AMD Radeon R7 240 vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 12 GB Comparison

The AMD Radeon R7 240 and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 12 GB represent two completely different eras and tiers of graphics hardware. The data shows a stark contrast between a 2013 entry-level card designed for basic display output and a 2022 high-end model built for demanding gaming and compute workloads. While the R7 240 achieves an OpenCL score of 5063, placing it at the 30th percentile of all GPUs, the RTX 3080 12 GB scores 4791 in the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test, which puts it at the 28th percentile in its own test category. This direct comparison is complicated by the fact that they are benchmarked with entirely different testing methodologies.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The benchmark results for these two cards come from different test suites, making a direct frame-rate comparison impossible. The AMD Radeon R7 240 was evaluated using Geekbench OpenCL, where it scored 5063 points. This places it in a performance tier with the AMD Radeon R7 M340, which has an identical average score of 5063, and slightly ahead of the AMD FirePro W4170M, which trails by 0.6%. The R7 240 also edges out the AMD Radeon R5 M430 by 0.9% and the AMD Radeon R7 Graphics by 1.3%. This cluster of scores indicates that the R7 240 is firmly in the entry-level mobile and low-power desktop segment.

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 12 GB was tested using 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, a much more demanding modern benchmark. Its score of 4791 puts it in a similar percentile ranking (28th) but against a completely different field of competitors. Its nearest rivals in this test include the AMD Radeon R5 M255, which is only 0.1% behind, and the AMD Radeon R5 M335, which is 0.8% behind. Interestingly, the NVIDIA GeForce 940MX scores 1.1% higher, and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560M scores 1.3% higher. The fact that the RTX 3080 12 GB lands in this range of older, lower-end cards in the Steel Nomad benchmark is a data anomaly that does not reflect real-world gaming performance. It is crucial to understand that these are percentile rankings within their own test pools, not a head-to-head comparison.

There are no direct head-to-head benchmark entries in the data, and neither card registers a win against the other in any shared test. The R7 240’s raw compute output is listed at 499.2 GFLOPS FP32, while the RTX 3080 12 GB delivers 30.64 TFLOPS FP32. Even without a shared benchmark, the magnitude of difference is clear: the RTX 3080 12 GB has roughly 60 times the raw single-precision compute throughput. The texture rate tells a similar story, with the R7 240 offering 15.60 GTexel/s versus the RTX 3080 12 GB’s 478.8 GTexel/s. Pixel fill rates are 6.240 GPixel/s for the R7 240 and 164.2 GPixel/s for the RTX 3080 12 GB, a factor of over 26.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs are built on fundamentally different architectures and manufacturing processes. The AMD Radeon R7 240 uses the Oland chip based on the GCN 1.0 architecture, manufactured on a 28 nm process at TSMC. It contains 950 million transistors on a die size of 77 mm², resulting in a transistor density of 12.3 million per square millimeter. This is a small, power-efficient chip designed for basic tasks. In contrast, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 12 GB uses the GA102 chip based on the Ampere architecture, built on an 8 nm process at Samsung. This is a massive chip with 28,300 million transistors on a 628 mm² die, yielding a density of 45.1 million transistors per square millimeter.

The memory subsystems are equally divergent. The R7 240 is equipped with 2 GB of DDR3 memory on a 128-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of just 28.80 GB/s. The RTX 3080 12 GB features 12 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 384-bit bus, delivering a bandwidth of 912.4 GB/s. This represents a 31.7x increase in memory bandwidth, which is critical for high-resolution textures and modern game assets. The RTX 3080 12 GB also includes dedicated hardware that the R7 240 completely lacks: 70 ray tracing cores and 280 tensor cores. The R7 240 has no such specialized units, relying solely on its 320 shading units, 20 texture mapping units (TMUs), and 8 render output units (ROPs). The RTX 3080 12 GB has 8960 shading units, 280 TMUs, and 96 ROPs.

Clock speeds also differ significantly. The R7 240 has a base clock of 730 MHz and a boost clock of 780 MHz. The RTX 3080 12 GB runs at a base clock of 1260 MHz and boosts to 1710 MHz. The memory clock is 900 MHz (1800 Mbps effective) for the R7 240, compared to 1188 MHz (19 Gbps effective) for the RTX 3080 12 GB. API support also shows the generational gap: the R7 240 supports DirectX 12 (11_1) and Vulkan 1.2.170, while the RTX 3080 12 GB supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) and Vulkan 1.4. Both cards support OpenGL 4.6.

Where Each One Wins

The AMD Radeon R7 240 wins in the categories of power consumption and physical size. Its TDP is listed at 30 W, and it requires no external power connectors, drawing all its power from the PCIe slot. The suggested power supply for a system with this card is 200 W. It is a single-slot card measuring 168 mm in length and 69 mm in height. This makes it ideal for small form factor office PCs, HTPCs, or as a display adapter for systems that do not need gaming performance. Its bus interface is PCIe 3.0 x8, which is sufficient for its bandwidth needs. The R7 240 also offers legacy display outputs, including 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 1.4a, and 1x VGA, which can be useful for connecting older monitors.

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 12 GB wins decisively in every performance metric. Its 12 GB of GDDR6X memory and 912.4 GB/s bandwidth enable high-resolution gaming with modern texture packs. The 70 ray tracing cores allow for hardware-accelerated ray tracing, a feature completely absent from the R7 240. The 280 tensor cores provide AI acceleration for features like DLSS, which can significantly boost frame rates. The card’s FP32 throughput of 30.64 TFLOPS is in a different universe compared to the R7 240’s 499.2 GFLOPS. For gaming, content creation, 3D rendering, or any compute-intensive workload, the RTX 3080 12 GB is the clear choice. It supports PCIe 4.0 x16 and has a dual-slot design with dimensions of 285 mm length, 112 mm height, and 40 mm width. It requires a 350 W TDP and a 750 W suggested power supply, with a 1x 12-pin power connector.

FAQ

Q: Which card has better raw compute performance?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 12 GB is vastly superior, with an FP32 throughput of 30.64 TFLOPS compared to the AMD Radeon R7 240’s 499.2 GFLOPS.

Q: Can the AMD Radeon R7 240 handle modern games with ray tracing?

A: No. The R7 240 has no ray tracing cores. The RTX 3080 12 GB includes 70 dedicated RT cores for hardware-accelerated ray tracing.

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

A: The RTX 3080 12 GB offers 912.4 GB/s of bandwidth, which is over 31 times the 28.80 GB/s available on the R7 240.

Q: Which card requires a more powerful power supply?

A: The RTX 3080 12 GB has a suggested PSU of 750 W, while the R7 240 only requires a 200 W power supply.

Q: Are there any benchmark scores where the R7 240 outperforms the RTX 3080 12 GB?

A: In its specific Geekbench OpenCL test, the R7 240 scored 5063. However, the RTX 3080 12 GB was tested in a different benchmark (3DMark Steel Nomad DX12) with a score of 4791, so a direct comparison is not possible. The R7 240 does not win in any shared metric.

Q: What is the difference in API support?

A: The RTX 3080 12 GB supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) and Vulkan 1.4, while the R7 240 supports DirectX 12 (11_1) and Vulkan 1.2.170. Both support OpenGL 4.6.

The Verdict

The data presents a clear choice for different audiences. The AMD Radeon R7 240 is for users who need a low-power, single-slot card for basic display output or legacy system support. Its 30 W TDP, lack of power connectors, and small footprint make it suitable for office machines or media centers where performance is not a priority. Its benchmark score of 5063 in Geekbench OpenCL places it among other entry-level mobile GPUs, confirming its limited compute capability.

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 12 GB is for gamers and professionals who demand maximum performance. Despite its percentile ranking in the Steel Nomad test being coincidentally close to the R7 240’s, the raw specifications tell the real story. With 12 GB of GDDR6X memory, 8960 shading units, and dedicated RT and tensor cores, it is designed for high-refresh-rate 4K gaming, ray tracing, and AI-accelerated workloads. The 350 W TDP and 750 W suggested PSU requirement indicate a serious power draw that demands a quality power supply.

In summary, the R7 240 is a functional relic that handles 2D workloads and light video playback. The RTX 3080 12 GB is a high-performance component that excels in demanding 3D applications. No user should cross-shop these two cards, as they serve entirely different purposes.

Specification Differences

| Specification | AMD Radeon R7 240 | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 12 GB |

| :--- | :--- | :--- |

| Architecture | GCN 1.0 | Ampere |

| Process Node | 28 nm | 8 nm |

| Transistors | 950 million | 28,300 million |

| Die Size | 77 mm² | 628 mm² |

| Base Clock | 730 MHz | 1260 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 780 MHz | 1710 MHz |

| Memory Size | 2 GB | 12 GB |

| Memory Type | DDR3 | GDDR6X |

| Memory Bus | 128 bit | 384 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | 28.80 GB/s | 912.4 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 320 | 8960 |

| TMUs | 20 | 280 |

| ROPs | 8 | 96 |

| RT Cores | 0 | 70 |

| Tensor Cores | 0 | 280 |

| FP32 Performance | 499.2 GFLOPS | 30.64 TFLOPS |

| TDP | 30 W | 350 W |

| Slot Width | Single-slot | Dual-slot |

| Power Connectors | None | 1x 12-pin |

| Suggested PSU | 200 W | 750 W |

| Bus Interface | PCIe 3.0 x8 | PCIe 4.0 x16 |

| DirectX Support | 12 (11_1) | 12 Ultimate (12_2) |

| Vulkan Support | 1.2.170 | 1.4 |

| Length | 168 mm | 285 mm |

| Height | 69 mm | 112 mm |