AMD Radeon 890M vs NVIDIA N1X 40SM Comparison

The Verdict

The AMD Radeon 890M and the NVIDIA N1X 40SM occupy different positions in the database. The 890M is a shipping, measured part with a full set of benchmark results, while the N1X 40SM is listed as Active with a future release date and no recorded benchmark scores. The 890M sits at the 45th percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 9210. The N1X 40SM holds a 50th percentile ranking, but that percentile is assigned without any measured performance data, as its average benchmark score is 0 and its benchmark array is empty.

For anyone building or buying today, the 890M is the only option with verifiable performance. The N1X 40SM cannot be evaluated for real-world speed from the database. The 890M's nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon Vega 8 (average score 9221, delta -0.1%), the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960 (average score 9273, delta -0.7%), the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 465 (average score 9294, delta -0.9%), and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 850M (average score 9302, delta -1%). These deltas show the 890M is effectively level with that group, trailing by less than 1% across the board.

The N1X 40SM, by contrast, has no rivals listed and no wins recorded. The head-to-head benchmark comparison is empty, and both wins counters are at zero. The verdict from the data is straightforward: the 890M is a functional, measured integrated GPU, while the N1X 40SM is a specification sheet waiting for validation.

FAQ

Q: Does the database show any benchmark results for the NVIDIA N1X 40SM?

A: No. The N1X 40SM has an empty benchmarks array, an average benchmark score of 0, and no nearest rivals listed. Its percentile of 50 appears to be a placeholder rather than a measured result.

Q: How does the AMD Radeon 890M compare to its closest competitors?

A: The 890M has an average benchmark score of 9210. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon Vega 8, scores 9221, which is 0.1% higher. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960 scores 9273 (0.7% higher), the GTX 465 scores 9294 (0.9% higher), and the GTX 850M scores 9302 (1% higher). The 890M trails all four by less than 1 percentage point.

Q: What is the release timeline for these two GPUs?

A: The AMD Radeon 890M has a release date of July 14, 2024. The NVIDIA N1X 40SM has a release date of May 31, 2026. Both are listed as Active in production status.

Q: Which GPU has more shading units?

A: The NVIDIA N1X 40SM has 5120 shading units, compared to 1024 for the AMD Radeon 890M. The N1X 40SM also has 320 texture mapping units versus 64, and 40 ROPs versus 32.

Q: What are the architecture differences between the two?

A: The 890M uses RDNA 3.5 architecture on a 4 nm process, built on the Strix Point chip with a 233 mm² die. The N1X 40SM uses Blackwell 2.0 architecture on a 5 nm process, built on the GB20B chip with a 382 mm² die.

Architecture Differences

The AMD Radeon 890M is built on RDNA 3.5, a refinement of AMD's graphics architecture, fabricated on TSMC's 4 nm process. The chip is Strix Point, with a die size of 233 mm² and a transistor count of 34,000 million, yielding a transistor density of 145.9 million per mm². The 890M is classified under the Navi III IGP (Strix Point Mobile) generation, with its predecessor listed as Navi II IGP.

The NVIDIA N1X 40SM uses Blackwell 2.0 architecture, fabricated on TSMC's 5 nm process. The chip is GB20B, with a larger die size of 382 mm². The transistor count is listed as unknown, and no transistor density is provided. The N1X 40SM belongs to the Blackwell IGP (N1x) generation, with no predecessor listed.

The 890M supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The N1X 40SM lists DirectX, OpenGL, and Vulkan all as N/A, indicating that its API support has not been recorded or is not applicable in the current database entry.

The 890M has 16 ray tracing cores. The N1X 40SM has 40 ray tracing cores and also includes 160 tensor cores, a feature absent from the 890M's specification (its tensor core field is null). The 890M's memory is system shared, meaning it relies on the host system's RAM, while the N1X 40SM has dedicated LPDDR5X memory.

Specification Differences

The two GPUs diverge significantly in their recorded specifications. The AMD Radeon 890M has a base clock of 400 MHz and a boost clock of 2900 MHz. The NVIDIA N1X 40SM has a base clock of 741 MHz and a boost clock of 2346 MHz. The 890M's memory is system shared, with bus width, bandwidth, and type all listed as system dependent. The N1X 40SM has 128 GB of LPDDR5X memory on a 256 bit bus, with a bandwidth of 273.2 GB/s and a memory clock of 1067 MHz (8.5 Gbps effective).

In compute resources, the 890M has 1024 shading units, 64 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. The N1X 40SM has 5120 shading units, 320 TMUs, and 40 ROPs. The 890M's pixel rate is 92.80 GPixel/s and its texture rate is 185.6 GTexel/s. The N1X 40SM's pixel rate is 93.84 GPixel/s and its texture rate is 750.7 GTexel/s. The 890M delivers 5.939 TFLOPS of FP32 and FP16 (1:1) performance. The N1X 40SM delivers 24.02 TFLOPS of FP32 and FP16 (1:1).

The 890M has a TDP of 15 W, while the N1X 40SM's TDP is listed as unknown. Both are IGP slot width with no power connectors. The 890M uses PCIe 4.0 x8, while the N1X 40SM uses PCIe 5.0 x16. Display outputs for the 890M are portable device dependent, while the N1X 40SM has 1x HDMI.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The database contains no head-to-head benchmark results for these two GPUs. The headToHeadBenchmarks array is empty, and both winsA and winsB counters are at zero. This means there is no direct measurement comparing the AMD Radeon 890M against the NVIDIA N1X 40SM in any test.

However, the 890M has a full suite of individual benchmark scores. In 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, it scores 590. In Geekbench OpenCL, it scores 37254, and in Geekbench Vulkan, it scores 40808. PassMark results include DirectX 10 at 33, DirectX 11 at 73, DirectX 12 at 37, DirectX 9 at 97, G2D at 979, G3D at 8076, and GPU compute at 4157. The average benchmark score across these tests is 9210.

The N1X 40SM has no recorded scores in any test. Its average benchmark score is 0, and the benchmarks array is empty. Without measured data, no comparison of actual performance can be made. The 890M's scores place it at the 45th percentile of all GPUs, with its nearest rivals all within 1% of its average score.

The N1X 40SM's 50th percentile ranking exists in the database, but it is not supported by any benchmark evidence. In practical terms, the 890M has demonstrable performance levels, while the N1X 40SM's performance is entirely unverified.

Where Each One Wins

Based strictly on the recorded data, the AMD Radeon 890M wins in every category where a comparison is possible. It has measured benchmark scores across multiple test suites, a full API list, a known TDP of 15 W, and a release date that has already passed. Its performance profile is established: the average score of 9210 puts it at the 45th percentile, essentially tied with the Radeon Vega 8, GTX 960, GTX 465, and GTX 850M.

The NVIDIA N1X 40SM wins in specification categories that are not performance-related. It has a larger die size (382 mm² versus 233 mm²), more shading units (5120 versus 1024), more TMUs (320 versus 64), more ROPs (40 versus 32), more ray tracing cores (40 versus 16), and includes tensor cores (160) where the 890M has none. It has dedicated memory (128 GB LPDDR5X) rather than system shared memory, a higher memory bandwidth (273.2 GB/s), and a newer PCIe interface (5.0 x16 versus 4.0 x8). Its FP32 and FP16 throughput figures of 24.02 TFLOPS are roughly four times the 890M's 5.939 TFLOPS.

These specification advantages do not translate into any recorded benchmark wins. The N1X 40SM has no test results, no rivals, and no verified performance data. For a builder choosing between these two today, the 890M is the only one with proven numbers. The N1X 40SM may eventually deliver higher performance based on its specifications, but the database currently has no evidence to confirm that. The 890M's wins are all real and measurable; the N1X 40SM's wins exist only on paper.