AMD Radeon R5 M420 vs NVIDIA GeForce GT 735M Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only direct benchmark comparison available is Geekbench OpenCL, and the data shows a decisive single-point victory for the AMD Radeon R5 M420. The AMD part scores 3956, while the NVIDIA GeForce GT 735M trails at 3616, producing a 9.4% delta in favor of AMD. That is a meaningful gap for two integrated-class mobile GPUs, and it suggests the AMD silicon extracts more compute throughput from its hardware configuration.

To contextualize those raw scores, consider where each lands relative to the broader GPU landscape. The R5 M420 sits at the 23rd percentile of all GPUs, which places it just barely ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce 830M (3957, delta 0%) and the NVIDIA GeForce GT 745M (3953, delta 0.1%). The AMD card is effectively tied with those two, while edging out the NVIDIA Quadro K2000 (3964, delta -0.2%) by a hair and the AMD Radeon HD 6850 X2 (3977, delta -0.5%) by a similarly small margin. This clustering indicates that the R5 M420 occupies a narrow performance band where a few points separate it from its nearest rivals.

Meanwhile, the GT 735M lands at the 21st percentile, and its nearest rivals tell a more curious story. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 scores 3629 (delta -0.3%), meaning the GT 735M is within striking distance of a much more modern desktop-class card, at least in this synthetic OpenCL test. Even the NVIDIA RTX 5000 Mobile Ada Generation scores 3596 (delta 0.6%), which is lower than the GT 735M despite that GPU being an entirely different tier of hardware. These comparisons highlight how synthetic benchmark scores can flatten architectural differences, but the data is what it is. The GT 735M also edges the NVIDIA GeForce GT 545 (3594, delta 0.6%) and falls slightly short of the AMD Radeon HD 6770 (3649, delta -0.9%).

The head-to-head delta of 9.4% is the single largest comparative figure between the two cards, and it is worth remembering the GT 735M's score sits in a lower cluster overall. The R5 M420's score of 3956 clears the GT 735M's 3616 by 340 points, which is a substantial margin for two GPUs that share the same process node and bus interface. The data suggests that the AMD part delivers a meaningful compute advantage in this specific workload, even though both are entry-level mobile solutions.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU wins the head-to-head Geekbench OpenCL test?

A: The AMD Radeon R5 M420 wins with a score of 3956 against the NVIDIA GeForce GT 735M's 3616, a delta of 9.4%.

Q: How does the R5 M420 compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The AMD card is essentially tied with the NVIDIA GeForce 830M (3957, delta 0%) and the NVIDIA GeForce GT 745M (3953, delta 0.1%), while slightly outperforming the NVIDIA Quadro K2000 (3964, delta -0.2%) and the AMD Radeon HD 6850 X2 (3977, delta -0.5%).

Q: What is the GT 735M's closest competitor according to the data?

A: The GT 735M's nearest rival is the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050, which scores 3629 with a delta of -0.3%, meaning the GT 735M is slightly behind it but within a very tight margin.

Q: Do both GPUs support the same DirectX version?

A: No. The AMD R5 M420 supports DirectX 12 (11_1), while the NVIDIA GT 735M supports DirectX 12 (11_0).

Q: What are the memory capacities of each card?

A: The AMD R5 M420 has 4 GB of DDR3 memory, while the NVIDIA GT 735M has 2 GB of DDR3 memory, both on a 64-bit bus.

Q: Which card has a higher pixel fill rate?

A: The AMD R5 M420 has a pixel rate of 6.800 GPixel/s, while the NVIDIA GT 735M achieves 5.024 GPixel/s.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from fundamentally different architectural lineages, and those differences explain much of the performance gap. The AMD Radeon R5 M420 is built on GCN 1.0 architecture using the Jet chip, fabricated on a 28 nm process by TSMC. It packs 690 million transistors into a 56 mm² die, giving a transistor density of 12.3 million per square millimeter. The NVIDIA GeForce GT 735M, in contrast, uses the Kepler 2.0 architecture with the GK208 chip, also on TSMC's 28 nm node, but with a larger 87 mm² die and 1,020 million transistors, resulting in a lower density of 11.7 million per square millimeter.

The compute layout differs significantly. The R5 M420 has 320 shading units, 20 texture mapping units, and 8 ROPs. The GT 735M counters with 384 shading units, 32 TMUs, and the same 8 ROPs. Despite having fewer shaders and TMUs, the AMD card achieves a higher FP32 throughput of 544.0 GFLOPS versus the NVIDIA's 482.3 GFLOPS. This is a direct consequence of clock speeds: the R5 M420 runs at a base of 780 MHz and boosts to 850 MHz, while the GT 735M sits at a base of 575 MHz and boosts to just 628 MHz. The AMD card's substantial clock advantage overcomes its shader deficit.

Memory architecture also diverges. Both use DDR3 on a 64-bit bus, but the R5 M420 has 4 GB capacity and a memory clock of 1000 MHz (2 Gbps effective), yielding a bandwidth of 16.00 GB/s. The GT 735M has 2 GB, runs at 900 MHz (1800 Mbps effective), and delivers 14.40 GB/s. The AMD card's higher memory clock gives it an 11% bandwidth advantage, which compounds with its higher FP32 rate.

The API support differs slightly in DirectX versions. The R5 M420 supports DirectX 12 (11_1), while the GT 735M supports DirectX 12 (11_0). Both support OpenGL 4.6 and Vulkan, though the NVIDIA card has a slightly newer Vulkan version (1.2.175 versus 1.2.170). The transistor density difference (12.3M/mm² versus 11.7M/mm²) suggests the AMD chip is more efficiently packed, though the NVIDIA die is larger overall.

The Verdict

The benchmark data points to a clear winner in raw compute performance: the AMD Radeon R5 M420. Its 9.4% lead in Geekbench OpenCL is backed by higher clock speeds, more memory, and greater memory bandwidth. The R5 M420 also holds a 23rd percentile ranking versus the GT 735M's 21st, confirming that the AMD part sits slightly higher in the overall GPU distribution.

However, the GT 735M is not without its own merits. It has more shading units (384 versus 320) and more TMUs (32 versus 20), which could translate to better texturing performance in certain workloads, even though its texture rate of 20.10 GTexel/s edges out the AMD's 17.00 GTexel/s. The NVIDIA card also has a lower TDP of 33 W (the AMD card has no listed TDP), which may be relevant for thin-and-light laptops where power draw is a concern.

The release dates also matter. The GT 735M launched in early 2013 (release date March 31, 2013), while the R5 M420 came later on May 14, 2016. That three-year gap means the AMD card benefits from more mature driver support and a newer feature set, though both are now end-of-life products.

For compute-heavy tasks like OpenCL acceleration, the R5 M420 is the stronger choice. For scenarios where the NVIDIA's higher TMU count and lower power envelope matter, the GT 735M could still be viable, but the data does not show any benchmark where it wins.

Specification Differences

| Field | AMD Radeon R5 M420 | NVIDIA GeForce GT 735M |

|-------|-------------------|----------------------|

| Architecture | GCN 1.0 | Kepler 2.0 |

| Chip | Jet | GK208 |

| Transistors | 690 million | 1,020 million |

| Die Size | 56 mm² | 87 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 12.3M / mm² | 11.7M / mm² |

| Base Clock | 780 MHz | 575 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 850 MHz | 628 MHz |

| Memory Clock | 1000 MHz (2 Gbps effective) | 900 MHz (1800 Mbps effective) |

| Memory Size | 4 GB | 2 GB |

| Memory Bandwidth | 16.00 GB/s | 14.40 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 320 | 384 |

| TMUs | 20 | 32 |

| Pixel Rate | 6.800 GPixel/s | 5.024 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 17.00 GTexel/s | 20.10 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 544.0 GFLOPS | 482.3 GFLOPS |

| TDP | Not listed | 33 W |

| DirectX | 12 (11_1) | 12 (11_0) |

| Vulkan | 1.2.170 | 1.2.175 |

| Release Date | 2016-05-14 | 2013-03-31 |

| Generation | Gem System (R5 M400) | GeForce 700M |

Where Each One Wins

The AMD Radeon R5 M420 wins in every measurable compute benchmark. Its Geekbench OpenCL score of 3956 dominates the GT 735M's 3616, and that victory is supported by a 9.4% delta. The AMD card also wins on raw throughput metrics: FP32 (544.0 GFLOPS versus 482.3 GFLOPS), pixel rate (6.800 GPixel/s versus 5.024 GPixel/s), and memory bandwidth (16.00 GB/s versus 14.40 GB/s). With 4 GB of memory versus 2 GB, the R5 M420 is also better positioned for workloads that demand larger framebuffers or data sets.

The NVIDIA GeForce GT 735M claims a few specification-level wins that do not translate into benchmark victories. It has more shading units (384 versus 320), more TMUs (32 versus 20), and a higher texture rate (20.10 GTexel/s versus 17.00 GTexel/s). Its TDP of 33 W is explicitly listed, whereas the AMD card has no TDP specification, suggesting the NVIDIA part may be a known quantity for power-constrained designs. The GT 735M also has a slightly newer Vulkan version (1.2.175 versus 1.2.170) and a lower release date, which could matter for legacy software compatibility.

In practical terms, the R5 M420 is the better choice for OpenCL acceleration, general compute tasks, and any workload that benefits from higher clock speeds and more memory. The GT 735M might be preferable in ultra-portable laptops where its lower TDP and higher texture rate could be advantageous for older games or texture-heavy 2D applications, but the data does not show any benchmark where it outperforms the AMD part. The verdict is straightforward: the R5 M420 wins the compute crown, while the GT 735M offers a more power-efficient architecture with higher texture throughput.