AMD Radeon R7 M440 vs NVIDIA GeForce MX230 Comparison

The Verdict

The recorded data is unambiguous: the NVIDIA GeForce MX230 outperforms the AMD Radeon R7 M440 in every benchmark category listed in the database. Across the two head-to-head tests, the MX230 wins twice, with a 10.1% advantage in Geekbench OpenCL and an 11.5% advantage in Geekbench Vulkan. For users choosing between these two end-of-life mobile GPUs, the MX230 is the clear pick on raw performance, delivering higher scores in both compute and graphics workloads.

However, the Radeon R7 M440 is not without its own rationale. It offers 4 GB of memory, double the MX230's 2 GB, and a wider PCIe 3.0 x8 interface compared to the MX230's PCIe 3.0 x4. The R7 M440 also has a higher shading unit count (320 vs 256) and more texture mapping units (20 vs 16), though these architectural advantages do not translate into benchmark wins. The MX230, with its newer 14 nm process and Pascal architecture, achieves better efficiency in the measured workloads. The verdict: for compute and gaming performance, choose the MX230; for scenarios requiring more memory capacity, the R7 M440 has a structural edge.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from different foundries and process nodes. The NVIDIA GeForce MX230 uses the GP108 chip, built on Pascal architecture at Samsung's 14 nm node, with a die size of 74 mm² and 1,800 million transistors, yielding a transistor density of 24.3M per mm². The AMD Radeon R7 M440 uses the Meso chip, based on GCN 3.0 architecture, fabricated by TSMC at 28 nm, with a die size of 125 mm² and 1,550 million transistors, resulting in a density of 12.4M per mm². The MX230's newer process node and smaller die allow for a higher transistor density, which contributes to its benchmark advantage.

Memory configurations differ significantly. The MX230 has 2 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 64-bit bus, delivering a bandwidth of 48.06 GB/s. The R7 M440 has 4 GB of DDR3 memory on a 64-bit bus, with a bandwidth of only 14.40 GB/s. The MX230's memory clock is listed at 1502 MHz with 6 Gbps effective, while the R7 M440's memory runs at 900 MHz with 1800 Mbps effective. The MX230's GDDR5 memory is a major factor in its higher bandwidth, which directly impacts both compute and graphics workloads.

Core configurations also differ. The MX230 has 256 shading units, 16 TMUs, and 16 ROPs. The R7 M440 has 320 shading units, 20 TMUs, and 8 ROPs. The R7 M440 has more shading units and TMUs, but the MX230 has double the ROPs. Pixel rate for the MX230 is 24.50 GPixel/s, while the R7 M440 manages 7.128 GPixel/s. Texture rates are 24.50 GTexel/s for the MX230 and 17.82 GTexel/s for the R7 M440. The MX230 also has a higher FP32 throughput at 783.9 GFLOPS versus the R7 M440's 570.2 GFLOPS. Notably, the MX230's FP16 performance is 12.25 GFLOPS at a 1:64 ratio, while the R7 M440 achieves 570.2 GFLOPS at 1:1, a significant difference for mixed-precision workloads.

API support favors the MX230 slightly: it supports DirectX 12 (12_1) and Vulkan 1.4, while the R7 M440 supports DirectX 12 (12_0) and Vulkan 1.2.170. Both support OpenGL 4.6. The MX230 has a TDP of 10 W, while the R7 M440's TDP is not listed in the database. Both are integrated-grade parts (IGP slot width) with portable-device-dependent display outputs.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The Geekbench OpenCL test shows the MX230 scoring 5,739 points against the R7 M440's 5,214 points, a 10.1% delta in favor of the NVIDIA part. This is a substantial margin in a compute-oriented benchmark, indicating that the MX230's higher FP32 throughput and memory bandwidth translate directly into better raw arithmetic performance. The MX230's 783.9 GFLOPS FP32 capability versus the R7 M440's 570.2 GFLOPS is the likely driver of this result.

In Geekbench Vulkan, the MX230 scores 6,414 points versus the R7 M440's 5,751 points, an 11.5% delta. This test exercises graphics and compute through the Vulkan API, and the MX230's advantage here is even larger than in OpenCL. The MX230's newer Vulkan 1.4 support compared to the R7 M440's Vulkan 1.2.170 may contribute to this gap, along with the superior pixel and texture rates.

The average benchmark score in the database reflects these results: the MX230 averages 6,077 points, while the R7 M440 averages 5,483 points, a 10.8% overall difference. The MX230 sits at the 35th percentile among all GPUs, while the R7 M440 sits at the 32nd percentile. The MX230's nearest rivals include the NVIDIA RTX A400 (6,078, 0% delta), the NVIDIA Quadro P2000 (6,049, 0.5%), the Intel Iris Pro Graphics 6200 (6,117, -0.7%), and the AMD Radeon 760M (6,019, 1%). The R7 M440's nearest rivals are the NVIDIA Quadro M4000 (5,467, 0.3%), the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 765M (5,501, -0.3%), the NVIDIA GeForce MX130 (5,508, -0.5%), and the AMD Radeon 610M (5,444, 0.7%). These rival placements show that the MX230 operates in a slightly higher performance tier than the R7 M440.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has better compute performance?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce MX230 wins both compute benchmarks. It scores 5,739 in Geekbench OpenCL versus the R7 M440's 5,214, and 6,414 in Geekbench Vulkan versus the R7 M440's 5,751. The MX230's FP32 throughput is 783.9 GFLOPS, while the R7 M440 delivers 570.2 GFLOPS.

Q: Does the Radeon R7 M440 have any advantage in memory capacity?

A: Yes, the R7 M440 has 4 GB of DDR3 memory, double the MX230's 2 GB of GDDR5. However, the MX230 has a much higher memory bandwidth at 48.06 GB/s versus the R7 M440's 14.40 GB/s, so the capacity advantage does not translate into a bandwidth advantage.

Q: How do the two GPUs compare in terms of architecture?

A: The MX230 uses Pascal architecture on a 14 nm Samsung process, while the R7 M440 uses GCN 3.0 on a 28 nm TSMC process. The MX230 has a smaller die (74 mm² vs 125 mm²) but more transistors per area (24.3M / mm² vs 12.4M / mm²). The MX230 supports DirectX 12 (12_1) and Vulkan 1.4, while the R7 M440 supports DirectX 12 (12_0) and Vulkan 1.2.170.

Q: Which GPU has higher pixel and texture rates?

A: The MX230 leads both. Its pixel rate is 24.50 GPixel/s versus the R7 M440's 7.128 GPixel/s, and its texture rate is 24.50 GTexel/s versus the R7 M440's 17.82 GTexel/s. The MX230 also has 16 ROPs versus the R7 M440's 8 ROPs.

Q: What are the percentile rankings for these GPUs?

A: The MX230 is at the 35th percentile among all GPUs, while the R7 M440 is at the 32nd percentile. Their average benchmark scores are 6,077 and 5,483 respectively.

Q: Which GPU is better for mixed-precision workloads?

A: The R7 M440 has a clear advantage here. Its FP16 performance is 570.2 GFLOPS at a 1:1 ratio, while the MX230's FP16 is 12.25 GFLOPS at a 1:64 ratio. For workloads that rely heavily on FP16, the R7 M440's architecture is better suited.

Where Each One Wins

The MX230 wins in performance-critical scenarios. Its higher FP32 throughput (783.9 GFLOPS vs 570.2 GFLOPS), greater memory bandwidth (48.06 GB/s vs 14.40 GB/s), and superior pixel rate (24.50 GPixel/s vs 7.128 GPixel/s) make it the better choice for compute-heavy tasks, gaming, and any workload that depends on raw render output. The MX230's 16 ROPs versus the R7 M440's 8 ROPs further solidifies its advantage in fill-rate-limited scenarios. The benchmark data confirms this: the MX230 leads by 10.1% in OpenCL and 11.5% in Vulkan.

The R7 M440 wins in memory-capacity-focused scenarios. Its 4 GB of memory versus the MX230's 2 GB allows it to handle larger datasets or textures without swapping, even though its bandwidth is much lower. The R7 M440 also has more shading units (320 vs 256) and more TMUs (20 vs 16), which could theoretically benefit workloads that are highly parallel but not bandwidth-bound. The R7 M440's FP16 performance at 1:1 ratio (570.2 GFLOPS) is a major advantage for mixed-precision compute, where the MX230's 1:64 ratio would severely limit performance. Additionally, the R7 M440's PCIe 3.0 x8 interface provides more bandwidth to the host system than the MX230's PCIe 3.0 x4, which may matter for data-transfer-heavy applications.

Specification Differences

| Specification | NVIDIA GeForce MX230 | AMD Radeon R7 M440 |

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

| Chip | GP108 | Meso |

| Architecture | Pascal | GCN 3.0 |

| Process Node | 14 nm | 28 nm |

| Foundry | Samsung | TSMC |

| Transistors | 1,800 million | 1,550 million |

| Die Size | 74 mm² | 125 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 24.3M / mm² | 12.4M / mm² |

| Memory Size | 2 GB | 4 GB |

| Memory Type | GDDR5 | DDR3 |

| Memory Clock | 1502 MHz (6 Gbps effective) | 900 MHz (1800 Mbps effective) |

| Memory Bandwidth | 48.06 GB/s | 14.40 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 256 | 320 |

| TMUs | 16 | 20 |

| ROPs | 16 | 8 |

| Pixel Rate | 24.50 GPixel/s | 7.128 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 24.50 GTexel/s | 17.82 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 783.9 GFLOPS | 570.2 GFLOPS |

| FP16 | 12.25 GFLOPS (1:64) | 570.2 GFLOPS (1:1) |

| TDP | 10 W | Not listed |

| Bus Interface | PCIe 3.0 x4 | PCIe 3.0 x8 |

| DirectX | 12 (12_1) | 12 (12_0) |

| Vulkan | 1.4 | 1.2.170 |

| Release Date | 2019-02-20 | 2016-05-14 |

| Production Status | End-of-life | End-of-life |

The MX230's GDDR5 memory, higher bandwidth, and newer process node give it a decisive performance edge in the recorded benchmarks. The R7 M440's larger memory pool and superior FP16 capability are its distinguishing features, but neither translates into a benchmark win. For users who prioritize raw speed, the MX230 is the superior choice; for those who need more memory or FP16 throughput, the R7 M440 has specific structural merits.