AMD Radeon R5 M240 vs NVIDIA Quadro K4000 Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only directly comparable benchmark recorded in the database is Geekbench OpenCL, and the results show a narrow victory for the AMD Radeon R5 M240. The AMD part scores 6975 points, while the NVIDIA Quadro K4000 posts 6816 points. That is a delta of 2.3%, a modest but real advantage for the AMD solution. The data suggests that in raw compute workloads using the OpenCL API, the R5 M240 has a slight edge, though the margin is small enough that run-to-run variance could matter in practice.

Looking at the broader context, the AMD Radeon R5 M240 sits at the 39th percentile among all GPUs in the database, with an average benchmark score of 6975. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 675M at 6946 (0.4% behind the AMD part), the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680M at 7023 (0.7% ahead), the NVIDIA T600 at 7035 (0.8% ahead), and the AMD FirePro M5100 at 6830 (2.1% behind). This places the R5 M240 in a tight cluster where a few percentage points separate it from several competing mobile and workstation parts.

The NVIDIA Quadro K4000, by contrast, holds the 34th percentile overall, with an average benchmark score of 5982 across its recorded tests. That average is pulled down by its Geekbench Metal score of 4166, which is notably lower than its OpenCL result. The K4000's nearest rivals include the NVIDIA Quadro K4000M at 5986 (0.1% ahead), the AMD FirePro W4100 at 5987 (0.1% ahead), the AMD Radeon HD 8750M at 5970 (0.2% behind), and the NVIDIA RTX PRO 6000 Blackwell Server at 5996 (0.2% ahead). These are extremely tight margins, indicating that the K4000 sits right at the center of its competitive set.

The head-to-head OpenCL test shows the AMD card winning by 159 points, which is meaningful but not dramatic. The R5 M240's 6975 versus the K4000's 6816 translates to the AMD card being 2.3% faster in this specific workload. However, the K4000 also has Vulkan and Metal scores recorded, while the R5 M240 does not. The K4000's Vulkan score of 6964 is nearly identical to the AMD card's OpenCL score, suggesting that in Vulkan workloads the K4000 could be competitive with the R5 M240's OpenCL performance, though no direct Vulkan comparison exists in the data.

Where Each One Wins

The AMD Radeon R5 M240 wins the only direct comparison available, the Geekbench OpenCL test, with a 2.3% advantage. This suggests that for applications or workflows that rely heavily on OpenCL compute, the R5 M240 is the stronger choice between these two specific cards. The R5 M240 also benefits from a higher percentile ranking (39th versus 34th), indicating that across all GPUs in the database, it tends to outperform a larger share of the field than the K4000 does.

The NVIDIA Quadro K4000, while losing the single head-to-head test, demonstrates strengths in other API environments. Its Vulkan score of 6964 is within 0.2% of the R5 M240's OpenCL score, showing that in Vulkan-based workloads the K4000 can deliver comparable compute performance. The K4000 also has a Metal score of 4166, which is a significant data point for Apple ecosystem compatibility, though no comparable Metal result exists for the R5 M240. The K4000's average benchmark score of 5982 is lower than the R5 M240's 6975, but that is heavily influenced by the Metal result dragging the average down.

For memory-intensive workloads, the K4000 holds a clear theoretical edge based on the specification data. The K4000 features 3 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 192-bit bus, delivering 134.8 GB/s of bandwidth. The R5 M240 has 1024 MB of DDR3 on a 64-bit bus, yielding just 14.40 GB/s. This 9.4x difference in memory bandwidth could be decisive in applications that move large datasets, such as rendering, simulation, or working with high-resolution textures. The R5 M240 wins on raw compute in OpenCL, but the K4000 wins on memory throughput and API coverage.

The Verdict

From the recorded data, the AMD Radeon R5 M240 is the better choice for pure OpenCL compute performance. Its 6975 score edges out the K4000's 6816 by 2.3%, and its 39th percentile ranking places it above the K4000's 34th percentile. If a user's primary workload is OpenCL-based, the R5 M240 delivers measurable performance with less power draw, as it has no recorded TDP while the K4000 is rated at 80 W.

However, the NVIDIA Quadro K4000 makes a compelling case for users who need broader API support and substantially more memory bandwidth. The K4000's Vulkan score of 6964 is nearly on par with the R5 M240's OpenCL result, and its Metal support opens doors for macOS-based workflows that the AMD card cannot address. The K4000's 134.8 GB/s of memory bandwidth dwarfs the R5 M240's 14.40 GB/s, making it the obvious pick for memory-heavy tasks like video editing, 3D modeling, or scientific visualization. The K4000 also offers 3 GB of VRAM versus 1 GB, which is critical for modern workloads that exceed the 1 GB capacity.

The data suggests a clear split: the R5 M240 wins on raw compute per the OpenCL benchmark, while the K4000 wins on memory subsystem performance and API versatility. Users prioritizing OpenCL speed should choose the AMD part. Users needing Vulkan, Metal, or high memory bandwidth should select the NVIDIA card. The R5 M240's 2.3% OpenCL advantage is real but modest, while the K4000's memory bandwidth advantage is massive, suggesting the K4000 is the more balanced professional tool despite losing the single head-to-head test.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU wins in the Geekbench OpenCL benchmark?

A: The AMD Radeon R5 M240 wins with a score of 6975, compared to the NVIDIA Quadro K4000's 6816, a delta of 2.3%.

Q: Does the NVIDIA Quadro K4000 support Vulkan?

A: Yes, the K4000 has a recorded Geekbench Vulkan score of 6964, which is very close to the R5 M240's OpenCL score of 6975.

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

A: The R5 M240 has 14.40 GB/s of bandwidth, while the K4000 has 134.8 GB/s, a difference of roughly 9.4 times in favor of the K4000.

Q: How much VRAM does each card have?

A: The AMD Radeon R5 M240 has 1024 MB of DDR3 memory, while the NVIDIA Quadro K4000 has 3 GB of GDDR5 memory.

Q: Which GPU has a higher percentile ranking among all GPUs?

A: The R5 M240 ranks at the 39th percentile, while the K4000 ranks at the 34th percentile, indicating the AMD card outperforms a larger share of the database.

Q: Does the K4000 support Metal?

A: Yes, the K4000 has a recorded Geekbench Metal score of 4166, while no Metal score is recorded for the R5 M240.

Architecture Differences

The AMD Radeon R5 M240 is built on the GCN 1.0 architecture using the Jet chip, manufactured on a 28 nm process at TSMC. It contains 690 million transistors on a 56 mm² die, resulting in a transistor density of 12.3 million per mm². The NVIDIA Quadro K4000 uses the Kepler architecture with the GK106 chip, also on a 28 nm TSMC process, but with 2,540 million transistors on a 221 mm² die, yielding a density of 11.5 million per mm². The K4000 has nearly 3.7 times as many transistors and a die roughly 3.9 times larger, though the R5 M240 has a higher transistor density.

The K4000 features 768 shading units, 64 texture mapping units, and 24 raster operation units. The R5 M240 has 320 shading units, 20 TMUs, and 8 ROPs. These numbers indicate the K4000 has 2.4 times the shading units, 3.2 times the TMUs, and 3 times the ROPs of the AMD part. The K4000 also delivers higher pixel and texture rates: 12.96 GPixel/s versus 8.240 GPixel/s, and 51.84 GTexel/s versus 20.60 GTexel/s. In FP32 compute, the K4000 reaches 1,244.2 GFLOPS, nearly double the R5 M240's 659.2 GFLOPS, despite losing the OpenCL benchmark.

Both cards use different memory technologies, with the R5 M240 pairing DDR3 with a 64-bit bus and the K4000 using GDDR5 on a 192-bit bus. The API support differs slightly: the R5 M240 supports DirectX 12 (11_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.170, while the K4000 supports DirectX 12 (11_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.175. The K4000 has a slightly newer Vulkan version. Neither card has ray tracing or tensor cores recorded in the database.

Specification Differences

The two cards differ across nearly every specification field. The AMD Radeon R5 M240 uses a PCIe 3.0 x8 interface, while the NVIDIA Quadro K4000 uses PCIe 2.0 x16. The K4000 has a recorded TDP of 80 W, a single-slot form factor, a 1x 6-pin power connector, and a suggested PSU of 250 W; none of these are listed for the R5 M240. The K4000 measures 241 mm in length and 111 mm in height, with display outputs of 1x DVI and 2x DisplayPort 1.2. The R5 M240 has no recorded dimensions or display outputs.

The K4000's memory clock is 1404 MHz with 5.6 Gbps effective, while the R5 M240's memory runs at 900 MHz with 1800 Mbps effective. The R5 M240's base clock is 1000 MHz with a boost of 1030 MHz, while the K4000 has no base or boost clock recorded. The R5 M240 was released on 2014-09-17, while the K4000 came earlier on 2013-02-28. Both are end-of-life products. The K4000 has a launch MSRP of 1,269 USD, while the R5 M240 has no recorded MSRP. The R5 M240's generation is "Gem System (R5 M200)" with a predecessor of "Solar System" and successor of "Polaris Mobile". The K4000's generation is "Quadro Kepler (Kx000)" with a predecessor of "Quadro Fermi" and successor of "Quadro Maxwell".