AMD Radeon R7 M380 vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980 Comparison

FAQ

Q: How does the AMD Radeon R7 M380 compare to the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980 in the recorded OpenCL benchmark?

A: The GTX 980 scores 34,676 in Geekbench OpenCL, while the R7 M380 scores 9,313. This results in a delta of 73.1% in favor of the GTX 980, meaning the GTX 980 delivers roughly 3.7 times the OpenCL performance of the R7 M380.

Q: What is the performance percentile ranking for each card in the database?

A: The R7 M380 sits at the 46th percentile of all GPUs, while the GTX 980 sits at the 43rd percentile. Despite the GTX 980's much higher raw OpenCL score, its average benchmark score across all tests is 8,167, which places it slightly lower than the R7 M380's single-score average of 9,313.

Q: Which GPU has the higher transistor count and die size?

A: The GTX 980 uses 5,200 million transistors on a 398 mm² die, while the R7 M380 uses 1,500 million transistors on a 123 mm² die. Both are built on a 28 nm process at TSMC, though the GTX 980 has a slightly higher transistor density of 13.1M per mm² versus 12.2M per mm² for the R7 M380.

Q: What memory configurations do the two cards use?

A: The R7 M380 has 4 GB of DDR3 memory on a 128-bit bus, delivering 32.00 GB/s of bandwidth. The GTX 980 also has 4 GB of memory, but it uses GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus, providing 224.4 GB/s of bandwidth, which is about seven times the R7 M380's memory bandwidth.

Q: What is the DirectX and Vulkan support for each card?

A: The R7 M380 supports DirectX 12 (11_1) and Vulkan 1.2.170. The GTX 980 supports DirectX 12 (12_1) and Vulkan 1.4. Both cards support OpenGL 4.6, but the GTX 980 has a more recent Vulkan implementation and a higher DirectX feature level.

Q: What are the nearest rivals for each card in the database's rankings?

A: The R7 M380's closest competitor is the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 850M, which scores 9,302 (a 0.1% delta). The GTX 980's closest rival is the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950M, scoring 8,135 (a 0.4% delta). Other nearby rivals for the R7 M380 include the GTX 465 and GTX 960, while the GTX 980 is also near the AMD Radeon R9 M360 and GeForce 945M.

Architecture Differences

The AMD Radeon R7 M380 and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980 are built on fundamentally different GPU architectures, despite sharing the same 28 nm TSMC manufacturing process. The R7 M380 uses the Tropo chip, based on AMD's GCN 1.0 architecture, which was an early iteration of AMD's Graphics Core Next design. In contrast, the GTX 980 uses the GM204 chip, based on NVIDIA's Maxwell 2.0 architecture, which was a mature and highly optimized design for its generation.

The transistor budgets differ dramatically. The R7 M380 integrates 1,500 million transistors on a 123 mm² die, while the GTX 980 packs 5,200 million transistors onto a 398 mm² die. This 3.5x difference in transistor count translates directly into a much larger execution infrastructure for the GTX 980. The GTX 980 features 2,048 shading units, 128 texture mapping units, and 64 ROPs, whereas the R7 M380 has only 640 shading units, 40 TMUs, and 16 ROPs. The GTX 980 therefore has three times the shader count, 3.2 times the TMUs, and four times the ROPs of the R7 M380.

Clock speeds also differ substantially. The R7 M380 runs at a base clock of 900 MHz with a boost of 915 MHz, while the GTX 980 operates at a base of 1127 MHz and boosts to 1216 MHz. The GTX 980's higher clock speeds, combined with its larger execution units, produce far higher theoretical throughput rates. The R7 M380 achieves a pixel rate of 14.64 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 36.60 GTexel/s, while the GTX 980 reaches 77.82 GPixel/s and 155.6 GTexel/s respectively. In FP32 compute, the GTX 980 delivers 4.981 TFLOPS versus 1,171.2 GFLOPS for the R7 M380.

Memory architecture is another major divergence. The R7 M380 uses DDR3 memory with a 128-bit bus, yielding 32.00 GB/s of bandwidth. The GTX 980 uses GDDR5 with a 256-bit bus, achieving 224.4 GB/s. The memory clock speeds reflect this: the R7 M380 runs at 1000 MHz (2 Gbps effective), while the GTX 980 runs at 1753 MHz (7 Gbps effective). Both cards have 4 GB of memory, but the GTX 980's bandwidth advantage is enormous, which matters for high-resolution textures and compute workloads.

The API feature sets also differ. The R7 M380 supports DirectX 12 (11_1) and Vulkan 1.2.170, while the GTX 980 supports DirectX 12 (12_1) and Vulkan 1.4. The GTX 980's higher DirectX feature level and newer Vulkan version indicate more complete support for modern graphics APIs. Both support OpenGL 4.6, but the GTX 980's Maxwell 2.0 architecture was designed with better geometry processing and color compression, features that are not explicitly listed in the database but are reflected in its higher benchmark scores.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The database contains only one direct head-to-head benchmark between these two GPUs: Geekbench OpenCL. In this test, the GTX 980 scores 34,676, while the R7 M380 scores 9,313. The delta percentage is 73.1%, meaning the GTX 980 outperforms the R7 M380 by a wide margin. This is a compute-oriented workload, and the GTX 980's 2,048 shading units and 4.981 TFLOPS FP32 throughput give it a decisive advantage over the R7 M380's 640 shading units and 1,171.2 GFLOPS.

The GTX 980's OpenCL score of 34,676 is roughly 3.72 times the R7 M380's score. This ratio aligns closely with the difference in shading unit counts and clock speeds between the two cards. The GTX 980 also has the advantage of much higher memory bandwidth, which can help in OpenCL workloads that are memory-bound. The R7 M380's 32.00 GB/s bandwidth is a severe bottleneck compared to the GTX 980's 224.4 GB/s.

Looking at the broader benchmark suite for the GTX 980, its scores vary widely by test type. It achieves 15,163 in Geekbench Metal and 22,543 in Geekbench Vulkan, indicating strong performance across different compute APIs. In PassMark tests, it scores 11,095 in G3D, 4,753 in GPU Compute, and 792 in G2D. DirectX-specific PassMark results show 164 for DirectX 9, 83 for DirectX 11, 53 for DirectX 10, and 46 for DirectX 12. These numbers are not directly comparable to the R7 M380, which has only the single Geekbench OpenCL result in the database.

The R7 M380's nearest rivals in the database include the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 850M (score 9,302, delta 0.1%), the GTX 465 (9,294, delta 0.2%), and the GTX 960 (9,273, delta 0.4%). The R7 M380 sits just above these cards in average score. The GTX 980's nearest rivals, by contrast, are the GTX 950M (8,135, delta 0.4%), the AMD Radeon R9 M360 (8,129, delta 0.5%), and the GeForce 945M (8,099, delta 0.8%). This means the GTX 980's average score of 8,167 is actually lower than its OpenCL peak, reflecting the variability across its many benchmark tests.

Despite the GTX 980's OpenCL dominance, its average benchmark score of 8,167 is lower than the R7 M380's 9,313, because the GTX 980 has many more tests recorded, including some older DirectX workloads where it scores relatively low. The R7 M380's single benchmark score may not capture its true performance range, but the recorded data shows a clear compute performance gap.

Specification Differences

The two cards differ in nearly every measurable specification. The R7 M380 is built on the Tropo chip with GCN 1.0 architecture, while the GTX 980 uses the GM204 chip with Maxwell 2.0. Both use a 28 nm TSMC process, but the GTX 980 has a much larger die (398 mm² versus 123 mm²) and more transistors (5,200 million versus 1,500 million). Transistor density is slightly higher on the GTX 980 at 13.1M per mm² compared to 12.2M per mm².

Clock speeds favor the GTX 980: base clock of 1127 MHz versus 900 MHz, and boost clock of 1216 MHz versus 915 MHz. Memory clocks are also higher on the GTX 980, at 1753 MHz (7 Gbps effective) versus 1000 MHz (2 Gbps effective). The memory type differs: DDR3 on the R7 M380 versus GDDR5 on the GTX 980. Bus width is 128-bit versus 256-bit, and bandwidth is 32.00 GB/s versus 224.4 GB/s.

Compute resources are vastly different. The R7 M380 has 640 shading units, 40 TMUs, and 16 ROPs. The GTX 980 has 2,048 shading units, 128 TMUs, and 64 ROPs. Pixel rate is 14.64 GPixel/s versus 77.82 GPixel/s, texture rate is 36.60 GTexel/s versus 155.6 GTexel/s, and FP32 compute is 1,171.2 GFLOPS versus 4.981 TFLOPS.

The GTX 980 has a TDP of 165 W, is a dual-slot card, requires 2x 6-pin power connectors, and has a suggested PSU of 450 W. The R7 M380 has no recorded TDP, slot width, power connector, or PSU specifications. The GTX 980 also has physical dimensions of 267 mm length, 111 mm height, and 40 mm width, while the R7 M380 has no recorded dimensions. Display outputs on the GTX 980 include 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 2.0, and 3x DisplayPort 1.2; the R7 M380 has no recorded display outputs.

API support differs: DirectX 12 (11_1) on the R7 M380 versus DirectX 12 (12_1) on the GTX 980, and Vulkan 1.2.170 versus 1.4. Both support OpenGL 4.6. The bus interface is PCIe 3.0 x16 for both. Release dates differ: the R7 M380 launched on May 4, 2015, while the GTX 980 launched on September 18, 2014. Both are end-of-life products. The GTX 980 has a launch MSRP of 549 USD, while the R7 M380 has no recorded launch MSRP.

Where Each One Wins

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980 is the clear winner in compute performance, as demonstrated by its 34,676 OpenCL score versus the R7 M380's 9,313. This makes the GTX 980 suitable for GPU-accelerated workloads such as rendering, scientific computation, and machine learning tasks that rely heavily on FP32 throughput. Its 4.981 TFLOPS of compute power and 224.4 GB/s memory bandwidth provide the resources needed for demanding compute applications. The GTX 980 also supports a wider range of benchmark tests in the database, including DirectX 9, 10, 11, and 12, as well as Metal and Vulkan, indicating versatility across different API environments.

The GTX 980's higher pixel rate (77.82 GPixel/s) and texture rate (155.6 GTexel/s) make it better suited for high-resolution gaming at demanding settings. Its 64 ROPs and 128 TMUs allow it to handle heavy geometry and texture workloads that would bottleneck the R7 M380's 16 ROPs and 40 TMUs. The GTX 980's GDDR5 memory with 224.4 GB/s bandwidth is also a major advantage for texture-heavy scenes and large framebuffers.

The AMD Radeon R7 M380, despite its lower compute scores, has a higher average benchmark score in the database at 9,313 versus the GTX 980's 8,167. This is because the R7 M380's only recorded benchmark is Geekbench OpenCL, where it performs reasonably well relative to its class. Its nearest rivals include the GTX 850M and GTX 465, with deltas of only 0.1% and 0.2%, meaning the R7 M380 is competitive within its own performance tier. For users with modest compute needs, the R7 M380's 1,171.2 GFLOPS may be sufficient for light GPU acceleration tasks.

The R7 M380's lower power consumption is implied by its lack of a recorded TDP, whereas the GTX 980 explicitly requires 165 W and a 450 W PSU. This makes the R7 M380 more suitable for compact or power-constrained systems, such as thin laptops or small form factor desktops, where the GTX 980's dual-slot design and power connector requirements would be impractical. The R7 M380's smaller die (123 mm² versus 398 mm²) and lower transistor count also suggest better thermal characteristics for mobile or low-profile implementations.

For gaming, the GTX 980 is the unequivocal choice if raw frame rates are the priority. Its DirectX 12 (12_1) support and Vulkan 1.4 compatibility ensure it can run modern titles with advanced features, while the R7 M380's DirectX 12 (11_1) support is more limited. The GTX 980's PassMark G3D score of 11,095 and GPU Compute score of 4,753 indicate strong overall graphics performance, though these numbers are not directly comparable to the R7 M380's single OpenCL result.

The R7 M380's niche is in systems where the GTX 980's physical footprint and power draw are prohibitive. The GTX 980 measures 267 mm in length and 111 mm in height, requiring a full-sized desktop chassis. The R7 M380 has no recorded dimensions, but as a mobile-oriented GPU, it is designed for integration into laptops and compact devices. The database shows the R7 M380's production status as end-of-life, as is the GTX 980, but the R7 M380's predecessor is the Solar System and its successor is Polaris Mobile, indicating a focus on the mobile segment.

In summary, the GTX 980 wins decisively on raw performance, compute throughput, and modern API support. The R7 M380 wins on integration flexibility, power efficiency, and its competitive standing within its own performance tier, as shown by its 46th percentile ranking versus the GTX 980's 43rd percentile. Users who need maximum performance should choose the GTX 980; those who need a capable GPU for a constrained system should consider the R7 M380.