AMD Radeon R7 M440 vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560M Comparison

The AMD Radeon R7 M440 and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560M represent two distinct eras of mobile graphics, separated by roughly five years of architectural evolution. The recorded data shows a clear, though modest, overall victory for the newer AMD part, driven primarily by its performance in a single compute-oriented benchmark. This analysis walks through the head-to-head results, the architectural shifts that explain them, and what the numbers mean for different usage scenarios.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The database contains one directly comparable benchmark result between these two mobile GPUs: the Geekbench OpenCL test. In this measurement, the AMD Radeon R7 M440 scored 5214 points, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560M scored 4855 points. This gives the AMD part a victory with a delta of 7.4 percent. The margin is not overwhelming, but it is consistent and places the R7 M440 ahead of its older rival in raw compute throughput as measured by this workload.

Looking at the broader context, the average benchmark score for the AMD Radeon R7 M440 sits at 5483, which is higher than its OpenCL-only result because it also includes a Vulkan score of 5751. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560M has no recorded Vulkan result, so its average benchmark score equals its OpenCL score of 4855. This difference in available test data means the AMD part benefits from a second data point that the NVIDIA part simply does not have in the database. However, the head-to-head comparison isolates the shared test, and there the AMD card wins by that 7.4 percent margin.

The percentile rankings reinforce this ordering. The AMD Radeon R7 M440 sits at the 32nd percentile among all GPUs in the database, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560M sits at the 28th percentile. A four percentile point gap indicates that the AMD part is positioned somewhat higher in the overall performance distribution, though both are firmly in the lower half of the GPU landscape.

The nearest rival data for each card provides additional context. The AMD R7 M440’s average score of 5483 places it within a tight cluster: it is 0.3 percent ahead of the NVIDIA Quadro M4000 (5467), 0.7 percent ahead of the AMD Radeon 610M (5444), 0.3 percent behind the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 765M (5501), and 0.5 percent behind the NVIDIA GeForce MX130 (5508). These deltas are all under one percent, meaning the R7 M440 trades blows with a narrow band of similarly performing parts. The NVIDIA GTX 560M, with its average of 4855, sits 0.2 percent ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce 940MX (4844), 0.8 percent behind the NVIDIA GeForce GTS 450 (4893), 0.2 percent behind the AMD Radeon R6 M255DX (4867), and 0.9 percent behind the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 Ti 8 GB (4901). Again, the differences are tiny, but they show the GTX 560M’s performance neighborhood is a step lower than the R7 M440’s neighborhood.

Where Each One Wins

The AMD Radeon R7 M440 wins the only directly comparable benchmark, the Geekbench OpenCL test, by 7.4 percent. This suggests that in compute-heavy workloads that leverage OpenCL, the AMD architecture holds an edge. The card also has a recorded Vulkan score of 5751, which is even higher than its OpenCL result. While there is no direct Vulkan comparison available for the GTX 560M, the fact that the R7 M440 can produce a higher score in Vulkan indicates that its GCN 3.0 architecture is capable of handling modern graphics APIs efficiently. The NVIDIA GTX 560M, by contrast, has no Vulkan support listed in the database, which limits its utility in applications that rely on that API.

For gaming and general graphics workloads, the picture is more nuanced. The GTX 560M counters with a higher texture rate of 24.80 GTexel/s compared to the R7 M440’s 17.82 GTexel/s, a difference of roughly 39 percent. It also has more texture mapping units (32 versus 20) and more ROPs (24 versus 8). These hardware advantages mean the older NVIDIA card can fill textures and handle pixel output faster in certain scenarios, which can matter in traditional rasterized games. However, the GTX 560M’s pixel rate of 6.200 GPixel/s is actually slightly lower than the R7 M440’s 7.128 GPixel/s, despite having three times the ROP count. This suggests the AMD card’s higher clock or different memory configuration compensates for its lower ROP count in pixel throughput.

The memory situation also splits the two cards. The R7 M440 has 4 GB of DDR3 memory on a 64-bit bus, yielding 14.40 GB/s of bandwidth. The GTX 560M has 1536 MB of GDDR5 memory on a 192-bit bus, yielding 60.00 GB/s of bandwidth. That is a massive difference: the NVIDIA card has over four times the memory bandwidth. For workloads that are bandwidth-limited, such as high-resolution texture streaming or certain compute tasks, the GTX 560M would have a clear advantage. The R7 M440 compensates with a higher effective memory clock of 1800 Mbps versus the GTX 560M’s 2.5 Gbps, but the narrow 64-bit bus caps its overall throughput severely.

In terms of compute throughput, the raw numbers are close. The R7 M440 delivers 570.2 GFLOPS of FP32 performance, while the GTX 560M delivers 595.2 GFLOPS. The NVIDIA part is about 4.4 percent higher in raw FP32, yet it lost the OpenCL benchmark. This suggests that architectural efficiency, driver optimization, or memory access patterns play a larger role than raw FLOP counts. The R7 M440 also supports FP16 at a 1:1 ratio (570.2 GFLOPS), while the GTX 560M has no listed FP16 capability, making the AMD card more suitable for workloads that can use half-precision arithmetic.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from fundamentally different design generations. The AMD Radeon R7 M440 is built on GCN 3.0 architecture using the Meso chip, fabricated on a 28 nm process at TSMC. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560M uses the Fermi 2.0 architecture with the GF116 chip, fabricated on a much older 40 nm process, also at TSMC. The process node difference is significant: 28 nm versus 40 nm allows the AMD chip to pack more transistors into a smaller area. The R7 M440 contains 1,550 million transistors on a 125 mm² die, giving a transistor density of 12.4 million per mm². The GTX 560M contains 1,170 million transistors on a much larger 238 mm² die, yielding only 4.9 million per mm². The AMD chip achieves roughly 2.5 times the transistor density of the NVIDIA chip.

The core configurations differ substantially. The R7 M440 has 320 shading units, 20 texture mapping units, and 8 ROPs. The GTX 560M has 192 shading units, 32 TMUs, and 24 ROPs. Despite having fewer shaders, the NVIDIA card has more TMUs and ROPs, reflecting a design philosophy that emphasized texture and pixel throughput during the Fermi era. The R7 M440’s higher shader count aligns with GCN's focus on compute-oriented design, which favors many small compute units over specialized fixed-function hardware.

Memory architecture is another major divergence. The R7 M440 uses 4 GB of DDR3 memory on a 64-bit bus with 14.40 GB/s bandwidth. The GTX 560M uses 1536 MB of GDDR5 on a 192-bit bus with 60.00 GB/s bandwidth. The R7 M440’s memory clock is listed as 900 MHz with 1800 Mbps effective, while the GTX 560M runs at 625 MHz with 2.5 Gbps effective. The NVIDIA memory subsystem is clearly superior in bandwidth, but the AMD card offers more capacity.

API support also differs. The R7 M440 supports DirectX 12 (12_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.170. The GTX 560M supports DirectX 12 (11_0), OpenGL 4.6, but has no Vulkan support listed. This means the AMD card is compatible with modern Vulkan titles, while the NVIDIA card is restricted to older APIs for graphics work. The GTX 560M’s DirectX 12 support is also limited to the 11_0 feature level, which may exclude some newer DirectX 12 features.

The physical form factors also differ. The R7 M440 is an IGP (integrated graphics processor) with a slot width listed as "IGP", meaning it is typically soldered onto the motherboard. The GTX 560M is an MXM Module with a slot width of "MXM Module", indicating it is a removable mobile graphics card. The GTX 560M also has a listed TDP of 75 W and no power connectors, while the R7 M440 has no TDP listed at all. This makes the GTX 560M a more power-hungry part, which is expected given its older process node and higher bandwidth memory.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has a higher average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Radeon R7 M440 has an average benchmark score of 5483, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560M has an average score of 4855.

Q: How much faster is the AMD Radeon R7 M440 in the OpenCL benchmark?

A: In the Geekbench OpenCL test, the R7 M440 scores 5214 versus the GTX 560M’s 4855, a 7.4 percent lead.

Q: Does the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560M support Vulkan?

A: No. The GTX 560M has no Vulkan support listed in the database, while the R7 M440 supports Vulkan 1.2.170.

Q: Which card has more memory bandwidth?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560M has 60.00 GB/s of bandwidth, versus 14.40 GB/s for the AMD Radeon R7 M440.

Q: What are the transistor counts for each GPU?

A: The AMD Radeon R7 M440 has 1,550 million transistors, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560M has 1,170 million.

Q: Which GPU has a higher FP32 compute rating?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560M has a slightly higher FP32 rating at 595.2 GFLOPS, compared to 570.2 GFLOPS for the AMD Radeon R7 M440.

The Verdict

The data suggests that the AMD Radeon R7 M440 is the better overall performer for modern compute workloads. It wins the only head-to-head benchmark, supports Vulkan, and has a higher average score and percentile ranking. Its GCN 3.0 architecture, built on a more advanced 28 nm process, provides better transistor density, higher shader count, and support for FP16 arithmetic. For users who prioritize OpenCL compute, Vulkan gaming, or applications that can leverage half-precision math, the R7 M440 is the clear choice. Its 4 GB memory capacity is also double that of the NVIDIA card, which helps with larger datasets, even if the bandwidth is low.

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560M still holds relevance in legacy scenarios that favor texture throughput. Its 24.80 GTexel/s texture rate and 60.00 GB/s memory bandwidth far exceed the AMD part, making it more suitable for bandwidth-hungry rasterized games from its era. The GTX 560M also has three times the ROP count of the R7 M440, though its pixel rate is slightly lower. For users running older DirectX 11 titles or workloads that depend on high memory bandwidth, the GTX 560M could still perform adequately, despite its lack of Vulkan support and lower overall benchmark scores.

The choice ultimately depends on the workload. The R7 M440 wins on compute efficiency, modern API compatibility, and efficiency metrics. The GTX 560M wins on memory bandwidth and texture throughput. For a modern user, the R7 M440 is the more future-proof option. For a collector or user running period-specific software, the GTX 560M has niche advantages. The benchmark results, however, clearly favor the AMD part.

Specification Differences

The two GPUs differ in nearly every major specification category. The AMD Radeon R7 M440 uses the Meso chip with GCN 3.0 architecture, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560M uses the GF116 chip with Fermi 2.0 architecture. The process node differs: 28 nm for AMD versus 40 nm for NVIDIA, both at TSMC. The AMD chip contains 1,550 million transistors on a 125 mm² die, while the NVIDIA chip contains 1,170 million on a 238 mm² die. Transistor density is 12.4M per mm² for AMD versus 4.9M per mm² for NVIDIA.

Memory specifications diverge sharply. The R7 M440 has 4 GB of DDR3 on a 64-bit bus with 14.40 GB/s bandwidth and 900 MHz memory clock (1800 Mbps effective). The GTX 560M has 1536 MB of GDDR5 on a 192-bit bus with 60.00 GB/s bandwidth and 625 MHz memory clock (2.5 Gbps effective). The core configurations also differ: 320 shading units, 20 TMUs, and 8 ROPs for AMD versus 192 shading units, 32 TMUs, and 24 ROPs for NVIDIA. Pixel rates are 7.128 GPixel/s for AMD versus 6.200 GPixel/s for NVIDIA. Texture rates are 17.82 GTexel/s for AMD versus 24.80 GTexel/s for NVIDIA. FP32 performance is 570.2 GFLOPS for AMD versus 595.2 GFLOPS for NVIDIA. The AMD card supports FP16 at 570.2 GFLOPS (1:1), while the NVIDIA card has no FP16 support.

API compatibility differs in Vulkan and DirectX feature levels. The R7 M440 supports DirectX 12 (12_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.170. The GTX 560M supports DirectX 12 (11_0) and OpenGL 4.6, but no Vulkan. The R7 M440 is an IGP with no listed TDP, while the GTX 560M is an MXM Module with a 75 W TDP and no power connectors. Bus interfaces also differ: PCIe 3.0 x8 for AMD versus MXM-B (3.0) for NVIDIA. Both have end-of-life production status, with the AMD released in May 2016 and the NVIDIA released in May 2011.