AMD Radeon R7 M370 vs NVIDIA Quadro K4000M Comparison

Where Each One Wins

The recorded benchmark data shows a clear, if narrow, split between these two mobile graphics solutions. The AMD Radeon R7 M370 takes the sole head-to-head win in the Geekbench OpenCL test, posting a score of 7063 against the NVIDIA Quadro K4000M's 5986. That is an 18% advantage for the AMD part in compute workloads measured through OpenCL.

The NVIDIA Quadro K4000M does not win any head-to-head benchmark in the database. Its average benchmark score of 5986 places it in the 34th percentile of all GPUs, while the AMD Radeon R7 M370 sits at the 38th percentile with an average score of 6764. The gap in average scores is 778 points, which translates to roughly a 13% overall advantage for the AMD part across all recorded tests.

For real-world use cases, the data suggests the AMD Radeon R7 M370 is the stronger choice for general-purpose compute tasks that leverage OpenCL, such as video encoding acceleration, image processing filters, or physics simulations in creative applications. The NVIDIA Quadro K4000M, despite losing the compute benchmark, remains a viable option for tasks where its larger memory pool and wider memory bus could matter, though the database does not include direct benchmark evidence for those scenarios.

The AMD part's advantage in the OpenCL test is not trivial. An 18% delta in compute throughput can translate into noticeably faster completion times for GPU-accelerated rendering or analysis workloads. The NVIDIA card's 4 GB memory capacity and 256-bit bus width are specification advantages, but without benchmark data supporting those features, the measured performance edge belongs to AMD.

The Verdict

Based strictly on the recorded data, the AMD Radeon R7 M370 is the better performer. It wins the only head-to-head benchmark, holds a higher average score across all tests, and sits higher in the overall GPU percentile ranking. Users who prioritize OpenCL compute performance should select the AMD Radeon R7 M370 without hesitation.

The NVIDIA Quadro K4000M is not without merit. Its 4 GB VRAM and 89.60 GB/s memory bandwidth are specification advantages that the AMD card cannot match with its 2 GB and 57.60 GB/s. However, the database shows no benchmark where the NVIDIA card outperforms the AMD part. If a workload relies heavily on memory capacity rather than raw compute throughput, the Quadro may still be the practical choice, but the measured evidence does not support that conclusion.

For anyone choosing between these two end-of-life mobile GPUs today, the data says pick the AMD Radeon R7 M370 for faster compute results. The Quadro K4000M should only be considered if the application specifically requires more than 2 GB of VRAM or the wider memory interface, and even then, the lack of benchmark wins in the database means that choice rests on unverified assumptions.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The database records exactly one head-to-head comparison between these two GPUs: Geekbench OpenCL. The AMD Radeon R7 M370 scores 7063, while the NVIDIA Quadro K4000M scores 5986. The delta is 18% in favor of AMD.

This is a substantial margin for a compute benchmark. OpenCL performance scales with shader throughput, memory bandwidth, and driver efficiency. The AMD part's 384 shading units running at up to 960 MHz boost clock produce a theoretical FP32 rate of 737.3 GFLOPS, while the NVIDIA card's 960 shading units at a fixed 601 MHz deliver 1,153.9 GFLOPS on paper. Despite the NVIDIA card's higher theoretical compute ceiling, the AMD card wins the actual test by 18%. This suggests that real-world OpenCL efficiency, driver maturity, or memory subsystem behavior favors the AMD architecture in this specific workload.

The AMD part's memory runs at 900 MHz with a 128-bit bus, yielding 57.60 GB/s of bandwidth. The NVIDIA card's memory runs at 700 MHz with a 256-bit bus, yielding 89.60 GB/s. The NVIDIA card has 55% more bandwidth on paper, yet still loses the compute test. This indicates that raw bandwidth is not the limiting factor in this benchmark, or that the AMD card's memory controller extracts better effective throughput from its narrower bus.

The Geekbench OpenCL score also reflects the AMD card's advantage in the database's average benchmark score. The AMD part averages 6764 across all tests, the NVIDIA part averages 5986. The nearest rival comparison reinforces this: the AMD Radeon R7 M370 sits within 2.6% of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 675M (6946 average), while the Quadro K4000M sits within 0.2% of the GeForce GTX 770M (6000 average). The AMD card competes with a higher-performing peer group.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher benchmark score?

A: The AMD Radeon R7 M370 has a higher average benchmark score of 6764 compared to the NVIDIA Quadro K4000M's 5986. In the direct Geekbench OpenCL comparison, the AMD card scores 7063 against 5986, an 18% advantage.

Q: Does the NVIDIA Quadro K4000M ever beat the AMD Radeon R7 M370 in any recorded test?

A: No. The database records zero wins for the NVIDIA Quadro K4000M in head-to-head benchmarks. The AMD Radeon R7 M370 wins the only direct comparison.

Q: How do the memory specifications differ between these two GPUs?

A: The NVIDIA Quadro K4000M has 4 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus with 89.60 GB/s bandwidth. The AMD Radeon R7 M370 has 2 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 128-bit bus with 57.60 GB/s bandwidth. The NVIDIA card has double the capacity and 55% more bandwidth.

Q: Which GPU has more shading units?

A: The NVIDIA Quadro K4000M has 960 shading units, while the AMD Radeon R7 M370 has 384. The NVIDIA card also has 80 texture mapping units and 32 raster operation pipelines, compared to 24 TMUs and 8 ROPs on the AMD card.

Q: What is the transistor count difference between these chips?

A: The NVIDIA Quadro K4000M uses the GK104 chip with 3,540 million transistors on a 294 mm² die. The AMD Radeon R7 M370 uses the Litho chip with 950 million transistors on a 77 mm² die. The NVIDIA chip is substantially larger and more complex.

Q: Which GPU supports a newer DirectX version?

A: The AMD Radeon R7 M370 supports DirectX 12 (11_1), while the NVIDIA Quadro K4000M supports DirectX 12 (11_0). Both support OpenGL 4.6, with the NVIDIA card supporting Vulkan 1.2.175 and the AMD card supporting Vulkan 1.2.170.

Architecture Differences

The AMD Radeon R7 M370 is built on the GCN 1.0 architecture, the first generation of AMD's Graphics Core Next design. It uses the Litho chip, fabricated on a 28 nm process at TSMC with 950 million transistors on a 77 mm² die. The transistor density is 12.3 million per mm². This is a compact, power-efficient design from the Gem System generation of R7 M300 series parts.

The NVIDIA Quadro K4000M is built on the Kepler architecture, specifically the GK104 chip. It is also fabricated on a 28 nm process at TSMC, but with 3,540 million transistors on a 294 mm² die, giving a transistor density of 12.0 million per mm². The GK104 is a much larger chip, reflecting NVIDIA's approach of using bigger silicon with more specialized hardware blocks.

The architectural philosophies differ markedly. GCN 1.0 emphasizes compute throughput with a unified shader design that scales well across graphics and general-purpose workloads. Kepler, in NVIDIA's Quadro implementation, focuses on balanced graphics performance with a high count of shading units (960) and texture units (80), but runs at a low 601 MHz clock. The AMD card runs at 875 MHz base and 960 MHz boost, which partially compensates for its lower unit counts.

The memory architectures also diverge. The AMD card uses a 128-bit GDDR5 interface at 900 MHz, while the NVIDIA card uses a 256-bit GDDR5 interface at 700 MHz. The wider bus on the NVIDIA card provides higher theoretical bandwidth despite the lower clock speed.

API support shows minor differences. The AMD card supports DirectX 12 (11_1), while the NVIDIA card supports DirectX 12 (11_0). Both support OpenGL 4.6. Vulkan support is close: the NVIDIA card supports 1.2.175, the AMD card supports 1.2.170.

The NVIDIA Quadro K4000M is a professional mobile workstation part, part of the Quadro Kepler-M generation. The AMD Radeon R7 M370 is a consumer mobile graphics part from the R7 M300 series. This positioning explains some design choices, though the benchmark data shows the consumer part outperforming the professional part in compute.

Specification Differences

The two GPUs differ across nearly every specification field recorded in the database.

Process and silicon: Both use a 28 nm process from TSMC. The NVIDIA GK104 chip has 3,540 million transistors on a 294 mm² die. The AMD Litho chip has 950 million transistors on a 77 mm² die. Transistor density is nearly identical: 12.0M per mm² for NVIDIA, 12.3M per mm² for AMD.

Clocks: The AMD Radeon R7 M370 runs at 875 MHz base and 960 MHz boost. The NVIDIA Quadro K4000M runs at a fixed 601 MHz for both base and boost. The AMD card's memory runs at 900 MHz (3.6 Gbps effective), while the NVIDIA card's memory runs at 700 MHz (2.8 Gbps effective).

Memory: The NVIDIA card has 4 GB of GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus with 89.60 GB/s bandwidth. The AMD card has 2 GB of GDDR5 on a 128-bit bus with 57.60 GB/s bandwidth.

Compute units: The NVIDIA card has 960 shading units, 80 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. The AMD card has 384 shading units, 24 TMUs, and 8 ROPs. Pixel rate is 12.02 GPixel/s for NVIDIA versus 7.680 GPixel/s for AMD. Texture rate is 48.08 GTexel/s for NVIDIA versus 23.04 GTexel/s for AMD. FP32 performance is 1,153.9 GFLOPS for NVIDIA versus 737.3 GFLOPS for AMD.

Power and form factor: The NVIDIA Quadro K4000M has a TDP of 100 W and uses an MXM Module slot with MXM-B (3.0) bus interface and no power connectors. The AMD Radeon R7 M370 has no recorded TDP, slot width, or power connector information, and uses a PCIe 3.0 x8 bus interface.

Display outputs: The NVIDIA card's display outputs are listed as portable device dependent. The AMD card has no recorded display output information.

Release timeline: The NVIDIA Quadro K4000M was released on May 31, 2012, with the Quadro Fermi-M as its predecessor and Quadro Maxwell-M as its successor. The AMD Radeon R7 M370 was released on May 4, 2015, with Solar System as its predecessor and Polaris Mobile as its successor. Both are end-of-life products.