AMD Radeon R5 M240 vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560 SE Comparison

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560 SE and the AMD Radeon R5 M240 represent two distinct approaches to mobile and desktop graphics from different eras. The data shows a narrow but clear victory for the NVIDIA part in the single available benchmark, though the underlying specifications reveal a more complex story about architectural philosophy and intended use cases. The GeForce GTX 560 SE emerges with a 2.8% lead in the Geekbench OpenCL test, scoring 7171 against the Radeon R5 M240's 6975. This head-to-head result places both cards in the 39th percentile of all GPUs, indicating they occupy a similar performance tier despite their generational and architectural differences.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only direct comparison available is the Geekbench OpenCL score, where the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560 SE outpaces the AMD Radeon R5 M240 by 2.8%. The NVIDIA card scores 7171, while the AMD part achieves 6975. This is a modest margin, but it is consistent with the rival context for each card. The GTX 560 SE sits between the AMD Radeon Vega 8 Mobile (7203) and the Intel Iris Pro Graphics P580 (7170), with deltas of -0.4% and 0%, respectively. This positioning suggests the NVIDIA card is right at the edge of a cluster of similarly performing parts, just slightly behind the Vega 8 Mobile but statistically tied with the Iris Pro P580.

The Radeon R5 M240, by contrast, is placed among a different set of competitors. Its closest rival is the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 675M, which scores 6946 and trails the AMD part by 0.4%. The R5 M240 also leads the AMD FirePro M5100 (6830) by 2.1%, but falls behind the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680M (7023) and the NVIDIA T600 (7035) by 0.7% and 0.8%, respectively. The benchmark data indicates that while the GTX 560 SE and R5 M240 are close in raw score, they are not directly competing for the same spots in the performance hierarchy. The NVIDIA card's competitors are primarily integrated and low-end discrete parts, while the AMD card's rivals are mostly older mobile discrete GPUs.

Looking at the wins tally, the GTX 560 SE claims 1 win out of 1 head-to-head benchmark, while the R5 M240 has 0 wins. The margin of 2.8% is small enough that in practice, driver optimizations or workload variations could flip the result, but the data as presented gives the NVIDIA part the definitive edge. The GTX 560 SE also benefits from a slightly higher average benchmark score relative to its own nearest rival, the Intel Iris Pro P580, with a delta of 0%, meaning the two are effectively identical in this test. The R5 M240's average score of 6975 is 0.4% ahead of the GTX 675M, showing that AMD's part does have a small advantage over at least one NVIDIA mobile offering.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher Geekbench OpenCL score?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560 SE scores 7171, which is 2.8% higher than the AMD Radeon R5 M240's 6975 in the Geekbench OpenCL benchmark.

Q: How does the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560 SE compare to its nearest rival, the Intel Iris Pro Graphics P580?

A: The GTX 560 SE scores 7171, while the Intel Iris Pro Graphics P580 scores 7170, resulting in a delta of 0%. The two GPUs are statistically tied in this benchmark.

Q: What is the performance gap between the AMD Radeon R5 M240 and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 675M?

A: The Radeon R5 M240 scores 6975, which is 0.4% higher than the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 675M's 6946. The AMD part holds a slight lead over this particular rival.

Q: Which GPU has a higher transistor density?

A: The AMD Radeon R5 M240 has a transistor density of 12.3M per mm², which is significantly higher than the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560 SE's 5.9M per mm². This is due to the AMD part's smaller 28 nm process node compared to NVIDIA's 40 nm node.

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

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560 SE has a memory bandwidth of 91.87 GB/s, while the AMD Radeon R5 M240 has 14.40 GB/s. The NVIDIA part has a substantial advantage in this specification.

Q: Do both GPUs support the same DirectX version?

A: Both GPUs support DirectX 12, but with different feature levels. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560 SE supports DirectX 12 (11_0), while the AMD Radeon R5 M240 supports DirectX 12 (11_1). The AMD part also supports Vulkan 1.2.170, whereas the NVIDIA part has no listed Vulkan support.

Architecture Differences

The architectural divide between these two GPUs is substantial. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560 SE is built on the Fermi 2.0 architecture using the GF114 chip, manufactured on a 40 nm process at TSMC. This is a mature, power-hungry design from the GeForce 500 generation. The AMD Radeon R5 M240, in contrast, uses the GCN 1.0 architecture with the Jet chip, fabricated on a 28 nm process, also at TSMC. The process node difference is critical: 40 nm versus 28 nm directly impacts transistor density, with the AMD part achieving 12.3M transistors per mm² compared to NVIDIA's 5.9M per mm². The R5 M240 packs 690 million transistors into a 56 mm² die, while the GTX 560 SE uses 1,950 million transistors across a much larger 332 mm² die.

The shader architecture also differs fundamentally. The GTX 560 SE has 288 shading units, 48 texture mapping units (TMUs), and 24 render output units (ROPs). The R5 M240 has 320 shading units, but only 20 TMUs and 8 ROPs. This means the AMD part has more compute-oriented shaders but far fewer texture and pixel processing units. The NVIDIA part's higher TMU and ROP counts are reflected in its texture rate of 35.33 GTexel/s and pixel rate of 8.832 GPixel/s, compared to the AMD part's 20.60 GTexel/s and 8.240 GPixel/s. The GTX 560 SE also delivers higher FP32 performance at 847.9 GFLOPS versus the R5 M240's 659.2 GFLOPS.

Memory architecture is another major divergence. The GTX 560 SE uses GDDR5 memory with a 192-bit bus, yielding 91.87 GB/s of bandwidth. The R5 M240 uses DDR3 memory with a 64-bit bus, resulting in only 14.40 GB/s. The NVIDIA card's memory clock is 957 MHz (3.8 Gbps effective), while the AMD card's is 900 MHz (1800 Mbps effective). Both cards have 1024 MB of memory, but the bandwidth disparity is enormous, favoring the NVIDIA part by a factor of more than six. The R5 M240 does have a distinct advantage in API support, offering Vulkan 1.2.170, which the GTX 560 SE lacks entirely.

Specification Differences

The two GPUs differ on nearly every major specification. The process node is 40 nm for NVIDIA versus 28 nm for AMD. Transistor count is 1,950 million for the GTX 560 SE versus 690 million for the R5 M240. Die size is 332 mm² versus 56 mm². The memory type is GDDR5 for NVIDIA and DDR3 for AMD, with bus widths of 192-bit and 64-bit, respectively. Bandwidth is 91.87 GB/s versus 14.40 GB/s. The memory clock is 957 MHz (3.8 Gbps effective) for NVIDIA and 900 MHz (1800 Mbps effective) for AMD.

The clock speeds are also notably different. The R5 M240 has a base clock of 1000 MHz and a boost clock of 1030 MHz, while the GTX 560 SE has no listed base or boost clocks. The shading unit count is 288 for NVIDIA and 320 for AMD. TMUs are 48 versus 20, and ROPs are 24 versus 8. Pixel rate is 8.832 GPixel/s for NVIDIA and 8.240 GPixel/s for AMD. Texture rate is 35.33 GTexel/s versus 20.60 GTexel/s. FP32 performance is 847.9 GFLOPS versus 659.2 GFLOPS.

The power and physical specifications also diverge. The GTX 560 SE has a TDP of 150 W, requires a dual-slot cooler, uses 2x 6-pin power connectors, and needs a 450 W suggested PSU. The R5 M240 has no listed TDP, slot width, power connectors, or suggested PSU, indicating it is designed for lower-power, likely mobile, integration. The bus interface differs as well: the GTX 560 SE uses PCIe 2.0 x16, while the R5 M240 uses PCIe 3.0 x8. Display outputs are listed for the NVIDIA card (2x DVI and 1x mini-HDMI 1.3a) but not for the AMD card. The GTX 560 SE is 210 mm (8.3 inches) long, while the R5 M240 has no listed dimensions.

The release dates are separated by more than two years, with the GTX 560 SE launching on 2012-02-19 and the R5 M240 on 2014-09-17. The NVIDIA part belongs to the GeForce 500 generation, while the AMD part is from the Gem System (R5 M200) generation. Predecessor and successor lines also differ: the GTX 560 SE follows the GeForce 400 and precedes the GeForce 600, while the R5 M240 follows the Solar System and precedes Polaris Mobile.

The Verdict

The data presents a nuanced picture. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560 SE wins the only benchmark available, with a 2.8% lead in Geekbench OpenCL. It also holds commanding advantages in memory bandwidth (91.87 GB/s versus 14.40 GB/s), texture rate (35.33 GTexel/s versus 20.60 GTexel/s), and FP32 performance (847.9 GFLOPS versus 659.2 GFLOPS). The GTX 560 SE is clearly the stronger performer in raw throughput metrics, which is consistent with its higher TDP of 150 W and larger die size.

However, the AMD Radeon R5 M240 is a much more modern design in several key respects. It uses a 28 nm process, giving it a transistor density of 12.3M per mm², more than double the NVIDIA part's density. It also supports a newer DirectX 12 feature level (11_1 versus 11_0) and Vulkan 1.2.170, which the GTX 560 SE does not support at all. The R5 M240 has a boost clock of 1030 MHz, while the GTX 560 SE has no listed boost capability. Furthermore, the R5 M240 has no listed TDP or power connector requirements, suggesting it is designed for power-constrained environments where the 150 W GTX 560 SE would be impractical.

For users prioritizing raw compute and memory bandwidth, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560 SE is the better choice based on the benchmark and specification data. Its 2.8% benchmark lead and six-fold bandwidth advantage make it the more capable GPU for bandwidth-intensive workloads. For users needing modern API support, particularly Vulkan, or operating in a power-constrained system, the AMD Radeon R5 M240 is the more appropriate pick. The R5 M240 also benefits from a smaller die and newer process, which may offer integration advantages. The verdict is not about overall superiority but about matching the right GPU to the right context: the GTX 560 SE for maximum throughput, the R5 M240 for modern features and efficiency.