AMD Radeon Pro 450 vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX 590 Comparison

Where Each One Wins

The benchmark data separates these two GPUs cleanly by workload and API. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 590 records a single decisive victory in the OpenCL compute test, while the AMD Radeon Pro 450 does not win any of the recorded head-to-head comparisons. However, the AMD card is tested across three different API paths: Metal, Vulkan, and OpenCL. Its highest score comes from Metal at 12,893, which is notably higher than its OpenCL result of 9,002 and its Vulkan result of 10,518. This suggests the Radeon Pro 450 is optimized for Apple's Metal framework, a pattern consistent with its designation as a Radeon Pro Mac series part.

The GTX 590, by contrast, has only one recorded benchmark result: OpenCL at 12,830. It has no Metal or Vulkan scores in the database, so any comparison across those APIs is impossible. The data shows that in the single shared test, OpenCL, the GTX 590 leads by a substantial 42.5% margin. That is the only head-to-head result recorded, and it defines the entire competitive picture.

For users prioritizing raw OpenCL compute throughput, the GTX 590 is the clear choice based on this dataset. For users working within Apple's Metal ecosystem, the Radeon Pro 450's Metal score of 12,893 stands as its strongest recorded performance, though it cannot be directly compared to the GTX 590 since the NVIDIA card lacks a Metal result. The Radeon Pro 450 also demonstrates Vulkan capability with a score of 10,518, a feature the GTX 590 does not support according to the database, which lists no Vulkan API for the Fermi-based card.

Architecture Differences

The two cards come from different eras and design philosophies. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 590 uses the GF110 chip built on Fermi 2.0 architecture, manufactured on a 40 nm process at TSMC. The die is massive at 520 mm², housing 3,000 million transistors, which yields a transistor density of 5.8M per mm². The AMD Radeon Pro 450 uses the Baffin chip on GCN 4.0 architecture, built on a 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries. Its die is far smaller at 123 mm², yet it also packs 3,000 million transistors, achieving a density of 24.4M per mm². The density difference is stark: the AMD chip crams the same transistor count into less than a quarter of the silicon area.

Memory configurations diverge significantly. The GTX 590 has 1,536 MB of GDDR5 on a 384-bit bus, delivering 164.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The Radeon Pro 450 has 2 GB of GDDR5 on a 128-bit bus, delivering 81.28 GB/s, roughly half the bandwidth. The memory clock for the GTX 590 is listed as 854 MHz, translating to 3.4 Gbps effective, while the AMD card runs at 1,270 MHz, or 5.1 Gbps effective. The NVIDIA card's wider bus compensates for its lower clock, resulting in much higher aggregate bandwidth.

Compute resources tell a different story. The GTX 590 has 512 shading units, 64 TMUs, and 48 ROPs. The Radeon Pro 450 has 640 shading units, 40 TMUs, and only 16 ROPs. The AMD card has more shaders but far fewer texture units and ROPs, which explains its lower pixel rate of 12.80 GPixel/s versus the GTX 590's 19.46 GPixel/s. The texture rate also favors NVIDIA: 38.91 GTexel/s versus 32.00 GTexel/s. In raw FP32 compute, the GTX 590 reaches 1,244.2 GFLOPS, while the Radeon Pro 450 manages 1,024.0 GFLOPS, a 21.5% deficit. The AMD card does offer FP16 at 1,024.0 GFLOPS with a 1:1 ratio, a feature the GTX 590 lacks entirely.

Power and physical design are almost incomparable. The GTX 590 is a dual-slot card with a 365 W TDP, requiring two 8-pin power connectors and a 750 W suggested PSU. It measures 279 mm in length, 111 mm in height, and 40 mm in width, with display outputs of 3x DVI and 1x mini-DisplayPort. The Radeon Pro 450 is an MXM module with a 35 W TDP, no power connectors listed, and no suggested PSU. Its display outputs are described as "Portable Device Dependent," reflecting its mobile-oriented design. The GTX 590 uses PCIe 2.0 x16, while the AMD card uses PCIe 3.0 x8.

API support also differs. The GTX 590 supports DirectX 12 (11_0) and OpenGL 4.6, but no Vulkan. The Radeon Pro 450 supports DirectX 12 (12_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3. The newer AMD architecture is more feature-complete for modern APIs.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only recorded head-to-head benchmark is Geekbench OpenCL. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 590 scores 12,830, while the AMD Radeon Pro 450 scores 9,002. The delta is 42.5%, with the GTX 590 winning outright. This is a massive margin, far larger than the differences seen among their nearest rivals.

The GTX 590's nearest rivals in the database include the AMD Radeon Pro 455 at 12,831 (0% delta), the AMD FirePro W5100 at 12,847 (-0.1%), the AMD Radeon 740M at 12,870 (-0.3%), and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 670 at 12,773 (+0.4%). The GTX 590 sits essentially at parity with these cards, all within a 1% band. Its percentile rank among all GPUs is 52, placing it just above the midpoint of the database.

The Radeon Pro 450's nearest rivals are the NVIDIA Quadro K2200 at 10,761 (+0.4% delta relative to the AMD card), the NVIDIA GeForce MX350 at 10,883 (-0.7%), the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560 Ti at 10,690 (+1.1%), and the AMD Radeon RX 6600S at 10,629 (+1.7%). The Radeon Pro 450's average benchmark score is 10,804, which is 15.8% lower than the GTX 590's average of 12,830. Its percentile rank is 49, just below the median.

Looking at the AMD card's own scores across APIs, the Metal result of 12,893 actually exceeds the GTX 590's OpenCL score of 12,830 by 0.5%. This is noteworthy: in the Metal path, the Radeon Pro 450 would edge out the GTX 590's OpenCL number, though these are different APIs and not directly comparable. The Vulkan score of 10,518 sits between the OpenCL and Metal results, showing that API choice materially affects the AMD card's performance.

The Verdict

The data presents a straightforward conclusion for OpenCL workloads: the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 590 is 42.5% faster than the AMD Radeon Pro 450. This is not a marginal difference; it is a commanding lead that dwarfs the typical gaps between adjacent GPUs in the database. The GTX 590 also holds advantages in pixel rate (19.46 vs 12.80 GPixel/s), texture rate (38.91 vs 32.00 GTexel/s), FP32 compute (1,244.2 vs 1,024.0 GFLOPS), and memory bandwidth (164.0 vs 81.28 GB/s). It is the stronger card on nearly every traditional rasterization and compute metric.

However, the Radeon Pro 450 is not without merit. Its Metal score of 12,893 is the highest single benchmark result recorded for either card, and it supports Vulkan 1.3, which the GTX 590 cannot use. Its 2 GB memory capacity exceeds the GTX 590's 1,536 MB, and its 35 W TDP is a fraction of the GTX 590's 365 W, making it suitable for portable and low-power systems. The GTX 590 requires a 750 W PSU and dual-slot space, while the Radeon Pro 450 is an MXM module with no external power requirements.

Who should pick which? The GTX 590 is for users who need maximum OpenCL throughput, high bandwidth, and strong rasterization rates, and who have the power and space budget to accommodate a 365 W dual-slot card. The Radeon Pro 450 is for users in Apple Mac environments where Metal is the primary API, or for compact systems where the MXM form factor and 35 W power draw are mandatory constraints. The data does not support the Radeon Pro 450 as an OpenCL competitor, but it does show a viable path through Metal.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU wins the only recorded head-to-head benchmark?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 590 wins the Geekbench OpenCL test, scoring 12,830 against the AMD Radeon Pro 450's 9,002, a delta of 42.5%.

Q: Does the AMD Radeon Pro 450 have any benchmark score higher than the GTX 590's OpenCL result?

A: Yes. The Radeon Pro 450 scores 12,893 in Geekbench Metal, which is 0.5% higher than the GTX 590's 12,830 OpenCL score. However, these are different API tests and not directly comparable.

Q: What is the memory bandwidth difference between the two cards?

A: The GTX 590 has a 384-bit bus delivering 164.0 GB/s, while the Radeon Pro 450 has a 128-bit bus delivering 81.28 GB/s. The GTX 590 provides roughly double the bandwidth.

Q: Which card has more shading units?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro 450 has 640 shading units, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 590 has 512. Despite having fewer shaders, the GTX 590 achieves higher FP32 compute at 1,244.2 GFLOPS versus 1,024.0 GFLOPS.

Q: What API support does the Radeon Pro 450 have that the GTX 590 lacks?

A: The Radeon Pro 450 supports Vulkan 1.3, while the GTX 590 has no Vulkan support listed. Both cards support DirectX 12 and OpenGL 4.6, though the GTX 590 is limited to DirectX 12 (11_0).

Q: How do the two cards compare in transistor density?

A: The Radeon Pro 450 has a density of 24.4M transistors per mm² on a 123 mm² die, while the GTX 590 has 5.8M per mm² on a 520 mm² die. Both chips contain 3,000 million transistors.