AMD Radeon R7 M365X vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970M Comparison

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Radeon R7 M365X has an average benchmark score of 5416, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970M has an average score of 4628. The AMD part sits at the 32nd percentile of all GPUs, whereas the NVIDIA part is at the 27th percentile.

Q: How does the AMD Radeon R7 M365X compare to its closest rivals?

A: The AMD Radeon R7 M365X is within a narrow band of its nearest rivals. It trails the AMD Radeon 610M by 0.5%, sits 0.9% ahead of the Intel UHD Graphics P630, is 0.9% behind the NVIDIA Quadro M4000, and leads the AMD Radeon R7 M445 by 1.1%.

Q: What are the key differences in memory configuration?

A: The AMD Radeon R7 M365X comes with 1024 MB of GDDR5 on a 128-bit bus, delivering 64.00 GB/s of bandwidth. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970M offers 6 GB of GDDR5 on a 192-bit bus, providing 120.3 GB/s of bandwidth, which is nearly double the AMD card's throughput.

Q: Which GPU has more shading units and texture mapping units?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970M has 1280 shading units, 80 TMUs, and 48 ROPs. The AMD Radeon R7 M365X has 384 shading units, 24 TMUs, and only 8 ROPs. This is a substantial difference in raw processing resources.

Q: What are the architectural generations of each GPU?

A: The AMD Radeon R7 M365X is built on GCN 1.0 architecture, part of the Gem System (R7 M300) generation. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970M uses Maxwell 2.0 architecture from the GeForce 900M generation.

Q: In the head-to-head benchmarks, which GPU wins and by how much?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970M wins both recorded head-to-head tests. In Geekbench OpenCL, it scores 18946 against 5939, a delta of -68.7% for the AMD card. In Geekbench Vulkan, it scores 18292 against 4893, a delta of -73.3%.

The Verdict

The data is unambiguous: the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970M is the dominant performer in every measurable category. It wins both head-to-head benchmarks decisively, offers vastly more memory, higher bandwidth, and a much larger compute pipeline. The GTX 970M is the clear choice for anyone needing serious mobile graphics performance, particularly for gaming or GPU-accelerated workloads.

The AMD Radeon R7 M365X, despite its lower raw performance, holds its own in the context of its own nearest rivals. It sits at the 32nd percentile of all GPUs, slightly ahead of the GTX 970M's 27th percentile. This suggests that in the broader GPU landscape, the AMD part occupies a respectable position for light workloads, even if it cannot compete with the NVIDIA card directly.

For users with modest needs, such as basic productivity, media playback, or light 2D work, the R7 M365X may suffice. It is an end-of-life product, as is the GTX 970M, but the AMD card's smaller memory footprint and lower power demands could make it suitable for thin-and-light laptops. However, for any serious 3D work or modern gaming, the GTX 970M is the only rational pick based on the recorded data.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The head-to-head results are one-sided. In Geekbench OpenCL, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970M scores 18946, while the AMD Radeon R7 M365X manages only 5939. That is a delta of -68.7% for the AMD card, meaning NVIDIA is more than three times faster in this compute test.

In Geekbench Vulkan, the margin is even wider. The GTX 970M scores 18292, and the R7 M365X scores 4893. The delta is -73.3%, confirming that NVIDIA holds a massive advantage in modern graphics API workloads. This pattern holds across the board: the GTX 970M wins 2 out of 2 recorded head-to-head tests, with no wins for the AMD card.

The GTX 970M's performance is not just about raw scores; the margin is large enough to represent a completely different performance class. The AMD card's scores are closer to integrated graphics territory, while the GTX 970M delivers discrete-level performance. For example, the GTX 970M's nearest rivals, the NVIDIA Quadro M3000M and AMD Radeon R5 M320, are within 0.6% of its average score, showing it is competitive in its own segment.

Specification Differences

The specification gap between these two GPUs is substantial. The AMD Radeon R7 M365X uses the "Litho" chip with 950 million transistors on a 77 mm² die. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970M uses the GM204 chip with 5,200 million transistors on a 398 mm² die. That is over five times the transistor count and a die area over five times larger.

Memory is a major differentiator. The AMD card has 1024 MB of GDDR5 on a 128-bit bus, yielding 64.00 GB/s. The NVIDIA card has 6 GB of GDDR5 on a 192-bit bus, yielding 120.3 GB/s. The GTX 970M also has higher effective memory speed at 5 Gbps versus 4 Gbps for the AMD card.

Compute resources differ dramatically. The AMD R7 M365X has 384 shading units, 24 TMUs, and 8 ROPs. The GTX 970M has 1280 shading units, 80 TMUs, and 48 ROPs. Pixel rate is 6.600 GPixel/s for AMD versus 49.82 GPixel/s for NVIDIA. Texture rate is 19.80 GTexel/s versus 83.04 GTexel/s. FP32 performance is 633.6 GFLOPS versus 2.657 TFLOPS.

Clock speeds also differ. The AMD card has no recorded base or boost clocks, but its memory runs at 1000 MHz. The NVIDIA card has a base clock of 924 MHz and a boost clock of 1038 MHz, with memory at 1253 MHz. The GTX 970M uses an MXM-B (3.0) bus interface with no power connectors, while the R7 M365X uses PCIe 3.0 x8.

Architecture Differences

The AMD Radeon R7 M365X is built on GCN 1.0, a first-generation Graphics Core Next architecture, and belongs to the Gem System (R7 M300) generation. It is manufactured on a 28 nm process at TSMC, with a transistor density of 12.3M per mm². Its predecessor is "Solar System" and its successor is "Polaris Mobile."

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970M uses Maxwell 2.0, a much more efficient architecture, part of the GeForce 900M generation. It is also on a 28 nm process at TSMC, but with a higher transistor density of 13.1M per mm². Its predecessor is GeForce 800M and its successor is GeForce 10 Mobile.

The API support differs. The AMD card supports DirectX 12 (11_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.170. The NVIDIA card supports DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The higher DirectX feature level and newer Vulkan version on the GTX 970M indicate better support for modern graphics features.

The GTX 970M's larger die and transistor count reflect a fundamentally more complex design, with more room for compute units, memory controllers, and ROPs. The AMD card's smaller die is more power-efficient per area but cannot match the raw throughput. The GTX 970M is a "MXM Module" form factor, while the R7 M365X is a standard PCIe device, which affects where each can be installed.

Where Each One Wins

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970M wins in every scenario that requires performance. All 2 head-to-head benchmark wins go to NVIDIA. For gaming, 3D rendering, video editing, GPU compute, or any DirectX 12 workload, the GTX 970M is the obvious choice. Its 6 GB of VRAM allows handling larger textures and datasets than the 1 GB on the AMD card. Its 120.3 GB/s bandwidth and 2.657 TFLOPS FP32 performance place it in a different league.

The AMD Radeon R7 M365X wins in scenarios where raw performance is less critical. Its smaller 77 mm² die and lower transistor count suggest lower power consumption, making it more suitable for thin laptops where heat and battery life matter. Its 32nd percentile ranking against all GPUs, higher than the GTX 970M's 27th percentile, indicates it is well-positioned among the broader GPU population for light tasks.

For basic use cases like office productivity, web browsing, video playback, and older games, the R7 M365X is adequate. Its Vulkan 1.2.170 support is respectable, and its 4893 Geekbench Vulkan score shows it can handle some modern API workloads, albeit at a much lower level than the GTX 970M's 18292.

The GTX 970M is the pick for anyone who values performance above all else. The R7 M365X is the pick for users who prioritize portability and efficiency and do not need to run demanding 3D applications. The data does not support any other conclusion: the GTX 970M is the superior GPU in nearly every measurable way.