AMD Radeon R9 M380 vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX 480 Comparison

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Radeon R9 M380 has a higher average benchmark score of 15,521 compared to the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 480's 13,300. This places the AMD part in the 58th percentile of all GPUs, while the NVIDIA part sits in the 53rd percentile.

Q: How does the R9 M380 compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The R9 M380 is essentially tied with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti, trailing it by just 0.2%. It sits 1% behind the AMD Radeon Pro W5500 and 1.5% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060.

Q: What is the closest competitor to the GTX 480 in the database?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro 555X is the closest rival, with the GTX 480 trailing it by only 0.2%. The GTX 480 also trails the AMD FirePro M6100 and AMD Radeon RX 5500M by 0.4% each.

Q: Which GPU supports a newer version of DirectX?

A: The AMD Radeon R9 M380 supports DirectX 12 (12_0), while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 480 supports DirectX 12 (11_0). Both cards support OpenGL 4.6, but only the AMD card lists Vulkan 1.2.170 support.

Q: What is the memory configuration difference between the two cards?

A: The AMD Radeon R9 M380 has 4 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 128-bit bus with 96.00 GB/s bandwidth. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 480 has 1536 MB of GDDR5 on a 384-bit bus with 177.4 GB/s bandwidth.

Q: Which card has a higher pixel fill rate?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 480 achieves a pixel rate of 21.03 GPixel/s, which is higher than the AMD Radeon R9 M380's 16.00 GPixel/s. However, the AMD card has a higher texture rate at 48.00 GTexel/s versus 42.06 GTexel/s for the NVIDIA card.

Architecture Differences

The AMD Radeon R9 M380 uses the Strato chip built on GCN 2.0 architecture, fabricated on a 28 nm process at TSMC. The die measures 160 mm² and contains 2,080 million transistors, yielding a transistor density of 13.0 million per square millimeter. This is a mobile-oriented design from the Gem System (R9 M300) generation, released in May 2015.

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 480 uses the GF100 chip based on the Fermi architecture, fabricated on a 40 nm process, also at TSMC. This is a substantially larger die at 529 mm², containing 3,100 million transistors. The transistor density is notably lower at 5.9 million per square millimeter, reflecting the older and less dense manufacturing process. The GTX 480 belongs to the GeForce 400 generation and was released in March 2010.

The compute resources differ significantly. The AMD card packs 768 shading units, 48 texture mapping units, and 16 ROPs. The NVIDIA card has 480 shading units, 60 TMUs, and 48 ROPs. This means the NVIDIA part has more texture units and ROPs despite having fewer shaders. The AMD card reaches 1.536 TFLOPS of FP32 compute, while the NVIDIA card achieves 1,345.0 GFLOPS, giving the AMD part a modest raw compute advantage.

Memory architecture diverges sharply. The R9 M380 uses 4 GB of GDDR5 on a 128-bit bus, while the GTX 480 uses 1536 MB of GDDR5 on a 384-bit bus. The wider bus gives the NVIDIA card nearly double the memory bandwidth at 177.4 GB/s versus 96.00 GB/s. The AMD card runs its memory at 1500 MHz with 6 Gbps effective, while the NVIDIA card runs at 924 MHz with 3.7 Gbps effective.

The bus interface also differs. The R9 M380 uses PCIe 3.0 x16, while the GTX 480 uses PCIe 2.0 x16. The GTX 480 is a dual-slot card requiring 1x 6-pin plus 1x 8-pin power connectors and a 600 W suggested PSU, with a 250 W TDP. It measures 267 mm in length. The AMD card's TDP, slot width, power connectors, and dimensions are not recorded in the database.

The Verdict

The data indicates that the AMD Radeon R9 M380 is the stronger overall performer, with an average benchmark score of 15,521 versus 13,300 for the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 480, a lead of roughly 16.7%. The AMD card also holds a higher percentile ranking at 58 versus 53.

However, the single head-to-head benchmark recorded in the database, Geekbench OpenCL, tells a different story. The GTX 480 scores 13,300 against the R9 M380's 12,565, giving the NVIDIA card a 5.5% win in that specific test. This suggests the GTX 480 has competitive compute performance in OpenCL workloads despite its lower average score across the broader database.

For users prioritizing overall benchmark averages and modern feature support, the R9 M380 is the better choice. It offers DirectX 12 (12_0), Vulkan 1.2.170, and a later release date. For users focused specifically on OpenCL compute performance as measured in the head-to-head test, the GTX 480 holds an edge. The GTX 480 also offers substantially higher memory bandwidth, which may benefit certain bandwidth-sensitive workloads.

Specification Differences

The two cards differ across nearly every core specification. The process node is 28 nm for the AMD card and 40 nm for the NVIDIA card. Transistor count is 2,080 million for AMD versus 3,100 million for NVIDIA. Die size is 160 mm² versus 529 mm². Transistor density is 13.0M per mm² versus 5.9M per mm².

The R9 M380 has a base clock of 900 MHz and a boost clock of 1000 MHz, while the GTX 480 has no base or boost clock recorded. Memory clocks are 1500 MHz (6 Gbps effective) for AMD and 924 MHz (3.7 Gbps effective) for NVIDIA. Memory size is 4 GB versus 1536 MB. Bus width is 128-bit versus 384-bit. Bandwidth is 96.00 GB/s versus 177.4 GB/s.

Shader configuration differs: 768 shading units, 48 TMUs, and 16 ROPs for AMD versus 480 shading units, 60 TMUs, and 48 ROPs for NVIDIA. Pixel rate is 16.00 GPixel/s versus 21.03 GPixel/s. Texture rate is 48.00 GTexel/s versus 42.06 GTexel/s. FP32 compute is 1.536 TFLOPS versus 1,345.0 GFLOPS.

The GTX 480 has recorded power and physical specifications that the AMD card lacks: 250 W TDP, dual-slot width, 1x 6-pin plus 1x 8-pin power connectors, 600 W suggested PSU, and a 267 mm length. Display outputs for the GTX 480 are 2x DVI and 1x mini-HDMI 1.3a; the AMD card's outputs are not recorded.

API support differs in DirectX and Vulkan. The AMD card supports DirectX 12 (12_0) and Vulkan 1.2.170, while the NVIDIA card supports DirectX 12 (11_0) and has no Vulkan listing. Both support OpenGL 4.6. The bus interface is PCIe 3.0 x16 for AMD and PCIe 2.0 x16 for NVIDIA. Release dates are May 2015 for the AMD card and March 2010 for the NVIDIA card. The GTX 480 has a recorded launch MSRP of 499 USD.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The database contains one direct head-to-head comparison: Geekbench OpenCL. In this test, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 480 scores 13,300, while the AMD Radeon R9 M380 scores 12,565. The NVIDIA card wins by 5.5%. This is the only head-to-head benchmark recorded, giving the GTX 480 one win and the R9 M380 zero wins.

Beyond the direct comparison, the average benchmark scores show the R9 M380 at 15,521, which is 2,221 points higher than the GTX 480's 13,300. This is a significant gap in the broader benchmark context. The R9 M380's average sits just 0.2% below the GeForce GTX 1080 Ti and 1.5% above the GeForce RTX 2060, placing it in the company of much newer and more powerful desktop parts. The GTX 480's average, by contrast, sits within 0.6% of several midrange mobile and desktop parts like the Radeon Pro 555X and Radeon RX 5500M.

The OpenCL result is notable because the GTX 480 wins despite its lower average score. This indicates that the Fermi architecture remains competitive in raw compute workloads, likely aided by its 177.4 GB/s memory bandwidth and higher pixel rate. The R9 M380 counters with higher shading unit count and higher FP32 throughput, but this did not translate to an OpenCL win in the recorded test.

Where Each One Wins

The AMD Radeon R9 M380 wins on overall benchmark average, with a score of 15,521 that places it in the 58th percentile of all GPUs. It also wins on modern feature support, including DirectX 12 (12_0), Vulkan 1.2.170, and PCIe 3.0. Its 4 GB memory capacity is larger, and its FP32 compute of 1.536 TFLOPS exceeds the NVIDIA card's 1,345.0 GFLOPS. The 28 nm process node provides higher transistor density, and the card is from a much later generation with a 2015 release date.

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 480 wins in the recorded OpenCL head-to-head benchmark, scoring 13,300 against 12,565. It also wins on memory bandwidth at 177.4 GB/s versus 96.00 GB/s, pixel rate at 21.03 GPixel/s versus 16.00 GPixel/s, and texture unit count at 60 versus 48. It has more ROPs at 48 versus 16, and its 384-bit bus is three times wider than the AMD card's 128-bit bus. The GTX 480 also has a higher texture rate? No, the AMD card has a higher texture rate at 48.00 GTexel/s versus 42.06 GTexel/s.

For use-case selection, the data suggests the R9 M380 is better suited for general-purpose computing and modern API workloads, given its higher average score and feature set. The GTX 480 is better suited for OpenCL compute tasks where its memory bandwidth and ROP count can be leveraged, as demonstrated by its head-to-head win. Users prioritizing the highest average benchmark score should choose the R9 M380; users prioritizing the specific OpenCL workload measured should choose the GTX 480.