AMD Radeon HD 8790M vs NVIDIA GeForce GT 1010 Comparison

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GT 1010 has an average benchmark score of 6698, while the AMD Radeon HD 8790M averages 5691. The GT 1010 also sits in the 38th percentile of all GPUs, compared to the 33rd percentile for the HD 8790M.

Q: How do the two compare in the OpenCL benchmark?

A: In the Geekbench OpenCL test, the NVIDIA GeForce GT 1010 scores 6698 versus 5017 for the AMD Radeon HD 8790M. That is a 33.5% advantage for the NVIDIA part, and it is the only head-to-head benchmark recorded in the database.

Q: Does the AMD card have any benchmark where it wins?

A: The recorded data shows zero wins for the AMD Radeon HD 8790M in head-to-head comparisons. The NVIDIA GeForce GT 1010 holds all wins in the database, with a 1-0 record.

Q: What is the difference in memory bus width?

A: The AMD Radeon HD 8790M uses a 128-bit memory bus, while the NVIDIA GeForce GT 1010 uses a 64-bit bus. The AMD card also has a higher memory bandwidth of 64.00 GB/s compared to 48.06 GB/s for the NVIDIA card.

Q: Which GPU has more shading units?

A: The AMD Radeon HD 8790M has 384 shading units, while the NVIDIA GeForce GT 1010 has 256. Despite this, the NVIDIA card achieves higher FP32 performance at 751.6 GFLOPS versus 691.2 GFLOPS for the AMD part.

Q: What are the release dates for these two GPUs?

A: The AMD Radeon HD 8790M was released on March 31, 2013, while the NVIDIA GeForce GT 1010 arrived much later, on January 12, 2021. Both are now end-of-life products.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from entirely different architectural generations. The NVIDIA GeForce GT 1010 is built on the Pascal architecture using the GP108 chip, while the AMD Radeon HD 8790M uses the older GCN 1.0 architecture with the Mars chip. This generational gap shows in the manufacturing process: NVIDIA uses a 14 nm node from Samsung, whereas AMD relies on a 28 nm process from TSMC.

Transistor counts reflect the process difference. The NVIDIA chip packs 1,800 million transistors into a 74 mm² die, producing a transistor density of 24.3 million transistors per mm². The AMD chip, by contrast, has 950 million transistors on a slightly larger 77 mm² die, giving a density of just 12.3 million per mm². The smaller, denser NVIDIA chip is a direct product of its more advanced manufacturing node.

The AMD Radeon HD 8790M belongs to the Solar System generation (HD 8700M series) and uses the Mars chip. Its predecessor is London and its successor is Gem System. The NVIDIA GeForce GT 1010 is part of the GeForce 10 generation, with the GeForce 900 series as its predecessor and GeForce 20 as its successor.

Feature support also differs. The NVIDIA card supports DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The AMD card supports DirectX 12 (11_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.170. Both lack dedicated ray tracing and tensor cores, which are absent from the recorded specifications for either GPU.

Where Each One Wins

The NVIDIA GeForce GT 1010 wins in raw compute performance. Its Geekbench OpenCL score of 6698 puts it 33.5% ahead of the AMD Radeon HD 8790M. It also has higher FP32 throughput at 751.6 GFLOPS, a higher pixel rate at 11.74 GPixel/s, and a higher texture rate at 23.49 GTexel/s. The GT 1010 achieves this with lower power consumption, rated at 30 W, and in a single-slot form factor with a 200 W suggested PSU.

The AMD Radeon HD 8790M wins in memory bandwidth and raw memory bus width. Its 128-bit bus delivers 64.00 GB/s of bandwidth, which is 33% higher than the NVIDIA card's 48.06 GB/s. It also has more shading units (384 versus 256) and more texture mapping units (24 versus 16). The AMD card is an MXM module, making it suited for portable devices where the display outputs are device-dependent.

For desktop users, the NVIDIA GT 1010 is the clear choice. It offers a PCIe 3.0 x4 interface, standard display outputs including DVI and mini-HDMI 2.0, and a compact 147 mm (5.8 inches) length. The AMD card targets mobile or small-form-factor systems with its MXM-A (3.0) bus interface, and its display outputs depend on the host device, so it cannot be used as a standalone desktop solution without the right carrier.

Specification Differences

The two cards differ across nearly every major specification category. The NVIDIA GeForce GT 1010 uses a 14 nm Samsung process, while the AMD Radeon HD 8790M uses a 28 nm TSMC process. The NVIDIA chip has 1,800 million transistors versus 950 million for AMD, with die sizes of 74 mm² and 77 mm² respectively.

Clock speeds favor NVIDIA. The GT 1010 has a base clock of 1228 MHz and a boost clock of 1468 MHz. The HD 8790M runs at 850 MHz base and 900 MHz boost. Memory clocks also differ: NVIDIA runs at 1502 MHz (6 Gbps effective), while AMD runs at 1000 MHz (4 Gbps effective).

Memory configuration splits the two. Both have 2 GB of GDDR5, but the NVIDIA card uses a 64-bit bus with 48.06 GB/s bandwidth, while the AMD card uses a 128-bit bus with 64.00 GB/s bandwidth. Shading units differ as noted: 256 for NVIDIA versus 384 for AMD. TMUs are 16 versus 24, while ROPs are equal at 8 for both.

Compute rates show NVIDIA ahead. The GT 1010 delivers 11.74 GPixel/s pixel rate and 23.49 GTexel/s texture rate. The HD 8790M delivers 7.200 GPixel/s and 21.60 GTexel/s. FP32 performance is 751.6 GFLOPS for NVIDIA versus 691.2 GFLOPS for AMD.

Form factors differ substantially. The NVIDIA card is single-slot with no power connectors and a 200 W suggested PSU. The AMD card is an MXM module with no power connectors and no suggested PSU listed. The NVIDIA card uses PCIe 3.0 x4; the AMD card uses MXM-A (3.0). Display outputs are another split: NVIDIA offers 1x DVI and 1x mini-HDMI 2.0, while AMD outputs are portable device dependent.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The database records one head-to-head benchmark between these two GPUs: Geekbench OpenCL. The NVIDIA GeForce GT 1010 scores 6698, and the AMD Radeon HD 8790M scores 5017. The delta is 33.5%, making it a decisive win for the NVIDIA card. This is the only benchmark where both cards were tested, and it accounts for the GT 1010's 1-0 win record.

Context from the nearest rivals helps interpret these numbers. The GT 1010's average score of 6698 places it just behind the AMD Radeon R7 M370, which averages 6764, a 1% difference. It sits ahead of the AMD Radeon R7 M460 (6612, 1.3% behind) and the AMD Radeon HD 7730M (6581, 1.8% behind). The AMD FirePro M5100 leads this group at 6830, 1.9% ahead of the GT 1010.

The HD 8790M's average score of 5691 puts it in a different performance tier. Its nearest rivals include the Intel Iris Pro Graphics P6300 at 5712 (0.4% ahead), the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 670MX at 5721 (0.5% ahead), and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 550 Ti at 5731 (0.7% ahead). The NVIDIA Quadro M500M trails at 5604, 1.6% behind the HD 8790M.

The OpenCL result aligns with the architectural advantages of the Pascal chip. Even though the AMD card has more shading units and a wider memory bus, the GT 1010's higher clocks and newer architecture produce a 33.5% higher score. The GT 1010 also has a Vulkan score advantage in its favor, though the HD 8790M does have a recorded Vulkan score of 6365 from the Geekbench Vulkan test, which is not directly compared in the head-to-head data.

In practical terms, the benchmark data shows the GT 1010 outperforming the HD 8790M by roughly a third in compute workloads. The AMD card's wider memory bus does not translate into a win in the recorded tests. The GT 1010's percentile ranking of 38 versus 33 for the HD 8790M reinforces that the NVIDIA card sits in a higher performance tier overall, despite both being end-of-life products.