AMD Radeon R8 M445DX vs NVIDIA GeForce 830M Comparison

Where Each One Wins

The benchmark data splits cleanly between these two mobile graphics parts, but only in one direction. The AMD Radeon R8 M445DX wins the only direct head-to-head comparison recorded in the database, the Geekbench OpenCL test. Its score of 4727 beats the NVIDIA GeForce 830M’s 4324 by 9.3 percent. That is the sole benchmark where both chips appear side by side, so the AMD part takes the outright win in compute workloads measured through OpenCL.

The NVIDIA GeForce 830M, however, has an additional data point that the AMD chip lacks entirely: a Vulkan benchmark score. The GeForce 830M records 3590 in Geekbench Vulkan, while the Radeon R8 M445DX has no Vulkan result listed in the database. This means the NVIDIA part demonstrates measurable capability in a modern cross-platform graphics API, whereas the AMD chip’s Vulkan performance remains undocumented. For users specifically targeting Vulkan-based applications, the GeForce 830M at least has a recorded baseline; the Radeon R8 M445DX offers no comparable number.

Looking at broader positioning, the AMD Radeon R8 M445DX sits at the 27th percentile among all GPUs in the database, while the GeForce 830M sits at the 24th percentile. The AMD chip’s average benchmark score is 4727, which is its only recorded score. The NVIDIA part’s average is 3957, pulled down by the lower Vulkan result. The AMD part’s nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon R5 M335 at 4752 (0.5 percent ahead), the NVIDIA Quadro P400 at 4684 (0.9 percent behind), and the AMD Radeon R5 M255 at 4788 (1.3 percent ahead). The NVIDIA GeForce 830M’s closest competitors are the AMD Radeon R5 M420 at 3956 (essentially tied), the NVIDIA GeForce GT 745M at 3953 (0.1 percent behind), and the NVIDIA Quadro K2000 at 3964 (0.2 percent ahead). These neighbor scores confirm that the AMD R8 M445DX operates in a slightly higher performance tier than the GeForce 830M, even though both are entry-level mobile parts.

Architecture Differences

The two chips come from different architectural lineages. The AMD Radeon R8 M445DX uses the Meso chip built on GCN 3.0 architecture, while the NVIDIA GeForce 830M uses the GM108 chip built on Maxwell architecture. Both are manufactured on a 28 nm process at TSMC, but the transistor counts differ substantially. The AMD chip packs 1,550 million transistors on a 125 mm² die, giving a transistor density of 12.4 million per square millimeter. The NVIDIA chip has 1,020 million transistors on a 77 mm² die, yielding a higher density of 13.2 million per square millimeter. Despite having fewer total transistors, the NVIDIA part packs them more tightly.

The AMD Radeon R8 M445DX belongs to the Gem System Hybrid generation (Rx M400 series) and was released in May 2016. The NVIDIA GeForce 830M belongs to the GeForce 800M generation, released in March 2014, and lists its predecessor as GeForce 700M and successor as GeForce 900M. The AMD chip has no predecessor or successor recorded. The NVIDIA part also carries a TDP of 33 W, while the AMD chip has no TDP listed in the database. Both are integrated graphics parts (IGP) with portable-device-dependent display outputs.

Memory architecture marks a major divergence. The AMD Radeon R8 M445DX uses system shared memory for size, type, bus width, and bandwidth, meaning its memory performance is system dependent. The NVIDIA GeForce 830M has dedicated 2 GB of DDR3 memory on a 64-bit bus, with 14.40 GB/s bandwidth and a memory clock of 900 MHz (1800 Mbps effective). This dedicated memory gives the NVIDIA part a fixed, predictable memory subsystem, whereas the AMD chip relies entirely on whatever system RAM the laptop provides.

The compute units also differ. The AMD chip has 320 shading units, 20 texture mapping units, and 8 ROPs. The NVIDIA chip has 256 shading units, 16 TMUs, and 8 ROPs. The AMD part therefore offers more parallel shading capacity and texture units, though the ROP count is identical.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only direct comparison in the database is the Geekbench OpenCL test. The AMD Radeon R8 M445DX scores 4727 against the NVIDIA GeForce 830M’s 4324, a delta of 9.3 percent in favor of AMD. This is a meaningful margin for integrated-class mobile graphics, where even small percentage differences can translate into observable frame rate gaps in lightweight workloads.

The AMD chip’s advantage in OpenCL likely stems from its higher shading unit count (320 vs. 256) and its higher FP32 throughput. The AMD part delivers 653.4 GFLOPS of FP32 compute, while the NVIDIA part delivers 588.8 GFLOPS. That is roughly an 11 percent advantage in raw single-precision floating-point math, which aligns closely with the 9.3 percent OpenCL score gap. The AMD chip’s texture rate of 20.42 GTexel/s also exceeds the NVIDIA part’s 18.40 GTexel/s, reinforcing the AMD lead in texture-heavy operations.

The NVIDIA GeForce 830M does counter with a higher pixel rate: 9.200 GPixel/s versus the AMD chip’s 8.168 GPixel/s. That is a 12.6 percent advantage for NVIDIA in pixel fill rate, despite having the same 8 ROPs. This difference comes from the NVIDIA part’s higher clock speeds. The GeForce 830M runs at 1082 MHz base and 1150 MHz boost, while the Radeon R8 M445DX runs at 780 MHz base and 1021 MHz boost. Even with fewer shading units, the NVIDIA part’s higher clocks allow it to fill pixels faster.

The Vulkan score for the NVIDIA GeForce 830M (3590) is notably lower than its OpenCL score (4324), suggesting that the Maxwell architecture performs less impressively under Vulkan than under OpenCL for this particular chip. The AMD Radeon R8 M445DX has no Vulkan measurement, so no comparison is possible. The database lists the AMD chip’s Vulkan API support as version 1.2.170, while the NVIDIA part supports Vulkan 1.4, but API version support does not directly translate to benchmark performance.

Specification Differences

| Specification | AMD Radeon R8 M445DX | NVIDIA GeForce 830M |

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

| Architecture | GCN 3.0 | Maxwell |

| Chip | Meso | GM108 |

| Generation | Gem System Hybrid (Rx M400) | GeForce 800M |

| Transistors | 1,550 million | 1,020 million |

| Die size | 125 mm² | 77 mm² |

| Transistor density | 12.4M / mm² | 13.2M / mm² |

| Base clock | 780 MHz | 1082 MHz |

| Boost clock | 1021 MHz | 1150 MHz |

| Memory size | System Shared | 2 GB |

| Memory type | System Shared | DDR3 |

| Memory bus width | System Shared | 64 bit |

| Memory bandwidth | System Dependent | 14.40 GB/s |

| Shading units | 320 | 256 |

| TMUs | 20 | 16 |

| Pixel rate | 8.168 GPixel/s | 9.200 GPixel/s |

| Texture rate | 20.42 GTexel/s | 18.40 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 653.4 GFLOPS | 588.8 GFLOPS |

| FP16 | 653.4 GFLOPS (1:1) | Not listed |

| TDP | Not listed | 33 W |

| Power connectors | Not listed | None |

| Bus interface | IGP | PCIe 3.0 x8 |

| DirectX support | 12 (12_0) | 12 (11_0) |

| Vulkan support | 1.2.170 | 1.4 |

| Release date | May 2016 | March 2014 |

| Average benchmark score | 4727 | 3957 |

| Percentile | 27 | 24 |

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Radeon R8 M445DX has an average benchmark score of 4727, compared to the NVIDIA GeForce 830M’s 3957. The AMD chip sits at the 27th percentile of all GPUs, while the NVIDIA part sits at the 24th percentile.

Q: How much faster is the AMD chip in the only direct benchmark comparison?

A: In the Geekbench OpenCL test, the AMD Radeon R8 M445DX scores 4727 versus the NVIDIA GeForce 830M’s 4324, a 9.3 percent advantage for AMD.

Q: Does the NVIDIA GeForce 830M have any benchmark that the AMD chip lacks?

A: Yes, the NVIDIA GeForce 830M has a Geekbench Vulkan score of 3590. The AMD Radeon R8 M445DX has no Vulkan benchmark result recorded in the database.

Q: Which GPU has more shading units and texture units?

A: The AMD Radeon R8 M445DX has 320 shading units and 20 TMUs, while the NVIDIA GeForce 830M has 256 shading units and 16 TMUs. Both have 8 ROPs.

Q: How do their memory configurations differ?

A: The AMD Radeon R8 M445DX uses system shared memory with bandwidth described as system dependent. The NVIDIA GeForce 830M has dedicated 2 GB DDR3 memory on a 64-bit bus with 14.40 GB/s bandwidth.

Q: Which GPU has the higher pixel fill rate despite having fewer shading units?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce 830M achieves 9.200 GPixel/s versus the AMD Radeon R8 M445DX’s 8.168 GPixel/s, thanks to its higher clock speeds of 1082 MHz base and 1150 MHz boost.

The Verdict

The data points to a clear but narrow winner for raw compute performance: the AMD Radeon R8 M445DX. Its 9.3 percent lead in the OpenCL benchmark, its higher FP32 throughput (653.4 GFLOPS vs. 588.8 GFLOPS), and its larger shading unit count (320 vs. 256) make it the stronger choice for OpenCL-accelerated workloads. The AMD chip also supports DirectX 12 at the 12_0 feature level, one step above the NVIDIA part’s 11_0 level under DirectX 12, which could matter for newer titles that leverage DX12 features.

The NVIDIA GeForce 830M, however, has its own advantages. Its 33 W TDP is explicitly recorded, giving system designers a known power envelope, whereas the AMD chip’s power draw is undocumented. The NVIDIA part’s dedicated 2 GB DDR3 memory with 14.40 GB/s bandwidth provides consistent memory performance, unlike the AMD chip’s system-dependent shared memory approach. The higher pixel rate (9.200 GPixel/s vs. 8.168 GPixel/s) suggests the NVIDIA part may handle fill-rate-bound scenes slightly better, despite losing overall compute benchmarks.

Users who prioritize OpenCL compute and DirectX 12 feature support should favor the AMD Radeon R8 M445DX. Users who need a documented power draw, dedicated video memory, and a recorded Vulkan baseline should lean toward the NVIDIA GeForce 830M. The recorded data does not show a scenario where the NVIDIA part outperforms the AMD chip in a shared benchmark, so the AMD part holds the performance crown in every directly comparable measurement. The NVIDIA part’s value rests in its fixed memory subsystem and explicit power specifications, not in outperforming the AMD chip on any common test.