AMD Radeon HD 8790M vs AMD Radeon R7 M360 Comparison

The AMD Radeon HD 8790M and the AMD Radeon R7 M360 are both end-of-life mobile graphics solutions from AMD, separated by roughly two years of release timing. The HD 8790M arrived in early 2013 as part of the Solar System generation, while the R7 M360 launched in mid-2015 under the Gem System banner. Despite the generational gap, both cards target the same segment of the laptop market, and their benchmark results reveal a clear performance hierarchy that is worth examining in detail.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The database records two direct benchmark comparisons between these GPUs, and the AMD Radeon HD 8790M wins both. In the Geekbench OpenCL test, the HD 8790M scores 5017 against 4638 for the R7 M360, a delta of 8.2 percent. That margin is not trivial, but it is not overwhelming either. The OpenCL result suggests that for general compute workloads, the older card holds a solid advantage, though the newer part remains within striking distance.

The Vulkan benchmark tells a different story. Here, the HD 8790M scores 6365 while the R7 M360 manages only 5223, a much larger delta of 21.9 percent. This is a substantial gap that indicates the HD 8790M has a significant edge in graphics API workloads that leverage Vulkan. The difference in Vulkan performance is more than double the difference seen in OpenCL, which points to architectural efficiencies in the older chip when handling modern low-level graphics APIs.

Looking at the average benchmark scores across all recorded tests, the HD 8790M posts 5691 while the R7 M360 averages 4931. That is a difference of roughly 15.4 percent in favor of the older card. The HD 8790M also sits at the 33rd percentile among all GPUs in the database, while the R7 M360 is at the 29th percentile. Both are entry-level performers by current standards, but the HD 8790M consistently ranks higher.

The nearest rivals for each card provide context. The HD 8790M sits between the Intel Iris Pro Graphics P6300 (5712, 0.4 percent higher) and the NVIDIA Quadro M500M (5604, 1.6 percent lower). The R7 M360 is effectively tied with the AMD Radeon R7 M265 (4929, 0 percent delta) and slightly ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce GTS 450 (4893, 0.8 percent higher). Notably, the database lists the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 Ti 8 GB as a nearest rival for the R7 M360 with a score of 4901, which is 0.6 percent lower. That is an odd pairing given the massive generational and performance gulf between those parts, but the average score is what it is.

Where Each One Wins

The HD 8790M wins every recorded benchmark, which simplifies the use-case analysis. In OpenCL workloads, which include many compute-oriented tasks like image processing, physics simulations, and some machine learning inference, the HD 8790M leads by 8.2 percent. That advantage is meaningful for users who rely on OpenCL acceleration in creative or scientific applications. The R7 M360, while slower, is not far behind in this specific area, so it can still handle light OpenCL duties without major compromises.

The Vulkan results are where the HD 8790M truly separates itself. A 21.9 percent lead in Vulkan means that games and applications built on this modern API will run noticeably better on the older card. Vulkan is increasingly common in cross-platform game engines, so this advantage translates directly to real-world gaming performance. The R7 M360 would struggle to maintain playable frame rates in Vulkan-based titles that the HD 8790M can handle with more headroom.

For the R7 M360, there are no benchmark wins to point to. Its saving grace is its release date, which comes later, but the data shows no performance category where it overtakes the HD 8790M. The R7 M360 does have a higher pixel rate (9.000 GPixel/s versus 7.200 GPixel/s) and a higher texture rate (27.00 GTexel/s versus 21.60 GTexel/s), which suggests it could have an edge in fill-rate-bound scenarios. However, the recorded benchmarks do not include tests that isolate those factors, so the practical impact remains unmeasured.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from different architectural generations. The HD 8790M uses the Mars chip built on GCN 1.0 architecture, while the R7 M360 uses the Meso chip on GCN 3.0. Both are fabricated on a 28 nm process at TSMC, so the manufacturing node is identical. The transistor counts differ significantly: the Mars chip packs 950 million transistors on a 77 mm² die, while the Meso chip contains 1,550 million transistors on a 125 mm² die. The transistor density is nearly the same, 12.3 million per mm² for the HD 8790M and 12.4 million per mm² for the R7 M360.

The R7 M360 is a larger and more complex chip, yet it underperforms in the recorded benchmarks. This suggests that GCN 3.0 brought architectural changes that did not translate to better raw performance at this tier, or that the memory configuration severely bottlenecks the newer part. The R7 M360 uses DDR3 memory with a 64 bit bus width, yielding just 14.40 GB/s of bandwidth. The HD 8790M uses GDDR5 with a 128 bit bus, providing 64.00 GB/s. That is a 4.44x difference in memory bandwidth, and it is likely the dominant factor in the performance gap.

The shading unit count is identical at 384 for both cards, and both have 24 texture units and 8 ROPs. Clock speeds favor the R7 M360, which runs at 1100 MHz base and 1125 MHz boost, compared to 850 MHz base and 900 MHz boost for the HD 8790M. The raw compute throughput, measured in FP32 GFLOPS, is 864.0 for the R7 M360 versus 691.2 for the HD 8790M. The newer card has higher theoretical compute, but the memory bandwidth deficit cripples it in practice. The R7 M360 also supports FP16 at a 1:1 ratio (864.0 GFLOPS), while the HD 8790M has no recorded FP16 capability.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has better memory bandwidth?

A: The AMD Radeon HD 8790M has significantly higher memory bandwidth at 64.00 GB/s, thanks to its GDDR5 memory on a 128 bit bus. The R7 M360 uses DDR3 on a 64 bit bus, which delivers only 14.40 GB/s.

Q: Does the R7 M360 have more compute units or shaders?

A: No, both cards have exactly 384 shading units, 24 texture units, and 8 ROPs. Their compute resource counts are identical.

Q: What is the performance difference in Vulkan benchmarks?

A: The HD 8790M scores 6365 in Geekbench Vulkan, while the R7 M360 scores 5223, giving the HD 8790M a 21.9 percent advantage.

Q: Which card supports a newer DirectX version?

A: The R7 M360 supports DirectX 12 (12_0), while the HD 8790M only supports DirectX 12 (11_1). Both support OpenGL 4.6 and Vulkan 1.2.170.

Q: How do these cards compare to their nearest rivals?

A: The HD 8790M is 0.4 percent behind the Intel Iris Pro Graphics P6300 and 1.6 percent ahead of the NVIDIA Quadro M500M. The R7 M360 is tied with the AMD Radeon R7 M265 and 0.8 percent ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce GTS 450.

Q: Which GPU has a higher clock speed?

A: The R7 M360 runs at 1100 MHz base and 1125 MHz boost, compared to 850 MHz base and 900 MHz boost for the HD 8790M.

Specification Differences

The two cards differ in several key specification fields. The HD 8790M uses the Mars chip with GCN 1.0 architecture, while the R7 M360 uses the Meso chip with GCN 3.0. The HD 8790M belongs to the Solar System generation (HD 8700M), and the R7 M360 belongs to the Gem System generation (R7 M300). The transistor count is 950 million for the HD 8790M and 1,550 million for the R7 M360. Die size is 77 mm² versus 125 mm².

Memory configurations diverge sharply: the HD 8790M has 2 GB of GDDR5 on a 128 bit bus with 64.00 GB/s bandwidth, while the R7 M360 has 2 GB of DDR3 on a 64 bit bus with 14.40 GB/s bandwidth. Clock speeds are higher on the R7 M360, with 1100 MHz base and 1125 MHz boost, versus 850 MHz and 900 MHz for the HD 8790M. The memory clock also differs: the HD 8790M runs at 1000 MHz with 4 Gbps effective, while the R7 M360 runs at 900 MHz with 1800 Mbps effective.

Pixel rate is 7.200 GPixel/s for the HD 8790M and 9.000 GPixel/s for the R7 M360. Texture rate is 21.60 GTexel/s versus 27.00 GTexel/s. FP32 performance is 691.2 GFLOPS versus 864.0 GFLOPS, with the R7 M360 also offering FP16 at 864.0 GFLOPS. The bus interface differs: the HD 8790M uses MXM-A (3.0) with a slot width of MXM Module, while the R7 M360 uses PCIe 3.0 x8. Release dates are March 31, 2013 for the HD 8790M and May 4, 2015 for the R7 M360. The HD 8790M lists its predecessor as London and successor as Gem System, while the R7 M360 lists predecessor as Solar System and successor as Polaris Mobile.

The Verdict

The data is unambiguous: the AMD Radeon HD 8790M is the stronger performer in every recorded benchmark. Its 8.2 percent lead in OpenCL and 21.9 percent lead in Vulkan demonstrate that the older GCN 1.0 chip, despite lower clock speeds and smaller die, delivers better real-world results. The deciding factor is memory bandwidth. The HD 8790M's 64.00 GB/s GDDR5 setup is vastly superior to the R7 M360's 14.40 GB/s DDR3, and that gap overwhelms the newer card's higher shader clocks and larger transistor count.

Users seeking a mobile GPU for Vulkan-based gaming or OpenCL compute should prioritize the HD 8790M. Its average benchmark score of 5691 places it above the R7 M360's 4931, and its percentile ranking of 33 versus 29 confirms a relative advantage. The R7 M360 does offer a newer architecture with DirectX 12 (12_0) support and FP16 compute, which could matter for specific modern workloads, but the recorded performance data shows no scenario where it wins.

The R7 M360 is a part that looks better on paper in some respects, with higher clocks and more transistors, but the benchmark results tell a different story. The HD 8790M is the pick for anyone who values measured performance over architectural novelty. For those who need DirectX 12 (12_0) or FP16 support, the R7 M360 has a niche appeal, but it comes at a measurable cost in raw speed. The verdict from the database is clear: the older card wins this matchup.