Radeon 550X is the better pick. It wins the Vulkan benchmark by 2.1%, and its memory bandwidth advantage is massive: 112.0 GB/s versus 32.03 GB/s. This bandwidth difference alone can be the deciding factor in texture-heavy games or high-resolution scenarios. The Radeon also supports DirectX 12 (12_0) versus the GTX 850M's 11_0, which may matter for compatibility with newer titles that require the full DirectX 12 feature set.

The Radeon 550X is also the more modern and efficient design, with a 14 nm process, higher transistor density, and a smaller die. Its dual-slot form factor and standard display outputs make it a practical drop-in card for a desktop system. The GTX 850M, being an IGP, is essentially fixed into a laptop motherboard and offers no upgrade path or output flexibility. Ultimately, the GTX 850M wins on raw OpenCL muscle, while the Radeon 550X wins on memory bandwidth, modern API support, and architectural efficiency.

Specification Differences

The following table outlines the key specifications where the two GPUs differ:

| Specification | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 850M | AMD Radeon 550X |

|---|---|---|

| Architecture | Maxwell | GCN 4.0 |

| Process Node | 28 nm | 14 nm |

| Foundry | TSMC | GlobalFoundries |

| Transistors | 1,870 million | 2,200 million |

| Die Size | 148 mm² | 103 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 12.6M / mm² | 21.4M / mm² |

| Base Clock | Not listed | 1082 MHz |

| Boost Clock | Not listed | 1218 MHz |

| Memory Clock | 1001 MHz (2 Gbps effective) | 1750 MHz (7 Gbps effective) |

| Memory Type | DDR3 | GDDR5 |

| Memory Bandwidth | 32.03 GB/s | 112.0 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 640 | 512 |

| TMUs | 40 | 32 |

| Pixel Rate | 14.43 GPixel/s | 19.49 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 36.08 GTexel/s | 38.98 GTexel/s |

| FP32 Performance | 1,154.6 GFLOPS | 1,247.2 GFLOPS |

| FP16 Performance | Not listed | 1,247.2 GFLOPS (1:1) |

| TDP | 45 W | 50 W |

| Slot Width | IGP | Dual-slot |

| Suggested PSU | Not listed | 250 W |

| Bus Interface | PCIe 3.0 x16 | PCIe 3.0 x8 |

| Display Outputs | Portable Device Dependent | 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 2.0b, 1x DisplayPort 1.4a |

| DirectX Support | 12 (11_0) | 12 (12_0) |

| Vulkan Support | 1.4 | 1.3 |

| Release Date | 2014-03-11 | 2019-03-26 |

| Predecessor | GeForce 700M | Polaris |

| Successor | GeForce 900M | Vega |

Where Each One Wins

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 850M wins in the OpenCL compute arena. Its benchmark score of 9821 is 10.8% higher than the Radeon 550X's 8866, indicating superior performance for applications that leverage OpenCL, such as certain video encoding, image processing, or scientific computing tasks. The GTX 850M also has a higher shading unit count (640 vs 512), which can be beneficial in workloads that scale well with parallel execution units. Its lower TDP of 45 W versus 50 W makes it marginally more power-efficient under load, though the difference is negligible in practice.

The AMD Radeon 550X wins in Vulkan-based workloads, scoring 8970 versus 8782, a 2.1% advantage. More importantly, its memory bandwidth of 112.0 GB/s is over 3.5 times that of the GTX 850M, which is a critical asset for modern games with high-resolution textures, large open worlds, or any workload that saturates memory throughput. The Radeon also has a higher pixel rate (19.49 GPixel/s vs 14.43 GPixel/s) and texture rate (38.98 GTexel/s vs 36.08 GTexel/s), giving it an edge in fill-rate-bound scenarios. Its support for DirectX 12 (12_0) and FP16 compute (1,247.2 GFLOPS) adds future-proofing for newer software. The Radeon 550X is also a standalone dual-slot card with standard display outputs, making it suitable for desktop builds, whereas the GTX 850M is an IGP locked into a laptop. In summary, pick the GTX 850M for OpenCL compute, and pick the Radeon 550X for modern gaming, Vulkan applications, and memory-bandwidth-heavy tasks.