AMD Radeon Pro 450 vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX 850M Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The head-to-head comparison between the AMD Radeon Pro 450 and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 850M is a split decision, with each card claiming one victory in the two shared benchmark tests. The database records two direct comparisons: Geekbench OpenCL and Geekbench Vulkan.

In the Geekbench OpenCL test, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 850M takes the win with a score of 9,821 against the AMD Radeon Pro 450's 9,002. This represents an 8.3% advantage for the NVIDIA part. The gap is meaningful but not overwhelming; in absolute terms, the GTX 850M is roughly 819 points ahead. This result aligns with the overall average benchmark scores, where the GTX 850M posts 9,302 versus the Radeon Pro 450's 10,804, though the averages are drawn from different test sets. The OpenCL result shows NVIDIA's Maxwell architecture handling general-purpose compute workloads effectively, even with its older 28 nm process node.

The Geekbench Vulkan test flips the outcome decisively. Here, the AMD Radeon Pro 450 scores 10,518 against the GTX 850M's 8,782, a 19.8% advantage for AMD. That is a substantial margin, nearly one-fifth faster in this graphics API workload. The Radeon Pro 450's Vulkan score also exceeds its own OpenCL result by 1,516 points, while the GTX 850M's Vulkan score is 1,039 points lower than its OpenCL score. This suggests the AMD architecture is better optimized for Vulkan's explicit, low-overhead model, while the NVIDIA part performs relatively better under OpenCL.

Looking at the broader benchmark landscape, the Radeon Pro 450's average benchmark score of 10,804 places it in the 49th percentile among all GPUs in the database. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA Quadro K2200 at 10,761 (0.4% behind), the NVIDIA GeForce MX350 at 10,883 (0.7% ahead), the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560 Ti at 10,690 (1.1% behind), and the AMD Radeon RX 6600S at 10,629 (1.7% behind). This shows the Radeon Pro 450 sits in a tightly contested cluster of mid-range parts, where a few percentage points separate near-equal performers.

The GTX 850M, by contrast, posts a 46th percentile ranking with its 9,302 average. Its nearest rivals are the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 465 at 9,294 (0.1% behind), the AMD Radeon R7 M380 at 9,313 (0.1% ahead), the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960 at 9,273 (0.3% behind), and the AMD Radeon Vega 8 at 9,221 (0.9% behind). The GTX 850M's cluster is similarly tight, but at a lower performance tier overall. The 1,502-point gap between the two cards' average scores reflects a real performance stratification, even though each wins one head-to-head test.

Where Each One Wins

The AMD Radeon Pro 450 wins in Vulkan-based workloads. Its 19.8% lead over the GTX 850M in Geekbench Vulkan is the largest margin recorded in this comparison. For applications that leverage Vulkan, whether games or compute tasks using that API, the Radeon Pro 450 has a clear advantage. Its Vulkan support extends to version 1.3, and its GCN 4.0 architecture appears to translate that API support into tangible benchmark results.

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 850M wins in OpenCL workloads. Its 8.3% lead in Geekbench OpenCL demonstrates strength in general-purpose GPU compute. The GTX 850M also lists Vulkan 1.4 support, which is a newer API revision than the Radeon Pro 450's 1.3, but the benchmark data shows the Radeon Pro 450 outperforming it in Vulkan despite the older API version. OpenCL remains the GTX 850M's stronger discipline.

The use-case split is therefore straightforward. Tasks built around OpenCL favor the NVIDIA card. Tasks built around Vulkan favor the AMD card. The Radeon Pro 450's additional Geekbench Metal score of 12,893 is not directly comparable to the GTX 850M, which lacks a Metal result in the database, but it indicates strong performance on Apple platforms where Metal is the primary graphics API. The GTX 850M has no recorded Metal benchmark, so no direct comparison is possible for that API.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro 450 has an average benchmark score of 10,804, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 850M averages 9,302. The Radeon Pro 450 also holds a higher percentile ranking at 49 versus 46 for the GTX 850M.

Q: How large is the Vulkan performance gap between the two cards?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro 450 scores 10,518 in Geekbench Vulkan, which is 19.8% higher than the GTX 850M's 8,782. This is the largest single-test margin in the head-to-head comparison.

Q: Does the NVIDIA card win any benchmark test?

A: Yes, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 850M wins the Geekbench OpenCL test with a score of 9,821, beating the AMD Radeon Pro 450's 9,002 by 8.3%.

Q: What memory configurations do the two cards use?

A: Both cards have 2 GB of memory on a 128-bit bus, but the Radeon Pro 450 uses GDDR5 with 81.28 GB/s bandwidth, while the GTX 850M uses DDR3 with 32.03 GB/s bandwidth.

Q: How do the two cards compare in transistor count and die size?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro 450 has 3,000 million transistors on a 123 mm² die, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 850M has 1,870 million transistors on a 148 mm² die. The AMD chip achieves a transistor density of 24.4M per mm² compared to 12.6M per mm² for NVIDIA.

Q: Which card has the higher thermal design power?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 850M has a TDP of 45 W, while the AMD Radeon Pro 450 has a TDP of 35 W. The AMD card draws less power despite its higher average benchmark score.

Specification Differences

The two cards differ in nearly every core specification category. The AMD Radeon Pro 450 is built on a 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 850M uses a 28 nm process at TSMC. This process advantage allows AMD to pack 3,000 million transistors into a 123 mm² die, resulting in a transistor density of 24.4M per mm². NVIDIA's GM107 chip contains 1,870 million transistors on a larger 148 mm² die, giving a density of 12.6M per mm².

Memory configurations diverge significantly. Both cards offer 2 GB and a 128-bit bus, but the Radeon Pro 450 uses GDDR5 memory clocked at 1270 MHz with 5.1 Gbps effective speed, delivering 81.28 GB/s of bandwidth. The GTX 850M uses DDR3 memory at 1001 MHz with 2 Gbps effective speed, producing only 32.03 GB/s of bandwidth. The AMD card offers more than double the memory bandwidth.

Compute unit counts are identical in shading units, texture mapping units, and render output units: both cards have 640 shading units, 40 TMUs, and 16 ROPs. Despite this, the pixel rate and texture rate differ. The GTX 850M achieves 14.43 GPixel/s and 36.08 GTexel/s, while the Radeon Pro 450 achieves 12.80 GPixel/s and 32.00 GTexel/s. The NVIDIA card has slightly higher fill rates. Floating point performance also favors NVIDIA in FP32, with 1,154.6 GFLOPS versus 1,024.0 GFLOPS for AMD. The Radeon Pro 450 does offer FP16 at 1,024.0 GFLOPS with 1:1 ratio, while the GTX 850M has no recorded FP16 capability.

Power and interface specifications differ as well. The Radeon Pro 450 has a 35 W TDP and uses an MXM Module slot width with a PCIe 3.0 x8 interface. The GTX 850M has a 45 W TDP, uses an IGP slot width, has no power connectors, and connects via PCIe 3.0 x16. Both cards are end-of-life products with portable-device-dependent display outputs.

Architecture Differences

The AMD Radeon Pro 450 is based on the Baffin chip using GCN 4.0 architecture, belonging to the Radeon Pro Mac (400 Series) generation. Its API support includes DirectX 12 (12_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 850M uses the GM107 chip with Maxwell architecture, from the GeForce 800M generation. Its API support includes DirectX 12 (11_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The NVIDIA card lists a higher Vulkan API version, yet the benchmark data shows the AMD card performing significantly better in Vulkan workloads.

The manufacturing approaches reflect different design philosophies. AMD's 14 nm process with GlobalFoundries allows for a smaller die and higher transistor density, while NVIDIA's 28 nm process with TSMC results in a larger die with fewer transistors. The GTX 850M's predecessor is the GeForce 700M series and its successor is the GeForce 900M series, giving it a clear generational lineage. The Radeon Pro 450 has no recorded predecessor or successor in the database.

The GTX 850M was released on 2014-03-11, while the Radeon Pro 450 came later on 2016-10-29. The two-year gap in release dates partially explains the architectural differences: GCN 4.0 is a newer design than Maxwell, and the 14 nm process gives AMD a manufacturing advantage that shows in transistor density and memory bandwidth. The GTX 850M's higher fill rates and FP32 performance, however, demonstrate that older architectures can still hold advantages in specific metrics.

The Verdict

The data supports a clear choice based on workload priority. For users whose applications rely on OpenCL, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 850M is the better option, offering an 8.3% advantage in that specific benchmark. Its higher FP32 throughput of 1,154.6 GFLOPS and faster pixel and texture rates provide a theoretical foundation for this result. The GTX 850M also carries a 45 W TDP, which is higher than the AMD card's 35 W, but it delivers competitive compute performance for its generation.

For users whose applications leverage Vulkan, the AMD Radeon Pro 450 is the stronger card by a wide margin. Its 19.8% lead in Geekbench Vulkan is substantial, and its higher average benchmark score of 10,804 versus 9,302 indicates better overall performance across the tests recorded in the database. The Radeon Pro 450 also offers more than double the memory bandwidth at 81.28 GB/s, which can benefit texture-heavy and bandwidth-sensitive workloads. Its 35 W TDP makes it the more power-efficient option as well.

The Radeon Pro 450's additional Metal benchmark score of 12,893, while not directly comparable to the GTX 850M, suggests strong performance in Apple-centric environments. The GTX 850M has no recorded Metal score, so users on those platforms have no data to evaluate it. The percentile rankings reinforce the AMD card's overall position: 49th percentile versus 46th, a modest but consistent edge.

The choice ultimately depends on the API ecosystem of the target applications. OpenCL-centric users should select the GTX 850M. Vulkan-centric users, or those prioritizing overall average benchmark performance and power efficiency, should select the Radeon Pro 450. Each card wins one head-to-head test, and the margins favor AMD in the larger victory, making the Radeon Pro 450 the more balanced recommendation for mixed workloads.