AMD Radeon Vega 8 Mobile vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770M Comparison

FAQ

Q: How does the AMD Radeon Vega 8 Mobile compare to the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770M in the recorded OpenCL benchmark?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770M scores 8,552 points in Geekbench OpenCL, while the AMD Radeon Vega 8 Mobile scores 7,435 points. This results in a 13.1% advantage for the NVIDIA part, making it the clear winner in this specific test.

Q: What is the average benchmark score for each GPU, and what does that indicate?

A: The AMD Radeon Vega 8 Mobile has an average benchmark score of 7,203, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770M has an average of 6,000. Despite losing the OpenCL head-to-head, the AMD part holds a higher aggregate score across all recorded tests, placing it in the 39th percentile of all GPUs compared to the NVIDIA part's 35th percentile.

Q: Which GPU has a higher shading unit count, and how does that relate to performance?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770M features 960 shading units, nearly double the 512 shading units of the AMD Radeon Vega 8 Mobile. This hardware advantage contributes to the NVIDIA part's higher theoretical FP32 throughput of 1.530 TFLOPS versus 1,127.4 GFLOPS for the AMD chip.

Q: What are the memory specifications for each GPU?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770M uses 3 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 192-bit bus with 96.19 GB/s bandwidth. The AMD Radeon Vega 8 Mobile uses system-shared memory, with its bandwidth described as "System Dependent" and its bus width as "System Shared."

Q: Which GPU has a higher pixel rate and texture rate?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770M achieves 15.94 GPixel/s and 63.76 GTexel/s, both substantially higher than the AMD Radeon Vega 8 Mobile's 8.808 GPixel/s and 35.23 GTexel/s. This indicates the NVIDIA part has stronger fill-rate capabilities.

Q: How do the two GPUs differ in their API support?

A: The AMD Radeon Vega 8 Mobile supports DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770M supports DirectX 12 (11_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.175, meaning the AMD part has a higher DirectX feature level and a newer Vulkan version.

The Verdict

The recorded data points to a split decision depending on the benchmark metric. In the sole head-to-head OpenCL test, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770M wins decisively with an 8,552 score against 7,435, a 13.1% margin. However, the AMD Radeon Vega 8 Mobile holds a higher average benchmark score of 7,203 versus 6,000 for the NVIDIA part, which places it in a better overall percentile rank (39th versus 35th). This discrepancy suggests the AMD chip performs more consistently across a broader range of tests, while the NVIDIA part excels specifically in OpenCL compute workloads.

For users prioritizing raw compute performance in OpenCL applications, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770M is the stronger choice based on the head-to-head result. For those looking at overall synthetic benchmark performance, the AMD Radeon Vega 8 Mobile appears more balanced. The NVIDIA part also offers dedicated memory, 3 GB of GDDR5 with 96.19 GB/s bandwidth, which can be advantageous for gaming and graphics workloads that require consistent memory access. The AMD part relies on system-shared memory, making its performance dependent on the host system's memory configuration.

The architectural gap is significant: the NVIDIA GTX 770M uses 960 shading units, 80 TMUs, and 24 ROPs, while the AMD Vega 8 Mobile uses 512 shading units, 32 TMUs, and 8 ROPs. These numbers explain the NVIDIA part's superior fill rates and FP32 throughput. Yet the AMD part's newer architecture, GCN 5.0 on a 14 nm process, delivers higher transistor density and better efficiency per watt (25 W TDP versus 75 W TDP). This makes the AMD Radeon Vega 8 Mobile the more power-efficient option, which matters for thin-and-light laptops where the NVIDIA's 75 W TDP would be impractical.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only direct benchmark comparison recorded in the database is Geekbench OpenCL. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770M scores 8,552, while the AMD Radeon Vega 8 Mobile scores 7,435. The delta is 13.1% in favor of NVIDIA. This is a substantial margin, but it does not tell the whole story.

The average benchmark scores reveal a different picture. The AMD Radeon Vega 8 Mobile averages 7,203 across all recorded tests, which is 20.1% higher than the NVIDIA's 6,000 average. This suggests that while NVIDIA wins the OpenCL test, AMD's overall performance profile is more competitive across a wider set of workloads. The AMD part also sits at the 39th percentile of all GPUs, four points above the NVIDIA part's 35th percentile.

Looking at nearest rivals for context, the AMD Radeon Vega 8 Mobile's average score of 7,203 places it nearly level with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 750 (7,222, a 0.3% difference) and slightly above the GeForce GTX 560 SE (7,171, a 0.4% gap). The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770M's average of 6,000 is essentially tied with the AMD Radeon RX 6400 (6,001, a 0.0% delta) and slightly above the NVIDIA RTX PRO 6000 Blackwell Server (5,996, a 0.1% gap). These comparisons place the AMD part in a higher performance tier despite its loss in the direct OpenCL test.

Specification Differences

The two GPUs differ substantially in nearly every hardware specification. The AMD Radeon Vega 8 Mobile uses a 14 nm process from GlobalFoundries, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770M uses a 28 nm process from TSMC. The AMD chip contains 4,940 million transistors on a 210 mm² die, giving a transistor density of 23.5 million per mm². The NVIDIA chip has 2,540 million transistors on a 221 mm² die, for a density of 11.5 million per mm².

Clock speeds differ significantly. The AMD part runs at a base clock of 300 MHz with a boost up to 1,101 MHz. The NVIDIA part runs at 706 MHz base and 797 MHz boost. Memory configurations are entirely different: the AMD uses system-shared memory with system-dependent bandwidth, while the NVIDIA uses 3 GB of GDDR5 on a 192-bit bus with 96.19 GB/s bandwidth.

The compute resources favor NVIDIA heavily. The GTX 770M has 960 shading units, 80 TMUs, and 24 ROPs, compared to 512 shading units, 32 TMUs, and 8 ROPs for the Vega 8 Mobile. This results in NVIDIA leading in pixel rate (15.94 GPixel/s vs 8.808) and texture rate (63.76 GTexel/s vs 35.23). FP32 throughput is also higher on NVIDIA at 1.530 TFLOPS versus 1,127.4 GFLOPS. The AMD part supports FP16 at 2.255 TFLOPS (2:1), while the NVIDIA part has no recorded FP16 capability.

Power and physical specifications differ as well. The AMD Radeon Vega 8 Mobile is an IGP with a 25 W TDP and no power connectors, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770M is an MXM module with a 75 W TDP. Both are end-of-life products. The AMD part launched on January 7, 2019, while the NVIDIA part launched on May 29, 2013.

Architecture Differences

The AMD Radeon Vega 8 Mobile is built on GCN 5.0 architecture with the Raven-M chip, part of the Vega IGP generation. It uses a 14 nm process with 4,940 million transistors on a 210 mm² die. The architecture supports DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3, giving it modern API coverage with a higher feature level than the NVIDIA part.

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770M is based on the Kepler architecture with the GK106 chip, part of the GeForce 700M generation. It uses a 28 nm process with 2,540 million transistors on a 221 mm² die. Its API support includes DirectX 12 (11_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.175, which is one DirectX feature level lower and a slightly older Vulkan version than the AMD part.

The core configurations reflect the architectural philosophy differences. NVIDIA's Kepler design emphasizes more shading units (960) and higher fill rates, while AMD's GCN 5.0 design uses fewer units (512) but benefits from a more modern process node. The AMD part's higher transistor density (23.5M/mm² vs 11.5M/mm²) is a direct result of the 14 nm process versus 28 nm. The AMD part also has a higher boost clock relative to its base (1,101 MHz versus 300 MHz), indicating a wide boost range, while the NVIDIA part has a narrower boost range (797 MHz versus 706 MHz).

The AMD part's memory architecture relies entirely on system-shared memory, which means no dedicated VRAM. The NVIDIA part has dedicated 3 GB GDDR5 memory. This is a fundamental architectural difference that affects how each GPU handles memory-intensive workloads.

Where Each One Wins

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770M wins in OpenCL compute workloads based on the head-to-head result, scoring 13.1% higher than the AMD Radeon Vega 8 Mobile. Its 960 shading units and 1.530 TFLOPS FP32 throughput make it the stronger choice for applications that leverage raw parallel compute power. The dedicated 3 GB GDDR5 memory with 96.19 GB/s bandwidth also gives it an advantage in scenarios where consistent memory access is critical, such as gaming or GPU-accelerated rendering. Its higher pixel rate (15.94 GPixel/s) and texture rate (63.76 GTexel/s) suggest it handles fill-rate-heavy tasks more effectively.

The AMD Radeon Vega 8 Mobile wins in overall benchmark consistency, holding a higher average score (7,203 versus 6,000) and a higher percentile rank (39th versus 35th). Its 25 W TDP makes it far more power-efficient than the NVIDIA part's 75 W TDP, which is a decisive factor for portable devices. The AMD part also supports newer API features, including DirectX 12 (12_1) and Vulkan 1.3, which may provide better compatibility with modern software. Its higher transistor density (23.5M/mm²) and newer process node (14 nm versus 28 nm) indicate a more efficient design that could deliver better performance-per-watt in sustained workloads.

For users with older systems or those specifically targeting OpenCL compute, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770M is the data-supported pick. For users seeking a modern, power-efficient integrated GPU with broader API support and better overall benchmark scores, the AMD Radeon Vega 8 Mobile is the stronger option. The choice ultimately depends on whether the workload is compute-heavy (NVIDIA) or efficiency-focused with general-purpose performance (AMD).