ATI Radeon X550 vs GeForce 6500
Aggregate performance score
We've compared GeForce 6500 and Radeon X550, covering specs and all relevant benchmarks.
ATI X550 outperforms 6500 by a substantial 30% based on our aggregate benchmark results.
Primary details
GPU architecture, market segment, value for money and other general parameters compared.
| Place in the ranking | 1450 | 1433 |
| Place by popularity | not in top-100 | not in top-100 |
| Architecture | Curie (2003−2013) | Rage 9 (2003−2006) |
| GPU code name | NV44 A2 | RV370 |
| Market segment | Desktop | Desktop |
| Release date | 1 October 2005 (19 years ago) | 1 July 2005 (19 years ago) |
Detailed specifications
General parameters such as number of shaders, GPU core base clock and boost clock speeds, manufacturing process, texturing and calculation speed. Note that power consumption of some graphics cards can well exceed their nominal TDP, especially when overclocked.
| Core clock speed | 400 MHz | 400 MHz |
| Number of transistors | 75 million | 107 million |
| Manufacturing process technology | 110 nm | 110 nm |
| Texture fill rate | 1.600 | 1.600 |
| ROPs | 2 | 4 |
| TMUs | 4 | 4 |
Form factor & compatibility
Information on compatibility with other computer components. Useful when choosing a future computer configuration or upgrading an existing one. For desktop graphics cards it's interface and bus (motherboard compatibility), additional power connectors (power supply compatibility).
| Interface | PCIe 1.0 x16 | PCIe 1.0 x16 |
| Width | 1-slot | 1-slot |
| Supplementary power connectors | no data | None |
VRAM capacity and type
Parameters of VRAM installed: its type, size, bus, clock and resulting bandwidth. Integrated GPUs have no dedicated video RAM and use a shared part of system RAM.
| Memory type | DDR2 | DDR |
| Maximum RAM amount | 128 MB | 128 MB |
| Memory bus width | 128 Bit | 128 Bit |
| Memory clock speed | 266 MHz | 250 MHz |
| Memory bandwidth | 8.512 GB/s | 8 GB/s |
Connectivity and outputs
Types and number of video connectors present on the reviewed GPUs. As a rule, data in this section is precise only for desktop reference ones (so-called Founders Edition for NVIDIA chips). OEM manufacturers may change the number and type of output ports, while for notebook cards availability of certain video outputs ports depends on the laptop model rather than on the card itself.
| Display Connectors | 1x DVI, 1x VGA, 1x S-Video | 1x DVI, 1x VGA, 1x S-Video |
API compatibility
List of supported 3D and general-purpose computing APIs, including their specific versions.
| DirectX | 9.0c (9_3) | 9.0 |
| Shader Model | 3.0 | no data |
| OpenGL | 2.1 | 2.0 |
| OpenCL | N/A | N/A |
| Vulkan | N/A | N/A |
Synthetic benchmark performance
Non-gaming benchmark results comparison. The combined score is measured on a 0-100 point scale.
Combined synthetic benchmark score
This is our combined benchmark score. We are regularly improving our combining algorithms, but if you find some perceived inconsistencies, feel free to speak up in comments section, we usually fix problems quickly.
Passmark
This is the most ubiquitous GPU benchmark. It gives the graphics card a thorough evaluation under various types of load, providing four separate benchmarks for Direct3D versions 9, 10, 11 and 12 (the last being done in 4K resolution if possible), and few more tests engaging DirectCompute capabilities.
Gaming performance
Let's see how good the compared graphics cards are for gaming. Particular gaming benchmark results are measured in FPS.
Pros & cons summary
| Performance score | 0.10 | 0.13 |
| Recency | 1 October 2005 | 1 July 2005 |
GeForce 6500 has an age advantage of 3 months.
ATI X550, on the other hand, has a 30% higher aggregate performance score.
The Radeon X550 is our recommended choice as it beats the GeForce 6500 in performance tests.
Should you still have questions concerning choice between the reviewed GPUs, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.
Comparisons with similar GPUs
We selected several comparisons of graphics cards with performance close to those reviewed, providing you with more options to consider.
