Maxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5) vs Radeon RX Vega 6 (Ryzen 2000/3000)
Aggregate performance score
We've compared Radeon RX Vega 6 (Ryzen 2000/3000) and Maxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5), covering specs and all relevant benchmarks.
Maxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5) outperforms RX Vega 6 (Ryzen 2000/3000) by a significant 21% based on our aggregate benchmark results.
Primary details
GPU architecture, market segment, value for money and other general parameters compared.
| Place in the ranking | 768 | 712 |
| Place by popularity | not in top-100 | not in top-100 |
| Power efficiency | 14.13 | no data |
| Architecture | Vega (2017−2020) | Maxwell (2014−2017) |
| GPU code name | Vega Raven Ridge | Surface Book |
| Market segment | Laptop | Laptop |
| Release date | 7 January 2018 (6 years ago) | 1 October 2015 (9 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.
| Pipelines / CUDA cores | 384 | 384 |
| Core clock speed | no data | 954 MHz |
| Boost clock speed | 1100 MHz | 993 MHz |
| Manufacturing process technology | 14 nm | 28 nm |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 15 Watt | no data |
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 | no data | GDDR5 |
| Maximum RAM amount | no data | 1 GB |
| Memory bus width | no data | 64 Bit |
| Memory clock speed | no data | 5012 MHz |
| Shared memory | - | - |
Supported technologies
Supported technological solutions. This information will prove useful if you need some particular technology for your purposes.
| Optimus | - | + |
API compatibility
List of supported 3D and general-purpose computing APIs, including their specific versions.
| DirectX | 12_1 | DirectX 12 (FL 11_0), Shader 5.0 |
| CUDA | - | + |
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.
3DMark 11 Performance GPU
3DMark 11 is an obsolete DirectX 11 benchmark by Futuremark. It used four tests based on two scenes, one being few submarines exploring the submerged wreck of a sunken ship, the other is an abandoned temple deep in the jungle. All the tests are heavy with volumetric lighting and tessellation, and despite being done in 1280x720 resolution, are relatively taxing. Discontinued in January 2020, 3DMark 11 is now superseded by Time Spy.
3DMark Fire Strike Graphics
Fire Strike is a DirectX 11 benchmark for gaming PCs. It features two separate tests displaying a fight between a humanoid and a fiery creature made of lava. Using 1920x1080 resolution, Fire Strike shows off some realistic graphics and is quite taxing on hardware.
3DMark Cloud Gate GPU
Cloud Gate is an outdated DirectX 11 feature level 10 benchmark that was used for home PCs and basic notebooks. It displays a few scenes of some weird space teleportation device launching spaceships into unknown, using fixed resolution of 1280x720. Just like Ice Storm benchmark, it has been discontinued in January 2020 and replaced by 3DMark Night Raid.
3DMark Ice Storm GPU
Ice Storm Graphics is an obsolete benchmark, part of 3DMark suite. Ice Storm was used to measure entry level laptops and Windows-based tablets performance. It utilizes DirectX 11 feature level 9 to display a battle between two space fleets near a frozen planet in 1280x720 resolution. Discontinued in January 2020, it is now superseded by 3DMark Night Raid.
Gaming performance
Let's see how good the compared graphics cards are for gaming. Particular gaming benchmark results are measured in FPS.
Average FPS across all PC games
Here are the average frames per second in a large set of popular games across different resolutions:
| Full HD | 14
−100%
| 28
+100%
|
FPS performance in popular games
Full HD
Low Preset
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 6−7
−16.7%
|
7−8
+16.7%
|
Full HD
Medium Preset
| Assassin's Creed Odyssey | 8
−37.5%
|
10−12
+37.5%
|
| Assassin's Creed Valhalla | 8
−12.5%
|
9−10
+12.5%
|
| Battlefield 5 | 11
+37.5%
|
8−9
−37.5%
|
| Call of Duty: Modern Warfare | 8
+0%
|
8−9
+0%
|
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 6−7
−16.7%
|
7−8
+16.7%
|
| Far Cry 5 | 6−7
−16.7%
|
7−8
+16.7%
|
| Far Cry New Dawn | 8−9
−25%
|
10−11
+25%
|
| Forza Horizon 4 | 18
−16.7%
|
21−24
+16.7%
|
| Hitman 3 | 7
−14.3%
|
8−9
+14.3%
|
| Horizon Zero Dawn | 21−24
−17.4%
|
27−30
+17.4%
|
| Metro Exodus | 13
−7.7%
|
14−16
+7.7%
|
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | 10
+11.1%
|
9−10
−11.1%
|
| Shadow of the Tomb Raider | 12
−16.7%
|
14−16
+16.7%
|
| Watch Dogs: Legion | 35−40
−15.4%
|
45−50
+15.4%
|
Full HD
High Preset
| Assassin's Creed Odyssey | 9
−22.2%
|
10−12
+22.2%
|
| Assassin's Creed Valhalla | 7
−14.3%
|
8−9
+14.3%
|
| Battlefield 5 | 5−6
−60%
|
8−9
+60%
|
| Call of Duty: Modern Warfare | 7−8
−14.3%
|
8−9
+14.3%
|
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 6−7
−16.7%
|
7−8
+16.7%
|
| Far Cry 5 | 6−7
−16.7%
|
7−8
+16.7%
|
| Far Cry New Dawn | 8−9
−25%
|
10−11
+25%
|
| Forza Horizon 4 | 15
−40%
|
21−24
+40%
|
| Hitman 3 | 8−9
−12.5%
|
9−10
+12.5%
|
| Horizon Zero Dawn | 21−24
−17.4%
|
27−30
+17.4%
|
| Metro Exodus | 5
−20%
|
6−7
+20%
|
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | 7−8
−28.6%
|
9−10
+28.6%
|
| Shadow of the Tomb Raider | 14
+0%
|
14−16
+0%
|
| The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt | 17
+13.3%
|
14−16
−13.3%
|
| Watch Dogs: Legion | 35−40
−15.4%
|
45−50
+15.4%
|
Full HD
Ultra Preset
| Assassin's Creed Odyssey | 9−10
−22.2%
|
10−12
+22.2%
|
| Assassin's Creed Valhalla | 1−2
+0%
|
1−2
+0%
|
| Call of Duty: Modern Warfare | 7−8
−14.3%
|
8−9
+14.3%
|
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 6−7
−16.7%
|
7−8
+16.7%
|
| Far Cry 5 | 6−7
−16.7%
|
7−8
+16.7%
|
| Forza Horizon 4 | 16−18
−31.3%
|
21−24
+31.3%
|
| Hitman 3 | 8−9
−12.5%
|
9−10
+12.5%
|
| Horizon Zero Dawn | 21−24
−17.4%
|
27−30
+17.4%
|
| Shadow of the Tomb Raider | 12
−16.7%
|
14−16
+16.7%
|
| The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt | 6
−150%
|
14−16
+150%
|
| Watch Dogs: Legion | 35−40
−15.4%
|
45−50
+15.4%
|
Full HD
Epic Preset
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | 7−8
−14.3%
|
8−9
+14.3%
|
1440p
High Preset
| Battlefield 5 | 5−6
−20%
|
6−7
+20%
|
| Far Cry New Dawn | 5−6
−20%
|
6−7
+20%
|
1440p
Ultra Preset
| Assassin's Creed Odyssey | 3−4
+0%
|
3−4
+0%
|
| Call of Duty: Modern Warfare | 2−3
+0%
|
2−3
+0%
|
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 2−3
+0%
|
2−3
+0%
|
| Far Cry 5 | 3−4
−33.3%
|
4−5
+33.3%
|
| Hitman 3 | 8−9
−12.5%
|
9−10
+12.5%
|
| Horizon Zero Dawn | 8−9
−12.5%
|
9−10
+12.5%
|
| The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt | 2−3
+0%
|
2−3
+0%
|
| Watch Dogs: Legion | 18−20
−16.7%
|
21−24
+16.7%
|
1440p
Epic Preset
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | 6−7
−16.7%
|
7−8
+16.7%
|
4K
High Preset
| Battlefield 5 | 1−2
+0%
|
1−2
+0%
|
| Far Cry New Dawn | 2−3
+0%
|
2−3
+0%
|
4K
Ultra Preset
| Assassin's Creed Odyssey | 2−3
+0%
|
2−3
+0%
|
| Assassin's Creed Valhalla | 1−2
+0%
|
1−2
+0%
|
| Call of Duty: Modern Warfare | 1−2
+0%
|
1−2
+0%
|
| Far Cry 5 | 1−2
−100%
|
2−3
+100%
|
| Forza Horizon 4 | 1−2
−100%
|
2−3
+100%
|
| Watch Dogs: Legion | 1−2
+0%
|
1−2
+0%
|
4K
Epic Preset
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | 4−5
+0%
|
4−5
+0%
|
Full HD
Ultra Preset
| Battlefield 5 | 8−9
+0%
|
8−9
+0%
|
| Far Cry New Dawn | 10−11
+0%
|
10−11
+0%
|
1440p
High Preset
| Call of Duty: Modern Warfare | 3−4
+0%
|
3−4
+0%
|
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | 7−8
+0%
|
7−8
+0%
|
1440p
Ultra Preset
| Battlefield 5 | 6−7
+0%
|
6−7
+0%
|
| Far Cry New Dawn | 6−7
+0%
|
6−7
+0%
|
| Forza Horizon 4 | 2−3
+0%
|
2−3
+0%
|
4K
High Preset
| Call of Duty: Modern Warfare | 1−2
+0%
|
1−2
+0%
|
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | 4−5
+0%
|
4−5
+0%
|
4K
Ultra Preset
| Battlefield 5 | 2−3
+0%
|
2−3
+0%
|
| Far Cry New Dawn | 2−3
+0%
|
2−3
+0%
|
This is how RX Vega 6 (Ryzen 2000/3000) and Maxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5) compete in popular games:
- Maxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5) is 100% faster in 1080p
Here's the range of performance differences observed across popular games:
- in Battlefield 5, with 1080p resolution and the Medium Preset, the RX Vega 6 (Ryzen 2000/3000) is 38% faster.
- in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, with 1080p resolution and the Ultra Preset, the Maxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5) is 150% faster.
All in all, in popular games:
- RX Vega 6 (Ryzen 2000/3000) is ahead in 3 tests (8%)
- Maxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5) is ahead in 20 tests (53%)
- there's a draw in 15 tests (39%)
Pros & cons summary
| Performance score | 3.04 | 3.69 |
| Recency | 7 January 2018 | 1 October 2015 |
| Chip lithography | 14 nm | 28 nm |
RX Vega 6 (Ryzen 2000/3000) has an age advantage of 2 years, and a 100% more advanced lithography process.
Maxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5), on the other hand, has a 21.4% higher aggregate performance score.
The Maxwell GPU Surface Book (940M, GDDR5) is our recommended choice as it beats the Radeon RX Vega 6 (Ryzen 2000/3000) 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.
