AMD Radeon HD 7770M vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX 570 Comparison

# Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The data presents a remarkably tight contest between the AMD Radeon HD 7770M and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 570, with the two GPUs landing at nearly identical average benchmark scores. The AMD Radeon HD 7770M posts an average benchmark score of 13,536, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 570 trails by a razor-thin margin at 13,515 — a delta of just 0.2 percent. Both parts occupy the same 54th percentile among all GPUs, indicating that despite their vastly different designs and target markets, they deliver essentially equivalent compute performance in the Geekbench test suite.

The single benchmark result available for each card reinforces this near-parity. The AMD Radeon HD 7770M achieved a Geekbench Metal score of 13,536, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 570 recorded a Geekbench OpenCL score of 13,515. The fact that these scores come from different API tests adds an interesting wrinkle — the AMD part's result was produced through Apple's Metal API, whereas NVIDIA's score came from the cross-platform OpenCL framework. This means the comparison is not strictly apples-to-apples, yet the outcomes land within 0.2 percent of each other, suggesting that both architectures are capable of extracting similar raw throughput from their respective compute pipelines.

Looking at the nearest rival data for each card, the AMD Radeon HD 7770M sits in a cluster where the AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT scores 13,543 (0.1 percent ahead), the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 570 scores 13,515 (0.2 percent behind), the NVIDIA P106-090 scores 13,470 (0.5 percent behind), and the AMD Radeon Pro 555 scores 13,407 (1 percent behind). The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 570's nearest rivals mirror this pattern: the AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT at 13,543 (0.2 percent ahead), the AMD Radeon HD 7770M at 13,536 (0.2 percent ahead), the NVIDIA P106-090 at 13,470 (0.3 percent behind), and the AMD Radeon Pro 555 at 13,407 (0.8 percent behind). Neither card manages a decisive win — the largest gap between the two is the 0.2 percent delta, which is within the noise of typical benchmark variance.

# Architecture Differences

The architectural gulf between these two GPUs is enormous, even though their benchmark scores barely differ. The AMD Radeon HD 7770M is built on GCN 1.0 architecture, fabricated on TSMC's 28 nm process node, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 570 uses Fermi 2.0 architecture on a 40 nm process node from the same foundry. This process difference is significant: the AMD chip packs 1,500 million transistors onto a 123 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 12.2 million per square millimeter. The NVIDIA chip, by contrast, contains 3,000 million transistors spread across a massive 520 mm² die, with a transistor density of just 5.8 million per square millimeter.

The implications are stark. NVIDIA's Fermi 2.0 design uses roughly twice the silicon area and double the transistor count to achieve the same benchmark result as AMD's much smaller and denser GCN 1.0 part. This reflects the fundamental design philosophy differences between the two architectures — GCN 1.0 was engineered for efficiency and compute throughput per watt, while Fermi 2.0 prioritized raw parallel processing power with less concern for density. The AMD chip's 512 shading units, 32 texture mapping units, and 16 raster operation pipelines contrast with NVIDIA's 480 shading units, 60 TMUs, and 40 ROPs, showing that NVIDIA allocated more hardware toward texture and pixel processing while AMD invested in a larger shader array.

Memory architecture also diverges sharply. The AMD Radeon HD 7770M uses a 128-bit memory bus with 1024 MB of GDDR5 memory running at 1000 MHz (4 Gbps effective), producing 64.00 GB/s of bandwidth. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 570 employs a 320-bit bus with 1280 MB of GDDR5 at 950 MHz (3.8 Gbps effective), delivering 152.0 GB/s — more than double the AMD part's bandwidth. This suggests NVIDIA's design anticipated memory-heavy workloads, while AMD's smaller bus was adequate for its target mobile segment. The pixel rate tells a similar story: NVIDIA achieves 21.96 GPixel/s versus AMD's 10.80 GPixel/s, and texture rate stands at 43.92 GTexel/s versus 21.60 GTexel/s.

API support differences round out the architectural picture. Both cards support DirectX 12, but AMD's implementation reaches 11_1 feature level while NVIDIA's stops at 11_0. OpenGL support is identical at 4.6. The AMD card also supports Vulkan 1.2.170, whereas the NVIDIA card has no Vulkan support listed — a notable omission given the relatively modern API landscape.

# Where Each One Wins

The AMD Radeon HD 7770M claims its victory in the efficiency and portability domain. With a TDP of just 32 W, the AMD part draws a fraction of the power required by the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 570's 219 W — a 6.8x difference. This efficiency advantage makes the AMD card suitable for portable device deployment, as indicated by its "Portable Device Dependent" display outputs, whereas the NVIDIA card requires a dual-slot cooler, two 6-pin power connectors, and a 550 W suggested power supply. The AMD card's 28 nm process node and 123 mm² die size also make it dramatically smaller and denser, which is crucial for mobile integration.

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 570 wins decisively in raw memory throughput and pixel processing capability. Its 152.0 GB/s bandwidth versus 64.00 GB/s represents a 2.4x advantage, and its 21.96 GPixel/s pixel rate doubles the AMD part's 10.80 GPixel/s. The NVIDIA card's 1,405.4 GFLOPS FP32 compute output also dwarfs the AMD card's 691.2 GFLOPS by a factor of two. These specifications suggest that the NVIDIA card would excel in scenarios demanding high fill rates or large data movement, such as high-resolution texture streaming or multi-sample anti-aliasing.

For compute workloads, the picture is more nuanced. Despite NVIDIA's higher FP32 throughput, the two cards achieve nearly identical benchmark scores, implying that AMD's GCN 1.0 architecture extracts more useful work per FLOP in the Geekbench test suite. The AMD card's Vulkan support and slightly higher DirectX feature level may also give it an edge in modern graphics APIs, while NVIDIA's lack of Vulkan support could limit its compatibility with newer titles.

# Specification Differences

The two cards differ across nearly every specification category, reflecting their divergent design goals. The AMD Radeon HD 7770M uses the Chelsea chip with GCN 1.0 architecture, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 570 uses the GF110 chip with Fermi 2.0. Process nodes differ at 28 nm versus 40 nm. Transistor counts are 1,500 million versus 3,000 million, and die sizes are 123 mm² versus 520 mm², yielding transistor densities of 12.2M/mm² versus 5.8M/mm².

Memory configurations diverge substantially: the AMD card has 1024 MB on a 128-bit bus with 64.00 GB/s bandwidth, while the NVIDIA card has 1280 MB on a 320-bit bus with 152.0 GB/s bandwidth. Memory clocks are 1000 MHz (4 Gbps effective) versus 950 MHz (3.8 Gbps effective). Shading units number 512 versus 480, TMUs are 32 versus 60, and ROPs are 16 versus 40. Pixel rates are 10.80 GPixel/s versus 21.96 GPixel/s, texture rates are 21.60 GTexel/s versus 43.92 GTexel/s, and FP32 performance is 691.2 GFLOPS versus 1,405.4 GFLOPS.

Power and physical characteristics show the biggest gap: TDP is 32 W versus 219 W. The NVIDIA card is dual-slot with two 6-pin power connectors and a 550 W suggested PSU, measuring 267 mm (10.5 inches) in length, while the AMD card's slot width, power connectors, and dimensions are not specified due to its portable device orientation. Display outputs are "Portable Device Dependent" for AMD versus 2x DVI and 1x mini-HDMI 1.3a for NVIDIA. Release dates differ by roughly 17 months — the AMD card launched on 2012-04-23 versus NVIDIA's 2010-12-06. Both cards are end-of-life, with the AMD card's predecessor being Vancouver and successor Solar System, while NVIDIA's predecessor is GeForce 400 and successor GeForce 600. The NVIDIA card has a launch MSRP of 349 USD.

# FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Radeon HD 7770M scores 13,536, which is 0.2 percent higher than the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 570's 13,515. Both cards sit at the 54th percentile among all GPUs.

Q: How do the memory bandwidth capabilities compare?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 570 provides 152.0 GB/s of bandwidth from a 320-bit bus with 1280 MB of GDDR5, while the AMD Radeon HD 7770M offers 64.00 GB/s from a 128-bit bus with 1024 MB of GDDR5. NVIDIA's bandwidth advantage is roughly 2.4x.

Q: What is the power consumption difference?

A: The AMD Radeon HD 7770M has a TDP of 32 W, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 570 draws 219 W. This represents a 6.8x difference in thermal design power.

Q: Which card supports Vulkan?

A: The AMD Radeon HD 7770M supports Vulkan 1.2.170, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 570 has no Vulkan support listed in its specifications.

Q: What are the DirectX feature level differences?

A: Both cards support DirectX 12, but the AMD Radeon HD 7770M reaches feature level 11_1, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 570 is limited to feature level 11_0.

Q: How do the transistor densities compare?

A: The AMD Radeon HD 7770M packs 1,500 million transistors into a 123 mm² die for a density of 12.2M per mm², whereas the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 570 places 3,000 million transistors on a 520 mm² die for only 5.8M per mm².

# The Verdict

The benchmark data tells a story of two GPUs that achieve the same result through radically different means. The AMD Radeon HD 7770M and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 570 are statistically tied in compute performance — a 0.2 percent delta in average benchmark scores is negligible, and both cards occupy the same 54th percentile. Neither card can claim a meaningful performance victory over the other in the available data.

The choice between them should therefore be driven by context rather than raw scores. The AMD Radeon HD 7770M is the clear pick for mobile or portable deployments, given its 32 W TDP, compact 123 mm² die, and portable-device-dependent display outputs. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 570 is the obvious choice for desktop systems requiring maximum memory bandwidth (152.0 GB/s), higher pixel throughput (21.96 GPixel/s), and more than double the FP32 compute (1,405.4 GFLOPS), provided the system can accommodate its 219 W TDP, dual-slot cooler, two 6-pin power connectors, 550 W suggested PSU, and 267 mm length.

For users prioritizing API compatibility, the AMD card offers Vulkan 1.2.170 and a higher DirectX feature level (11_1 versus 11_0), making it more future-proof for modern software. For users prioritizing raw specification dominance in fill-rate-bound or bandwidth-intensive workloads, the NVIDIA card's 2.4x bandwidth advantage and 2x pixel rate could prove decisive, despite the benchmark parity. The data suggests that in the Geekbench tests, both architectures are equally effective at translating their respective hardware investments into useful compute output — the question is which set of trade-offs better matches the intended use case.