NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770M vs NVIDIA GeForce MX230 Comparison

# Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The single head-to-head benchmark available in the data pits the two mobile graphics solutions against each other in Geekbench OpenCL, and the result is decisive. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770M scores 8552, while the NVIDIA GeForce MX230 scores 5739. That translates to a 32.9% advantage for the GTX 770M, making it the clear winner in raw compute throughput as measured by OpenCL. The MX230 has zero wins in this comparison; the GTX 770M takes the sole benchmark.

This outcome is not surprising given the architectural gulf between the two chips. The GTX 770M is built around the GK106 silicon with 960 shading units, 80 texture mapping units, and 24 ROPs. The MX230, by contrast, uses the GP108 chip with only 256 shading units, 16 TMUs, and 16 ROPs. Even though the MX230 runs at a much higher clock speed — 1519 MHz base and 1531 MHz boost versus the GTX 770M's 706 MHz base and 797 MHz boost — the sheer shader count advantage of the older part overpowers the frequency gap. The result is a 32.9% deficit for the MX230 in OpenCL, which aligns with the massive difference in raw FP32 throughput: the GTX 770M delivers 1.530 TFLOPS, while the MX230 manages 783.9 GFLOPS.

However, the picture is not entirely one-sided when looking at the broader benchmark landscape. Both GPUs land at the 35th percentile among all GPUs, meaning they occupy the same tier in overall performance distribution. Their average benchmark scores are also remarkably close: the MX230 averages 6077, while the GTX 770M averages 6000. That is a negligible 1.3% difference in favor of the MX230 across all recorded benchmarks, despite the GTX 770M's overwhelming win in OpenCL specifically. This suggests that the MX230 holds its own in other workloads, likely benefiting from its modern Pascal architecture and higher clock speeds, which help it close the gap in tasks that do not scale linearly with shader count.

Looking at the nearest rivals for each card adds context. The MX230's closest competitor is the NVIDIA RTX A400, with an average score of 6078 and a deltaPct of 0 — essentially a tie. The AMD Radeon 760M sits 1% behind, and the Intel Iris Pro Graphics 6200 is 0.7% ahead. The GTX 770M's nearest rival is the AMD Radeon RX 6400 at 6001, also a 0% delta. Both cards are thus clustered with similarly performing contemporaries, which underscores that while the GTX 770M dominates in OpenCL, the MX230 is not far behind in aggregate performance metrics.

The Verdict

The data paints a nuanced picture for anyone choosing between these two mobile GPUs. If the priority is raw compute performance in OpenCL-heavy applications, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770M is the unambiguous pick. Its 32.9% lead in the geekbench_opencl test is substantial, and it is backed by a 2x advantage in FP32 throughput (1.530 TFLOPS versus 783.9 GFLOPS) and a 2x advantage in texture fill rate (63.76 GTexel/s versus 24.50 GTexel/s). For workloads like rendering, scientific computing, or any task that leverages massive parallel shader counts, the GTX 770M's older Kepler architecture still delivers more muscle.

But the GTX 770M comes with serious trade-offs that the MX230 does not carry. The GTX 770M draws 75 W, while the MX230 is rated at just 10 W — a 65 W difference that makes the MX230 vastly more power-efficient for thin-and-light laptops. The MX230 is an integrated graphics package (IGP) with no power connectors, while the GTX 770M is a removable MXM module. For anyone prioritizing battery life, portability, and lower thermals, the MX230 is the only rational choice, even if it loses the compute crown.

The average benchmark scores suggest that in real-world mixed usage, the two cards are far closer than the OpenCL test implies. The MX230's 6077 average versus the GTX 770M's 6000 means the newer Pascal part effectively ties the older Kepler part across a broader set of tasks. The MX230 also has a higher Vulkan score (6414) than the GTX 770M's OpenCL-only benchmark suite, though no direct Vulkan comparison is available. Given that both GPUs are end-of-life products, the decision hinges on what matters more: compute density (GTX 770M) or efficiency and modern feature support (MX230). For a gaming laptop from the GTX 770M era, the older card wins on raw frames. For a modern ultraportable, the MX230 is the sensible engineering choice.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs represent distinct architectural generations from NVIDIA. The MX230 is built on the Pascal architecture, using the GP108 chip manufactured on a 14 nm process at Samsung. The GTX 770M uses the older Kepler architecture, with the GK106 chip produced on a 28 nm process at TSMC. This node difference is stark: 14 nm versus 28 nm, which explains why the MX230 packs 1,800 million transistors into a 74 mm² die, while the GTX 770M squeezes 2,540 million transistors into a much larger 221 mm² die. The transistor density tells the story — the MX230 achieves 24.3 million transistors per square millimeter, more than double the GTX 770M's 11.5M per mm².

The MX230's Pascal architecture brings several modern features that the Kepler-based GTX 770M lacks. The MX230 supports Vulkan 1.4, while the GTX 770M is limited to Vulkan 1.2.175. Both support DirectX 12, but the MX230 reaches 12_1, whereas the GTX 770M only reaches 12 (11_0). OpenGL support is identical at 4.6. The MX230 also has a much higher boost clock — 1531 MHz versus 797 MHz — which compensates for its fewer cores. Memory speeds also differ: the MX230's memory runs at 1502 MHz (6 Gbps effective), while the GTX 770M's runs at 1002 MHz (4 Gbps effective).

The GTX 770M's Kepler architecture, while older, is fundamentally a high-core-count design. Its 960 shading units dwarf the MX230's 256. It also has 80 TMUs versus 16, and 24 ROPs versus 16. The GTX 770M's texture rate of 63.76 GTexel/s is over 2.5x the MX230's 24.50 GTexel/s, and its pixel rate of 15.94 GPixel/s is lower than the MX230's 24.50 GPixel/s — an interesting inversion showing the MX230's clock advantage helps in pixel throughput. The GTX 770M also lacks FP16 support, with no listed FP16 figure, while the MX230 offers 12.25 GFLOPS FP16 at a 1:64 ratio.

Specification Differences

The specification sheets for these two GPUs diverge on nearly every major parameter. The MX230 has 2 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 64-bit bus, yielding 48.06 GB/s of bandwidth. The GTX 770M has 3 GB of GDDR5 on a 192-bit bus, delivering 96.19 GB/s — exactly double the bandwidth. The MX230's base clock is 1519 MHz, the GTX 770M's is 706 MHz; boost clocks are 1531 MHz and 797 MHz respectively. The MX230's FP32 compute is 783.9 GFLOPS, the GTX 770M's is 1.530 TFLOPS.

Power consumption is a major differentiator: the MX230 draws 10 W, the GTX 770M draws 75 W. The MX230 is an integrated graphics package (IGP) with a PCIe 3.0 x4 bus interface, while the GTX 770M is an MXM Module with an MXM-B (3.0) interface. Both have no power connectors and portable-device-dependent display outputs. The MX230's transistor count is 1,800 million versus 2,540 million for the GTX 770M; die size is 74 mm² versus 221 mm². The MX230 was released on 2019-02-20, while the GTX 770M came out on 2013-05-29. The GTX 770M has a predecessor (GeForce 600M) and successor (GeForce 800M), while the MX230 lists neither.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has more shading units?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770M has 960 shading units, while the NVIDIA GeForce MX230 has 256.

Q: What is the average benchmark score for each card?

A: The MX230 has an average benchmark score of 6077, while the GTX 770M scores 6000 — a difference of roughly 1.3% in favor of the MX230.

Q: How much faster is the GTX 770M in OpenCL?

A: The GTX 770M scores 8552 in the geekbench_opencl test, while the MX230 scores 5739, giving the GTX 770M a 32.9% lead.

Q: What is the power draw difference?

A: The MX230 is rated at 10 W, while the GTX 770M is rated at 75 W.

Q: Which GPU has more memory bandwidth?

A: The GTX 770M has 96.19 GB/s of bandwidth, exactly double the MX230's 48.06 GB/s.

Q: Do both GPUs support the same DirectX version?

A: No — the MX230 supports DirectX 12 (12_1), while the GTX 770M supports DirectX 12 (11_0). The MX230 also supports Vulkan 1.4, versus the GTX 770M's Vulkan 1.2.175.