GeForce 605 vs Radeon R5 235

NVIDIA

GeForce 605

2012Core: 902 MHz
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VS
AMD

Radeon R5 235

2016Core: 780 MHzBoost: 1030 MHz
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GeForce 605 vs Radeon R5 235 Performance Spectrum

About G3D Mark

G3D Mark is a standard benchmark that measures graphics performance in real-world gaming scenarios. It simplifies comparing cards from different brands, where higher scores directly correlate with better fps and smoother gaming experiences.

GeForce 605 vs Radeon R5 235 FPS Benchmarks

Predicted gaming performance across popular games. Tested paired with Ryzen 7 9800X3D to isolate GPU performance.

Search any supported game below to compare 1080p FPS for both components.

GeForce 605 vs Radeon R5 235: Pros, Cons & Final Verdict

See where each GPU makes more sense in practice: raw FPS, VRAM, features, power draw, pricing, and long-term headroom.

GeForce 605

2012

Why buy it

  • Costs $19 less on MSRP ($30 MSRP vs $49 MSRP).
  • Delivers 60.4% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 11.0 vs 6.9 G3D/$ ($30 MSRP vs $49 MSRP).
  • Measures 145mm instead of 168mm, a 23mm shorter card that is more SFF-friendly.

Trade-offs

  • Lower average FPS than Radeon R5 235 across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
  • Less VRAM, with 512 MB vs 1 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
  • 2012 hardware with 512 MB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.
  • 116.7% higher power demand at 65W vs 30W.

Radeon R5 235

2016

Why buy it

  • 6.6% more average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
  • 100% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (1 GB vs 512 MB).
  • Draws 30W instead of 65W, a 35W reduction.

Trade-offs

  • 2016 hardware with 1 GB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.
  • 63.3% HIGHER MSRP
    $49 MSRPvs$30 MSRP
  • Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 6.9 vs 11.0 G3D/$ ($49 MSRP vs $30 MSRP).
  • 15.9% longer card at 168mm vs 145mm.

Quick Answers

Which GPU is faster for gaming right now?
Radeon R5 235 is the faster gaming card right now. In our data, it leads by 6.6% in average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data and by 1.8% in PassMark G3D (336 vs 330), so the answer here is pretty clean.
Which GPU is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond?
GeForce 605 is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond because it comes out ahead on the available hardware-headroom signals for this matchup.
Which GPU is the better buy today?
GeForce 605 makes the most sense to buy today. It is $19 cheaper on MSRP at $30 vs $49, and it leads G3D-per-dollar by 60.4% (11.0 vs 6.9), which is enough to swing the recommendation its way. Radeon R5 235 still makes more sense if max raw gaming performance matters more than value.

GeForce 605 vs Radeon R5 235 Technical Specifications

Side-by-side specs, architecture details, clocks, memory, power, and platform differences.

NVIDIA

GeForce 605

The GeForce 605 is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in June 5 2012. It features the Kepler architecture. The core clock speed is 902 MHz. It has 384 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 65W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 330 points. Launch price was $99.

AMD

Radeon R5 235

The Radeon R5 235 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in May 15 2016. It features the GCN 1.0 architecture. The core clock ranges from 780 MHz to 1030 MHz. It has 320 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 30W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 336 points.

Graphics Performance

The GeForce 605 scores 330 and the Radeon R5 235 reaches 336 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 1.8% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The GeForce 605 is built on Kepler while the Radeon R5 235 uses GCN 1.0, both on a 28 nm process. Shader units: 384 (GeForce 605) vs 320 (Radeon R5 235). Raw compute: 0.6927 TFLOPS (GeForce 605) vs 0.6592 TFLOPS (Radeon R5 235).

FeatureGeForce 605Radeon R5 235
G3D Mark Score
330
336+2%
Architecture
Kepler
GCN 1.0
Process Node
28 nm
28 nm
Shading Units
384+20%
320
Compute (TFLOPS)
0.6927 TFLOPS+5%
0.6592 TFLOPS
ROPs
16+100%
8
TMUs
32+60%
20
L1 Cache
32 KB
80 KB+150%
L2 Cache
256 KB+100%
128 KB

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The GeForce 605 gets NVIDIA DLSS, which still tends to look cleaner in motion. The Radeon R5 235 leans on FSR, which is flexible and widely supported, but usually a bit rougher at the same settings.

FeatureGeForce 605Radeon R5 235
Upscaling Tech
Upscaling support
FSR Upscaling / FSR 4
Frame Generation
Not Supported
Not Supported
Ray Reconstruction
No
No
Low Latency
NVIDIA Reflex
AMD Anti-Lag
💾

Video Memory (VRAM)

The GeForce 605 has 512 MB of VRAM, while the Radeon R5 235 carries 1 GB. Radeon R5 235 gives you 100% more memory capacity, which matters more once you move into heavier textures, mods, or higher resolutions. Memory bus width is 128-bit on the GeForce 605 and 128-bit on the Radeon R5 235. L2 Cache: 256 KB (GeForce 605) vs 128 KB (Radeon R5 235) — the GeForce 605 has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

FeatureGeForce 605Radeon R5 235
VRAM Capacity
0.5 GB
1 GB+100%
Memory Type
GDDR5
GDDR5
Memory Bandwidth
Unknown
Unknown
Bus Width
128-bit
128-bit
L2 Cache
256 KB+100%
128 KB
🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 12 (11_0) (GeForce 605) vs 11.2 (Radeon R5 235). Vulkan: N/A vs N/A. OpenGL: 4.6 vs 4.4. Maximum simultaneous displays: 2 vs 2.

FeatureGeForce 605Radeon R5 235
DirectX
12 (11_0)+7%
11.2
Vulkan
N/A
N/A
OpenGL
4.6+5%
4.4
Max Displays
2
2
🎬

Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: None (GeForce 605) vs None (Radeon R5 235). Decoder: VP5 vs UVD 3.1. Supported codecs: H.264,MPEG-2,VC-1,MPEG-4 (GeForce 605) vs H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2,MPEG-4,MVC (Radeon R5 235).

FeatureGeForce 605Radeon R5 235
Encoder
None
None
Decoder
VP5
UVD 3.1
Codecs
H.264,MPEG-2,VC-1,MPEG-4
H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2,MPEG-4,MVC
🔌

Power & Dimensions

The GeForce 605 draws 65W versus the Radeon R5 235's 30W — a 73.7% difference. The Radeon R5 235 is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 250W (GeForce 605) vs 350W (Radeon R5 235). Power connectors: Legacy vs PCIe-powered. Card length: 145mm vs 168mm, occupying 1 vs 1 slots. Typical load temperature: 75 vs 75.

FeatureGeForce 605Radeon R5 235
TDP
65W
30W-54%
Recommended PSU
250W-29%
350W
Power Connector
Legacy
PCIe-powered
Length
145mm
168mm
Height
69mm
111mm
Slots
1
1
Temp (Load)
75
75
Perf/Watt
5.1
11.2+120%
💰

Value Analysis

At launch, the GeForce 605 came in at $30, while the Radeon R5 235 launched at $49. On MSRP, GeForce 605 was 38.8% cheaper ($19 less). Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 11.0 (GeForce 605) vs 6.9 (Radeon R5 235) — the GeForce 605 offers 59.4% better value. The newer card here is Radeon R5 235 (2016 vs 2012).

FeatureGeForce 605Radeon R5 235
MSRP
$30-39%
$49
Performance per Dollar
11.0+59%
6.9
Codename
GK107
Jet
Release
June 5 2012
May 15 2016
Ranking
#837
#922

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