AMD Radeon R7 M340 vs NVIDIA Quadro M500M Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The recorded data shows a clear, but not universal, victory for the NVIDIA Quadro M500M across the two benchmark tests. In Geekbench OpenCL, the Quadro M500M scores 5986, while the AMD Radeon R7 M340 trails at 4932. That is a significant 21.4% advantage for the NVIDIA part, a gap that will be easily felt in compute-heavy workloads. This is the dominant headline result in the head-to-head comparison.

The margin narrows considerably in the Geekbench Vulkan test, where the Quadro M500M scores 5222 against the R7 M340's 5193. The 0.6% delta here is negligible, effectively a statistical tie. This suggests that when the load is driven through the Vulkan API, the architectural differences between the two parts largely wash out, and the raw throughput capabilities of each GPU become the limiting factor.

With two wins recorded for the NVIDIA Quadro M500M and zero for the AMD Radeon R7 M340, the overall average benchmark score reinforces this picture. The Quadro M500M's average score is 5604, while the R7 M340's is 5063, placing the NVIDIA part about 10.6% higher on aggregate. The R7 M340 does not claim a single benchmark victory in this comparison, making its case for selection entirely dependent on other factors, such as system-level integration or API support.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs are products of different design philosophies. The NVIDIA Quadro M500M is built on the Maxwell architecture, using the GM108S chip. It is fabricated on a 28 nm process at TSMC, with 1,020 million transistors packed into a 77 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 13.2 million transistors per square millimeter.

The AMD Radeon R7 M340, in contrast, is based on the more modern GCN 3.0 architecture, using the Meso chip. It also uses a 28 nm process at TSMC, but it is a much larger design: 1,550 million transistors on a 125 mm² die. This results in a slightly lower transistor density of 12.4 million per square millimeter. The AMD chip is physically larger and has more transistors, but the NVIDIA chip packs its transistors more tightly.

In terms of compute resources, the Quadro M500M has 384 shading units, 16 texture mapping units, and 8 ROPs. The R7 M340 has fewer shading units at 320, but a higher count of texture mapping units at 20, and the same 8 ROPs. This configuration suggests the AMD part may have a different performance profile in texture-heavy operations, but it has to do so with a lower raw shader count.

Memory configurations are similar on the surface, with both using 2 GB of DDR3 on a 64-bit bus. However, the clock speeds differ. The Quadro M500M runs its memory at 900 MHz, resulting in 14.40 GB/s of bandwidth. The R7 M340 runs its memory at 1000 MHz, achieving 16.00 GB/s of bandwidth, a 11.1% advantage for the AMD card.

A key API distinction exists. The AMD Radeon R7 M340 supports DirectX 12 (12_0), while the NVIDIA Quadro M500M is listed for DirectX 12 (11_0). This means the AMD part has a hardware feature level that is one tier higher for direct compute and graphics features. Vulkan support also differs, with the Quadro M500M supporting 1.4, while the R7 M340 supports 1.2.170.

Where Each One Wins

The recorded data indicates a clear split in workload suitability. The NVIDIA Quadro M500M is the unequivocal winner for pure GPGPU compute, as demonstrated by its 21.4% lead in the Geekbench OpenCL benchmark. If your workload is heavily reliant on OpenCL acceleration, this is the card to pick. Its higher average benchmark score of 5604 also suggests better overall consistency and efficiency across a wider range of tasks.

The AMD Radeon R7 M340, despite losing both benchmarks, does have a specific advantage: its higher memory bandwidth of 16.00 GB/s. While the Quadro M500M wins in OpenCL, the R7 M340's memory advantage could make it competitive in situations that are more memory-bandwidth bound rather than compute-bound, though the data does not provide a direct test for this. It also holds a feature-level edge with its DirectX 12 (12_0) support, which may be relevant for specific modern game titles or applications that leverage feature level 12_0.

In Vulkan, the two are essentially tied. The 0.6% delta for the Quadro M500M is within the margin of error for a benchmark. This means that for gaming or compute workloads that run through Vulkan, the user experience will be virtually identical between the two. The R7 M340's lower average score (5063 vs. 5604) puts it in a lower percentile bracket, but the Vulkan result shows it is not universally outclassed.

Specification Differences

Here are the distinct specification differences between the NVIDIA Quadro M500M and the AMD Radeon R7 M340, according to the database:

| Specification | NVIDIA Quadro M500M | AMD Radeon R7 M340 |

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

| Architecture | Maxwell | GCN 3.0 |

| Chip | GM108S | Meso |

| Transistors | 1,020 million | 1,550 million |

| Die Size | 77 mm² | 125 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 13.2M / mm² | 12.4M / mm² |

| Base Clock | 1029 MHz | 943 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 1124 MHz | 1021 MHz |

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

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

| Shading Units | 384 | 320 |

| Texture Mapping Units | 16 | 20 |

| Pixel Rate | 8.992 GPixel/s | 8.168 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 17.98 GTexel/s | 20.42 GTexel/s |

| FP32 Performance | 863.2 GFLOPS | 653.4 GFLOPS |

| TDP | 30 W | Not specified |

| Bus Interface | MXM-A (3.0) | PCIe 3.0 x8 |

| DirectX Support | 12 (11_0) | 12 (12_0) |

| Vulkan Support | 1.4 | 1.2.170 |

FAQ

Q: What is the biggest performance difference between these two GPUs?

A: The biggest difference is in Geekbench OpenCL, where the NVIDIA Quadro M500M scores 5986, which is 21.4% higher than the AMD Radeon R7 M340's score of 4932.

Q: Are there any workloads where the AMD Radeon R7 M340 performs at a similar level?

A: Yes, in Vulkan compute, the R7 M340 is almost neck-and-neck. It scores 5193, which is only 0.6% behind the Quadro M500M's score of 5222.

Q: Which GPU has a higher memory bandwidth, and what is the difference?

A: The AMD Radeon R7 M340 has a higher memory bandwidth. It offers 16.00 GB/s to the NVIDIA Quadro M500M's 14.40 GB/s.

Q: Which GPU has more shading units for processing?

A: The NVIDIA Quadro M500M has more shading units, with 384 compared to the AMD Radeon R7 M340's 320.

Q: How does the average benchmark score compare for these two GPUs?

A: The NVIDIA Quadro M500M has an average benchmark score of 5604, while the AMD Radeon R7 M340 has an average of 5063. This makes the Quadro M500M the faster card on average.

Q: Do they both support DirectX 12?

A: Yes, both support DirectX 12, but at different feature levels. The AMD Radeon R7 M340 supports feature level 12_0, while the NVIDIA Quadro M500M supports feature level 11_0.

The Verdict

Based on the recorded data, the NVIDIA Quadro M500M is the clear winner for raw compute performance. It takes the lead in the OpenCL benchmark, which is often critical for professional and workstation tasks, and has a higher average score overall. If your primary use case involves OpenCL-accelerated applications, or if you simply want the stronger GPU of the two, the data points firmly to the Quadro M500M.

The AMD Radeon R7 M340 is not without its merits, though. Its memory bandwidth advantage of 16.00 GB/s over 14.40 GB/s suggests it could be better suited for tasks that are heavily dependent on data throughput. Its support for the higher DirectX 12 feature level (12_0) also gives it a future-proofing edge in some gaming scenarios, even if it does not translate to a win in the tested benchmarks.

For the user deciding between the two, the choice is straightforward. For maximum compute performance and higher average scores, the NVIDIA Quadro M500M is the better option. For a user who values the higher memory bandwidth or needs the DirectX 12 (12_0) feature set, the AMD Radeon R7 M340 is a valid, if less numerically impressive, choice. The data shows a 2-0 win for the NVIDIA part, and that is the story.