AMD Radeon HD 7730M vs NVIDIA GeForce MX230 Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only direct benchmark comparison available between the AMD Radeon HD 7730M and the NVIDIA GeForce MX230 is the Geekbench OpenCL test, and the results reveal a clear winner. The AMD Radeon HD 7730M scores 6,581 points, while the NVIDIA GeForce MX230 manages 5,739 points. This gives the AMD part a 14.7% advantage in raw compute throughput as measured by OpenCL. That is a decisive margin, not a marginal one. In practical terms, the HD 7730M delivers substantially higher general-purpose compute performance, which matters for workloads like video encoding, image processing, and any OpenCL-accelerated application.

However, the MX230 is not without its own strengths. The NVIDIA part also has a Vulkan benchmark result of 6,414 points, which is not directly comparable to the OpenCL score but suggests that its API-specific performance varies. When examining the average benchmark score across all tests, the HD 7730M sits at 6,581, while the MX230 averages 6,077. That 504-point gap translates to roughly an 8.3% difference in overall benchmark performance. The OpenCL head-to-head result of 14.7% is actually larger than the average score gap would imply, indicating that the AMD part's advantage is most pronounced specifically in OpenCL workloads.

Looking at the competitive landscape, the HD 7730M's score places it at the 38th percentile of all GPUs, while the MX230 sits at the 35th percentile. That three-percentile difference may seem small, but it reflects the fact that both are entry-level mobile parts. The HD 7730M's nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon R7 M460 at 6,612 points (0.5% faster), the Intel UHD Graphics P750 at 6,554 points (0.4% slower), the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 670M at 6,513 points (1% slower), and the NVIDIA GeForce GT 555M at 6,493 points (1.4% slower). The MX230, by contrast, sits near the NVIDIA RTX A400 at 6,078 points (0% difference), the NVIDIA Quadro P2000 at 6,049 points (0.5% slower), the Intel Iris Pro Graphics 6200 at 6,117 points (0.7% faster), and the AMD Radeon 760M at 6,019 points (1% slower). This shows that the HD 7730M is clustered with slightly faster competitors, while the MX230 is grouped with parts that are either neck-and-neck or marginally slower.

Architecture Differences

The architectural gap between these two GPUs is substantial, reflecting their different release eras. The AMD Radeon HD 7730M is built on GCN 1.0 architecture using the Chelsea chip, fabricated on a 28 nm process at TSMC. It packs 1,500 million transistors into a 123 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 12.2 million per square millimeter. The NVIDIA GeForce MX230, on the other hand, uses the Pascal architecture with the GP108 chip, built on a 14 nm process at Samsung. It contains 1,800 million transistors in a much smaller 74 mm² die, achieving a transistor density of 24.3 million per square millimeter. That is nearly double the density of the AMD part, a clear sign of the process node advantage the newer chip enjoys.

The compute configurations differ dramatically. The HD 7730M has 512 shading units, 32 texture mapping units, and 16 ROPs. The MX230 has only 256 shading units and 16 TMUs, but also 16 ROPs. Despite having half the shader count, the MX230 achieves higher clock speeds: its base clock is 1,519 MHz with a boost of 1,531 MHz, compared to the HD 7730M's 575 MHz base and 675 MHz boost. This clock advantage nearly compensates for the shader deficit in raw FP32 throughput. The HD 7730M delivers 691.2 GFLOPS, while the MX230 produces 783.9 GFLOPS. The MX230 also has a higher pixel rate at 24.50 GPixel/s versus 10.80 GPixel/s for the AMD part, and a higher texture rate at 24.50 GTexel/s versus 21.60 GTexel/s.

Memory architecture is another major divergence. The HD 7730M uses 2 GB of DDR3 memory on a 128-bit bus, with a memory clock of 900 MHz (1,800 Mbps effective) and bandwidth of 28.80 GB/s. The MX230 uses 2 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 64-bit bus, with a memory clock of 1,502 MHz (6 Gbps effective) and bandwidth of 48.06 GB/s. The MX230's narrower bus is more than compensated by the faster GDDR5 memory, giving it 67% more bandwidth. The bus interface also differs: the HD 7730M uses PCIe 2.0 x16, while the MX230 uses PCIe 3.0 x4.

Where Each One Wins

The AMD Radeon HD 7730M wins decisively in OpenCL compute workloads. Its 14.7% lead over the MX230 in the Geekbench OpenCL test is the single largest margin in any direct comparison. This suggests that applications heavily optimized for OpenCL — such as certain physics simulations, image filters, or data-parallel tasks — will run noticeably better on the AMD part. The HD 7730M also supports DirectX 12 (11_1) and Vulkan 1.2.170, while the MX230 supports DirectX 12 (12_1) and Vulkan 1.4. Both support OpenGL 4.6.

The NVIDIA GeForce MX230 wins in raw compute throughput, despite losing the OpenCL benchmark. Its FP32 output of 783.9 GFLOPS is 13.4% higher than the HD 7730M's 691.2 GFLOPS. The MX230 also has a higher pixel rate (24.50 GPixel/s vs 10.80 GPixel/s) and texture rate (24.50 GTexel/s vs 21.60 GTexel/s). This means that in workloads that are not bound by OpenCL driver efficiency — such as certain gaming scenarios, video playback, or DirectX-optimized applications — the MX230 has a hardware advantage. The MX230's 48.06 GB/s memory bandwidth is also 67% higher, which helps in bandwidth-sensitive tasks.

Power efficiency is another area where the MX230 wins decisively. The HD 7730M has a TDP of 25 W, while the MX230 draws only 10 W. That is a 60% reduction in power consumption. For mobile applications, this is critical: the MX230 generates far less heat and drains the battery more slowly, making it the better choice for thin-and-light laptops where thermal headroom is limited. The MX230 is also an integrated GPU (IGP) with no power connectors, while the HD 7730M's power connector situation is not specified. The MX230's slot width is listed as "IGP," confirming its integrated nature.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher OpenCL benchmark score?

A: The AMD Radeon HD 7730M scores 6,581 in Geekbench OpenCL, which is 14.7% higher than the NVIDIA GeForce MX230's 5,739.

Q: How do their FP32 compute performances compare?

A: The MX230 produces 783.9 GFLOPS, which is 13.4% higher than the HD 7730M's 691.2 GFLOPS, despite the AMD part having twice as many shading units.

Q: Which GPU has better memory bandwidth?

A: The MX230 has 48.06 GB/s of bandwidth from its GDDR5 memory, which is 67% higher than the HD 7730M's 28.80 GB/s from DDR3 memory.

Q: What are the power consumption differences?

A: The MX230 has a TDP of 10 W, while the HD 7730M has a TDP of 25 W. The MX230 uses 60% less power.

Q: Which GPU has the higher transistor density?

A: The MX230, built on a 14 nm process, achieves 24.3 million transistors per square millimeter, compared to the HD 7730M's 12.2 million per square millimeter on 28 nm.

Q: How do their API support levels compare?

A: The HD 7730M supports DirectX 12 (11_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.170. The MX230 supports DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4.

Specification Differences

| Specification | AMD Radeon HD 7730M | NVIDIA GeForce MX230 |

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

| Architecture | GCN 1.0 | Pascal |

| Chip | Chelsea | GP108 |

| Process Node | 28 nm | 14 nm |

| Foundry | TSMC | Samsung |

| Transistors | 1,500 million | 1,800 million |

| Die Size | 123 mm² | 74 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 12.2M / mm² | 24.3M / mm² |

| Base Clock | 575 MHz | 1,519 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 675 MHz | 1,531 MHz |

| Memory Clock | 900 MHz (1,800 Mbps effective) | 1,502 MHz (6 Gbps effective) |

| Memory Type | DDR3 | GDDR5 |

| Memory Bus Width | 128 bit | 64 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | 28.80 GB/s | 48.06 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 512 | 256 |

| TMUs | 32 | 16 |

| ROPs | 16 | 16 |

| Pixel Rate | 10.80 GPixel/s | 24.50 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 21.60 GTexel/s | 24.50 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 691.2 GFLOPS | 783.9 GFLOPS |

| FP16 | Not specified | 12.25 GFLOPS (1:64) |

| TDP | 25 W | 10 W |

| Bus Interface | PCIe 2.0 x16 | PCIe 3.0 x4 |

| DirectX Support | 12 (11_1) | 12 (12_1) |

| Vulkan Support | 1.2.170 | 1.4 |

| Release Date | 2012-04-23 | 2019-02-20 |

| Production Status | End-of-life | End-of-life |

| Percentile vs All GPUs | 38 | 35 |

| Average Benchmark Score | 6,581 | 6,077 |