AMD Radeon R7 M460 vs NVIDIA GeForce GT 1010 Comparison

The NVIDIA GeForce GT 1010 and AMD Radeon R7 M460 are both end-of-life mobile and low-profile desktop graphics solutions, yet they represent different design philosophies and eras. The data shows a head-to-head benchmark comparison where the GT 1010 emerges with a narrow victory, but the underlying specifications reveal a more complex story about efficiency versus raw compute potential. The GeForce GT 1010, based on the 14 nm Pascal architecture, and the Radeon R7 M460, built on 28 nm GCN 3.0, are separated by only a few percentage points in performance, making the choice between them a matter of specific workload characteristics rather than outright dominance.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The single available head-to-head benchmark result, Geekbench OpenCL, shows the NVIDIA GeForce GT 1010 scoring 6698 against the AMD Radeon R7 M460’s 6612. This gives the GT 1010 a delta of 1.3% over its competitor, a margin so slim that it falls within typical run-to-run variance for synthetic tests. While the GT 1010 wins this specific test, the performance difference is statistically negligible, meaning real-world applications could easily favor either card depending on driver optimization and workload type.

Looking at the broader competitive landscape, both GPUs sit in the same performance tier. The GT 1010’s nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon R7 M370 (scoring 6764, which is 1% faster) and the AMD FirePro M5100 (scoring 6830, which is 1.9% faster). Conversely, the R7 M460’s nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon HD 7730M (scoring 6581, which is 0.5% slower) and the Intel UHD Graphics P750 (scoring 6554, which is 0.9% slower). The GT 1010 also holds a 1.8% advantage over the HD 7730M, while the R7 M460 is 1.5% faster than the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 670M. These numbers place both cards within a tight cluster of GPUs scoring between roughly 6500 and 6850, indicating that neither has a decisive performance edge over the other or their immediate competition.

The 1.3% delta in the head-to-head test is mirrored in the percentile rankings, as both cards land at the 38th percentile among all GPUs. This equivalence in percentile ranking reinforces the conclusion that, from a pure benchmark score perspective, these two products are effectively interchangeable for most tasks. The GT 1010’s victory is technically a win, but the magnitude of that win is too small to translate into a tangible user experience difference. The data suggests that any application leveraging OpenCL heavily would see nearly identical frame rates or compute times, making other factors like power consumption and driver stability more critical differentiators.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher benchmark score in the head-to-head test?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GT 1010 scores 6698, which is 1.3% higher than the AMD Radeon R7 M460’s 6612 in the Geekbench OpenCL test.

Q: How do these cards compare to their nearest rivals?

A: The GT 1010 is 1% slower than the AMD Radeon R7 M370 and 1.9% slower than the AMD FirePro M5100. The R7 M460 is 0.5% faster than the AMD Radeon HD 7730M and 1.5% faster than the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 670M.

Q: Are these GPUs in the same performance percentile?

A: Yes, both the NVIDIA GeForce GT 1010 and AMD Radeon R7 M460 are ranked at the 38th percentile among all GPUs, confirming they occupy the same performance tier.

Q: What is the memory bandwidth of each card?

A: The GT 1010 has a memory bandwidth of 48.06 GB/s, while the R7 M460 has a lower bandwidth of 36.00 GB/s, despite both using 2 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 64-bit bus.

Q: Which card has a higher FP32 compute rating?

A: The AMD Radeon R7 M460 has a higher FP32 rating at 786.4 GFLOPS, compared to the NVIDIA GeForce GT 1010’s 751.6 GFLOPS, even though the GT 1010 wins the OpenCL benchmark.

Q: What is the process node difference between the two?

A: The GT 1010 is manufactured on a 14 nm process at Samsung, while the R7 M460 uses a 28 nm process at TSMC.

Architecture Differences

The architectural divide between these two GPUs is stark. The NVIDIA GeForce GT 1010 is built on the Pascal architecture, specifically using the GP108 chip, and manufactured on a 14 nm process at Samsung. This newer process allows for a transistor density of 24.3 million transistors per square millimeter, packing 1,800 million transistors into a die size of just 74 mm². In contrast, the AMD Radeon R7 M460 uses the GCN 3.0 architecture with the Meso chip, fabricated on a 28 nm process at TSMC. This older process results in a transistor density of only 12.4 million transistors per square millimeter, with 1,550 million transistors spread across a larger 125 mm² die. The GT 1010’s process advantage is clear: it achieves higher density with fewer physical resources, which typically translates to better power efficiency.

The compute core configurations also differ significantly. The R7 M460 fields 384 shading units, 24 texture mapping units (TMUs), and 8 render output units (ROPs), whereas the GT 1010 has only 256 shading units, 16 TMUs, and 8 ROPs. Despite having 50% more shading units, the R7 M460’s lower clock speeds (730 MHz base, 1024 MHz boost) compared to the GT 1010’s (1228 MHz base, 1468 MHz boost) largely negate this advantage. The GT 1010 achieves a pixel rate of 11.74 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 23.49 GTexel/s, while the R7 M460 manages 8.192 GPixel/s and 24.58 GTexel/s. Interestingly, the R7 M460 has a slightly higher texture rate, but the GT 1010 leads in pixel throughput. The R7 M460 does offer FP16 compute at 786.4 GFLOPS (1:1 ratio with FP32), while the GT 1010 has no listed FP16 capability.

The memory subsystems show another divergence. Both use 2 GB of GDDR5 on a 64-bit bus, but the GT 1010 runs its memory at 1502 MHz (6 Gbps effective) yielding 48.06 GB/s bandwidth, while the R7 M460 operates at 1125 MHz (4.5 Gbps effective) for 36.00 GB/s. This gives the GT 1010 a 33.5% bandwidth advantage, which can be critical for memory-bound workloads. In terms of API support, the GT 1010 supports DirectX 12 (12_1) and Vulkan 1.4, while the R7 M460 supports DirectX 12 (12_0) and Vulkan 1.2.170. The GT 1010’s higher DirectX feature level and newer Vulkan version indicate better forward compatibility with modern titles.

Specification Differences

The specification sheets reveal several clear differentiators beyond raw performance. The most obvious is the process node: the GT 1010 uses a 14 nm Samsung process, while the R7 M460 uses a 28 nm TSMC process. This leads to a dramatic difference in die size and transistor density, with the GT 1010 at 74 mm² and 24.3M transistors per mm², versus the R7 M460 at 125 mm² and 12.4M per mm². The GT 1010 also has a higher transistor count at 1,800 million versus 1,550 million, despite the smaller die.

Clock speeds heavily favor the GT 1010. Its base clock of 1228 MHz and boost clock of 1468 MHz dwarf the R7 M460’s 730 MHz base and 1024 MHz boost. Memory clocks follow the same trend, with the GT 1010 at 1502 MHz (6 Gbps effective) versus the R7 M460’s 1125 MHz (4.5 Gbps effective). This results in the GT 1010’s 48.06 GB/s bandwidth overshadowing the R7 M460’s 36.00 GB/s. The shading unit count is the only major spec where the R7 M460 leads, with 384 units versus 256, and it also has more TMUs (24 vs 16). Both have 8 ROPs.

Power and physical specifications differ as well. The GT 1010 has a TDP of 30 W, a single-slot form factor, no power connectors, and a suggested PSU of 200 W. Its dimensions are listed as 147 mm (5.8 inches) in length. The R7 M460 has no listed TDP, slot width, power connectors, suggested PSU, or dimensions, making direct physical comparisons impossible. For display outputs, the GT 1010 offers 1x DVI and 1x mini-HDMI 2.0, while the R7 M460 has no listed display outputs. The bus interface also differs: the GT 1010 uses PCIe 3.0 x4, while the R7 M460 uses PCIe 3.0 x8, giving the AMD card twice the bus lanes, though this is unlikely to matter for a GPU of this performance class. Finally, the release dates are far apart, with the R7 M460 launching on May 14, 2016, and the GT 1010 launching on January 12, 2021.

Where Each One Wins

The NVIDIA GeForce GT 1010 wins in the only direct benchmark available, taking the Geekbench OpenCL test with a 1.3% margin. More importantly, it wins on efficiency and bandwidth. Its 14 nm process, higher clocks, and superior memory bandwidth (48.06 GB/s vs 36.00 GB/s) suggest it will perform better in memory-intensive tasks like texture streaming or high-resolution compute workloads. The GT 1010 also offers a defined power envelope at 30 W TDP with a single-slot design, making it suitable for compact or low-power systems. Its support for DirectX 12 (12_1) and Vulkan 1.4 gives it an edge in newer software environments.

The AMD Radeon R7 M460 counters with a higher raw compute capability. Its 384 shading units deliver 786.4 GFLOPS of FP32 performance, slightly ahead of the GT 1010’s 751.6 GFLOPS. It also has a higher texture fill rate at 24.58 GTexel/s versus 23.49 GTexel/s, which could favor certain texture-heavy workloads. The R7 M460’s FP16 support at 786.4 GFLOPS (1:1) is a feature the GT 1010 lacks entirely, potentially benefiting applications that leverage half-precision arithmetic. Its PCIe 3.0 x8 interface provides double the bus bandwidth of the GT 1010’s x4 connection, which might reduce transfer bottlenecks in specific compute scenarios. Additionally, the R7 M460’s position among rivals shows it is competitive with the Intel UHD Graphics P750 and AMD HD 7730M, making it a viable option in systems where those iGPUs are the alternative.

The Verdict

The data presents a nuanced picture. The NVIDIA GeForce GT 1010 is the safer choice for users prioritizing modern efficiency, lower power draw, and higher memory bandwidth. Its 1.3% benchmark victory, coupled with a 33.5% memory bandwidth advantage and a significantly newer manufacturing process, suggests it will age better with software updates and handle memory-bound tasks more gracefully. The single-slot design and 30 W TDP make it a prime candidate for small form factor builds or legacy systems with limited power delivery. Its support for DirectX 12 (12_1) and Vulkan 1.4 ensures compatibility with contemporary gaming APIs.

The AMD Radeon R7 M460 appeals to users who value raw compute throughput over efficiency. Its higher shading unit count and FP32 output, along with FP16 support, make it theoretically better suited for compute-oriented workloads like OpenCL-based physics simulations or video encoding tasks that can utilize half-precision. The wider PCIe 3.0 x8 interface could also be a deciding factor in systems with slower storage or memory configurations. However, its older 28 nm process and lower clock speeds mean it will draw more power and generate more heat for comparable performance.

For the average user, the GT 1010 is the more compelling option due to its architectural advantages and efficiency. For a developer or researcher specifically targeting FP16 operations or needing maximum shading units in a legacy platform, the R7 M460 holds a niche appeal. Given that both cards are end-of-life and the performance delta is just 1.3%, the decision ultimately hinges on system compatibility and workload-specific features rather than any meaningful performance gap. The GT 1010 wins the benchmark, but the R7 M460 wins on paper in compute density, leaving the final verdict dependent on the intended use case.