AMD Radeon 610M vs NVIDIA Quadro M500M Comparison

# Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The two GPUs split their two benchmark matchups exactly evenly, but the margins tell very different stories. In Geekbench OpenCL, the NVIDIA Quadro M500M posts a score of 5986 against the AMD Radeon 610M's 4535, a decisive 32% advantage. That is not a small gap; it is a commanding lead in compute workloads that favor raw parallel throughput. The Quadro M500M's average benchmark score of 5604 reinforces this strength, sitting comfortably above its rival's 5444 average.

The Vulkan results flip the script entirely. Here, the AMD Radeon 610M scores 6353, outpacing the Quadro M500M's 5222 by 17.8%. This is a substantial reversal, indicating that the Radeon's architecture handles modern graphics API workloads with significantly greater efficiency. The delta between the two Vulkan scores—over 1100 points—is larger than the delta in the OpenCL test, suggesting the Radeon's advantage in this area is particularly pronounced.

Looking at the broader competitive landscape, the Quadro M500M's average score places it 1.2% above the AMD FirePro M4000 (5537) and 1.7% above the NVIDIA GeForce MX130 (5508), while trailing the AMD Radeon HD 8790M (5691) by 1.5%. The Radeon 610M, meanwhile, sits 0.5% above the AMD Radeon R7 M365X (5416) and 1% below the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 765M (5501). Both GPUs occupy the 32nd percentile among all GPUs, meaning they target the same performance tier despite their architectural differences. The head-to-head data shows a clear split: the Quadro wins the OpenCL compute test by a wide margin, while the Radeon wins the Vulkan graphics test by a narrower but still significant margin.

# Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from entirely different architectural lineages and manufacturing eras. The NVIDIA Quadro M500M is built on the Maxwell architecture, specifically the GM108S chip, fabricated on a 28 nm process at TSMC. It packs 1,020 million transistors into a 77 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 13.2 million transistors per square millimeter. This is a mature, power-efficient design from 2016, aimed at professional mobile workstations.

The AMD Radeon 610M, by contrast, uses the RDNA 2.0 architecture with the Mendocino chip, built on a much more advanced 6 nm process, also at TSMC. Its die size is 100 mm², though transistor count and density figures are not available in the data. The RDNA 2.0 architecture brings modern features like hardware ray tracing, reflected in the 2 RT cores present on the Radeon, a feature the Quadro lacks entirely. The Radeon also supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), while the Quadro is limited to DirectX 12 (11_0). Both support OpenGL 4.6 and Vulkan 1.4.

Clock speeds differ substantially. The Quadro M500M runs at a 1029 MHz base clock with a 1124 MHz boost. The Radeon 610M operates at 1500 MHz base and 1900 MHz boost, significantly higher frequencies that help compensate for its smaller compute core count. The Radeon also supports FP16 at 972.8 GFLOPS with a 2:1 ratio, while the Quadro has no FP16 capability listed.

Memory configurations are fundamentally different. The Quadro M500M has dedicated 2 GB of DDR3 memory on a 64-bit bus, delivering 14.40 GB/s bandwidth. The Radeon 610M uses system shared memory, with the bus width, type, and bandwidth all marked as "System Shared" or "System Dependent," meaning its memory performance is entirely reliant on the host system's configuration. This is a critical architectural distinction: the Quadro has guaranteed local memory bandwidth, while the Radeon's memory performance is variable.

The bus interfaces also differ: the Quadro uses MXM-A (3.0) and comes as an MXM Module, while the Radeon is an IGP (integrated graphics processor) with a PCIe 4.0 x8 interface. Power consumption reflects this: the Quadro is rated at 30 W TDP, the Radeon at a much lower 15 W.

# Where Each One Wins

The NVIDIA Quadro M500M is the clear winner in OpenCL compute workloads. Its 32% lead over the Radeon 610M in Geekbench OpenCL is the largest margin in any comparison. This suggests the Quadro's 384 shading units, 16 TMUs, and 8 ROPs, combined with its dedicated memory, are better suited for general-purpose GPU computing tasks. The Quadro also has higher pixel rate at 8.992 GPixel/s versus 7.600 GPixel/s, and higher texture rate at 17.98 GTexel/s versus 15.20 GTexel/s, indicating advantages in fill-rate-bound scenarios. Its FP32 throughput of 863.2 GFLOPS nearly doubles the Radeon's 486.4 GFLOPS, making it the better choice for compute-heavy applications like scientific simulations, video encoding, or any workload that leverages OpenCL.

The AMD Radeon 610M wins decisively in Vulkan-based graphics workloads. Its 6353 Vulkan score versus the Quadro's 5222 represents a 17.8% advantage. This indicates that for modern games or graphics applications using Vulkan, the Radeon will deliver noticeably better performance despite having fewer shading units (128 vs 384), fewer TMUs (8 vs 16), and fewer ROPs (4 vs 8). The RDNA 2.0 architecture's efficiency, higher clock speeds, and support for DirectX 12 Ultimate features like ray tracing make it more future-proof for gaming and graphics-intensive tasks. The Radeon's FP16 capability at 972.8 GFLOPS also suggests advantages in workloads that can leverage half-precision math.

The split is clean: the Quadro M500M wins on raw compute power and traditional fill rates, while the Radeon 610M wins on modern graphics API performance and feature support. Users prioritizing OpenCL compute should favor the Quadro; those focused on Vulkan gaming or DX12 Ultimate features should prefer the Radeon. The Radeon's lower TDP of 15 W also makes it more suitable for thin-and-light laptops, while the Quadro's 30 W TDP and MXM form factor target professional mobile workstations.

# FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The NVIDIA Quadro M500M has an average benchmark score of 5604, compared to the AMD Radeon 610M's 5444, giving the Quadro a modest edge in overall performance.

Q: How large is the OpenCL performance difference?

A: The Quadro M500M scores 5986 in Geekbench OpenCL, which is 32% higher than the Radeon 610M's 4535. This is the largest performance gap between the two in any benchmark.

Q: Does the Radeon 610M have any major advantage?

A: Yes, in Geekbench Vulkan, the Radeon 610M scores 6353 versus the Quadro's 5222, a 17.8% advantage. It also supports DirectX 12 Ultimate and includes 2 RT cores for ray tracing, features absent from the Quadro.

Q: What are the memory differences between the two?

A: The Quadro M500M has 2 GB of dedicated DDR3 memory on a 64-bit bus with 14.40 GB/s bandwidth. The Radeon 610M uses system shared memory, with bandwidth and bus width dependent on the host system.

Q: How do their power requirements compare?

A: The Quadro M500M has a 30 W TDP and uses an MXM Module slot. The Radeon 610M has a 15 W TDP and is an IGP, meaning it's integrated into a processor and draws power accordingly.

Q: Which GPU is newer?

A: The AMD Radeon 610M was released in September 2022, while the NVIDIA Quadro M500M was released in April 2016. Both are now marked as end-of-life products.

# Specification Differences

| Specification | NVIDIA Quadro M500M | AMD Radeon 610M |

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

| Chip | GM108S | Mendocino |

| Architecture | Maxwell | RDNA 2.0 |

| Process Node | 28 nm | 6 nm |

| Die Size | 77 mm² | 100 mm² |

| Transistors | 1,020 million | Not listed |

| Transistor Density | 13.2M / mm² | Not listed |

| Base Clock | 1029 MHz | 1500 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 1124 MHz | 1900 MHz |

| Memory Size | 2 GB | System Shared |

| Memory Type | DDR3 | System Shared |

| Memory Bus Width | 64 bit | System Shared |

| Memory Bandwidth | 14.40 GB/s | System Dependent |

| Shading Units | 384 | 128 |

| TMUs | 16 | 8 |

| ROPs | 8 | 4 |

| RT Cores | None | 2 |

| Pixel Rate | 8.992 GPixel/s | 7.600 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 17.98 GTexel/s | 15.20 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 863.2 GFLOPS | 486.4 GFLOPS |

| FP16 | Not listed | 972.8 GFLOPS (2:1) |

| TDP | 30 W | 15 W |

| Slot Width | MXM Module | IGP |

| Bus Interface | MXM-A (3.0) | PCIe 4.0 x8 |

| DirectX Support | 12 (11_0) | 12 Ultimate (12_2) |

| Release Date | 2016-04-26 | 2022-09-19 |