AMD Radeon Vega 10 Mobile vs NVIDIA GeForce MX230 Comparison

AMD Radeon Vega 10 Mobile and NVIDIA GeForce MX230 are both end-of-life mobile graphics solutions aimed at thin-and-light laptops, but the data shows a clear hierarchy: the AMD part leads in raw compute performance in the single shared benchmark, while the NVIDIA part counters with a higher pixel throughput and a broader API feature set. Based on the Geekbench OpenCL score, the AMD Radeon Vega 10 Mobile is 12.8% faster than the NVIDIA GeForce MX230, yet the MX230 holds a distinct architectural advantage in memory bandwidth and pixel processing that may matter in specific workloads. Below is a detailed breakdown of how these two mobile GPUs compare across every measurable field in the fact pack.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU is faster in the shared benchmark?

A: The AMD Radeon Vega 10 Mobile wins the only head-to-head benchmark (Geekbench OpenCL) with a score of 6476 versus the NVIDIA GeForce MX230’s 5739, a delta of 12.8%.

Q: How do their overall benchmark averages compare?

A: The AMD part has an average benchmark score of 6476, while the NVIDIA part averages 6077 across its two Geekbench runs (OpenCL and Vulkan). This puts the AMD GPU at the 37th percentile of all GPUs, with the NVIDIA GPU at the 35th percentile.

Q: Does the NVIDIA GPU have any benchmark where it wins outright?

A: Yes, but only in a test the AMD part did not run. The MX230 scores 6414 in Geekbench Vulkan, a test absent from the Vega 10 Mobile’s data. In the only direct comparison, AMD wins.

Q: What are the closest rivals to each GPU based on average score?

A: The Vega 10 Mobile’s nearest rival is the NVIDIA Quadro M5000M (6481, -0.1% delta), while the MX230’s nearest rival is the NVIDIA RTX A400 (6078, 0% delta). Both units sit within 1% of their respective competitors.

Q: Do both GPUs support the same DirectX and OpenGL versions?

A: Yes, both support DirectX 12 (12_1) and OpenGL 4.6. They diverge on Vulkan: the Vega 10 Mobile supports Vulkan 1.3, while the MX230 supports Vulkan 1.4.

Q: What is the memory configuration difference?

A: The Vega 10 Mobile uses system-shared memory with bandwidth described as "System Dependent," while the MX230 has 2 GB of dedicated GDDR5 on a 64-bit bus with 48.06 GB/s bandwidth.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from fundamentally different design philosophies. The AMD Radeon Vega 10 Mobile is built on GCN 5.0 architecture, using the Raven-M chip manufactured on a 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries. This is an integrated graphics processor (IGP) with a massive transistor count of 4,940 million spread across a 210 mm² die. The NVIDIA GeForce MX230, in contrast, uses the Pascal architecture with the GP108 chip, also on a 14 nm process but fabricated by Samsung, with just 1,800 million transistors on a much smaller 74 mm² die. The transistor density is nearly identical — 23.5M / mm² for AMD versus 24.3M / mm² for NVIDIA — but the sheer scale of the AMD chip is nearly three times larger in die area.

The compute resource allocation differs dramatically. The Vega 10 Mobile packs 640 shading units, 40 texture mapping units (TMUs), and 8 render output units (ROPs). The MX230 has only 256 shading units and 16 TMUs, but doubles the ROP count to 16. This explains the divergent performance profiles: AMD’s design favors parallel shader work, while NVIDIA’s smaller but more ROP-heavy configuration excels at pixel output. The clock speeds reinforce this: the Vega 10 Mobile boosts to 1301 MHz from a 300 MHz base, whereas the MX230 runs at a much higher 1519 MHz base and 1531 MHz boost. Higher clocks on the NVIDIA part partially compensate for fewer cores, but not enough to overcome AMD’s raw throughput advantage.

Memory architecture is another major split. The Vega 10 Mobile has no dedicated VRAM; it relies on system-shared memory with bandwidth that is "System Dependent," meaning performance scales with the host laptop’s RAM. The MX230 has fixed 2 GB GDDR5 on a 64-bit bus, delivering a consistent 48.06 GB/s. This is a crucial distinction for workloads sensitive to memory latency and bandwidth stability. The AMD part also reports FP16 throughput of 3.331 TFLOPS (2:1 ratio), while the NVIDIA part is heavily crippled in FP16 at just 12.25 GFLOPS (1:64 ratio), indicating AMD’s superior mixed-precision capability.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only direct comparison available is the Geekbench OpenCL test, and the results are unambiguous. The AMD Radeon Vega 10 Mobile scores 6476, while the NVIDIA GeForce MX230 scores 5739, giving AMD a 12.8% advantage. In absolute terms, that is a 737-point gap, which is significant enough to place the Vega 10 Mobile in a higher performance tier. The AMD part’s percentile rank of 37 versus NVIDIA’s 35 confirms this is not a statistical fluke but a real, if modest, performance separation.

Looking at the rivals, the Vega 10 Mobile’s score puts it just 0.1% behind the NVIDIA Quadro M5000M (6481) and 0.3% behind the GeForce GT 555M (6493), meaning it is functionally equivalent to those older discrete parts. The MX230, by contrast, sits exactly at parity with the NVIDIA RTX A400 (6078, 0% delta) and 0.5% ahead of the Quadro P2000 (6049). The AMD part is also 1.1% ahead of the RTX PRO 5000 72 GB Blackwell (6407), a far more expensive workstation GPU — though that delta is within noise. For the MX230, its closest competitor is the Intel Iris Pro Graphics 6200 (6117), which beats it by 0.7%.

The MX230 does have a Vulkan score of 6414, which is close to the Vega 10 Mobile’s OpenCL score of 6476. However, cross-API comparisons are unreliable, and since the AMD part has no Vulkan result, the data cannot support a direct claim of superiority in that API. What the data does show is that in the single test both GPUs ran, AMD wins decisively.

Specification Differences

| Specification | AMD Radeon Vega 10 Mobile | NVIDIA GeForce MX230 |

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

| Architecture | GCN 5.0 | Pascal |

| Chip | Raven-M | GP108 |

| Foundry | GlobalFoundries | Samsung |

| Transistors | 4,940 million | 1,800 million |

| Die Size | 210 mm² | 74 mm² |

| Base Clock | 300 MHz | 1519 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 1301 MHz | 1531 MHz |

| Memory Size | System Shared | 2 GB |

| Memory Type | System Shared | GDDR5 |

| Memory Bus | System Shared | 64 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | System Dependent | 48.06 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 640 | 256 |

| TMUs | 40 | 16 |

| ROPs | 8 | 16 |

| Pixel Rate | 10.41 GPixel/s | 24.50 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 52.04 GTexel/s | 24.50 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 1.665 TFLOPS | 783.9 GFLOPS |

| FP16 | 3.331 TFLOPS (2:1) | 12.25 GFLOPS (1:64) |

| Bus Interface | IGP | PCIe 3.0 x4 |

| Vulkan Version | 1.3 | 1.4 |

| Release Date | 2019-01-07 | 2019-02-20 |

The Verdict

The data is clear: for general compute workloads measured by OpenCL, the AMD Radeon Vega 10 Mobile is the superior part, delivering 12.8% higher performance than the NVIDIA GeForce MX230. Its 1.665 TFLOPS FP32 throughput versus the MX230’s 783.9 GFLOPS is more than double, and its 52.04 GTexel/s texture rate is similarly dominant. The Vega 10 Mobile also carries a massive transistor budget (4,940 million vs 1,800 million), which translates directly into more shading units (640 vs 256) and higher raw compute.

However, the NVIDIA part wins on pure pixel pushing. The MX230’s 24.50 GPixel/s pixel rate is more than double the Vega 10 Mobile’s 10.41 GPixel/s, thanks to its 16 ROPs versus 8. This means for fill-rate-bound scenarios — such as certain graphical effects or resolution scaling — the MX230 could be faster despite losing the aggregate compute test. The MX230 also has the advantage of dedicated GDDR5 memory with a fixed 48.06 GB/s bandwidth, whereas the Vega 10 Mobile depends on system RAM, which can be a bottleneck or a benefit depending on the laptop’s memory configuration.

The verdict hinges on use case. For users running compute-heavy applications like OpenCL-accelerated encoding or physics simulations, the AMD part is the clear choice. For users prioritizing consistent memory performance and higher pixel output, the NVIDIA part has merits. The MX230’s Vulkan 1.4 support also gives it a newer API surface, though the Vega 10 Mobile’s Vulkan 1.3 is only one revision behind. Ultimately, the AMD Radeon Vega 10 Mobile wins the benchmark comparison, but the MX230 is not without its own strengths.

Where Each One Wins

AMD Radeon Vega 10 Mobile wins in:

• Raw compute: 12.8% ahead in Geekbench OpenCL (6476 vs 5739).
• Shader throughput: 640 shading units and 1.665 TFLOPS FP32 vs 256 units and 783.9 GFLOPS.
• Texture processing: 40 TMUs and 52.04 GTexel/s vs 16 TMUs and 24.50 GTexel/s.
• Mixed precision: 3.331 TFLOPS FP16 (2:1) vs a negligible 12.25 GFLOPS (1:64).
• Overall percentile: 37th vs 35th percentile of all GPUs.

NVIDIA GeForce MX230 wins in:

• Pixel fill rate: 24.50 GPixel/s vs 10.41 GPixel/s, thanks to double the ROP count (16 vs 8).
• Memory consistency: Dedicated 2 GB GDDR5 at 48.06 GB/s vs system-shared, system-dependent bandwidth.
• Clock stability: Higher base and boost clocks (1519 MHz / 1531 MHz vs 300 MHz / 1301 MHz).
• API version: Vulkan 1.4 support vs Vulkan 1.3.
• Interface flexibility: PCIe 3.0 x4 bus interface vs IGP-only integration.

For laptop buyers, the choice depends on whether the workload is compute-bound (choose AMD) or pixel-bound with stable memory (choose NVIDIA). The data gives AMD the overall win, but the MX230’s specialized strengths make it a viable alternative for specific tasks.