GeForce 9600M GS vs Mobility Radeon HD 4330

NVIDIA

GeForce 9600M GS

2008Core: 500 MHz
Similar parts
·······
VS
AMD

Mobility Radeon HD 4330

2009Core: 550 MHz
Similar parts
·······

GeForce 9600M GS vs Mobility Radeon HD 4330 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 9600M GS vs Mobility Radeon HD 4330: 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 9600M GS

2008

Why buy it

  • 100% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (1 GB vs 512 MB).

Trade-offs

  • 2008 hardware with 1 GB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.
  • 42.9% HIGHER MSRP
    $70 MSRPvs$49 MSRP
  • Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 1.9 vs 2.8 G3D/$ ($70 MSRP vs $49 MSRP).
  • 400% higher power demand at 150W vs 30W.

Mobility Radeon HD 4330

2009

Why buy it

  • Costs $21 less on MSRP ($49 MSRP vs $70 MSRP).
  • Delivers 47.2% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 2.8 vs 1.9 G3D/$ ($49 MSRP vs $70 MSRP).
  • Draws 30W instead of 150W, a 120W reduction.

Trade-offs

  • Less VRAM, with 512 MB vs 1 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
  • 2009 hardware with 512 MB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.

Quick Answers

Which GPU is faster for gaming right now?
Mobility Radeon HD 4330 is the faster gaming card right now based on the synthetic data we have. It leads by 3.1% in PassMark G3D (135 vs 131), which is the best performance signal available in this matchup.
Which GPU is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond?
GeForce 9600M GS is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond. The case is simple: 1 GB vs 512 MB of VRAM. That gives it more room for heavier textures and higher settings over time.
Which GPU is the better buy today?
Mobility Radeon HD 4330 makes the most sense to buy today. It is $21 cheaper on MSRP at $49 vs $70, and it leads G3D-per-dollar by 47.2% (2.8 vs 1.9), so the value case lines up with the gaming result. If you are mainly targeting 1080p and some 1440p, Mobility Radeon HD 4330 is the easier value choice. If you care more about 1080p and some 1440p headroom, GeForce 9600M GS has the stronger long-term case.

GeForce 9600M GS vs Mobility Radeon HD 4330 Technical Specifications

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

NVIDIA

GeForce 9600M GS

The GeForce 9600M GS is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in July 15 2008. It features the G9x architecture. The core clock speed is 500 MHz. It has 224 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 150W. Manufactured using 65 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 131 points.

AMD

Mobility Radeon HD 4330

The Mobility Radeon HD 4330 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in January 9 2009. It features the TeraScale architecture. The core clock speed is 550 MHz. It has 800 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 30W. Manufactured using 55 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 135 points.

Graphics Performance

The GeForce 9600M GS scores 131 and the Mobility Radeon HD 4330 reaches 135 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 3.1% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The GeForce 9600M GS is built on G9x while the Mobility Radeon HD 4330 uses TeraScale, both on 65 nm vs 55 nm. Shader units: 224 (GeForce 9600M GS) vs 800 (Mobility Radeon HD 4330).

FeatureGeForce 9600M GSMobility Radeon HD 4330
G3D Mark Score
131
135+3%
Architecture
G9x
TeraScale
Process Node
65 nm
55 nm
Shading Units
224
800+257%

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The GeForce 9600M GS gets NVIDIA DLSS, which still tends to look cleaner in motion. The Mobility Radeon HD 4330 leans on FSR, which is flexible and widely supported, but usually a bit rougher at the same settings.

FeatureGeForce 9600M GSMobility Radeon HD 4330
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 9600M GS has 1 GB of VRAM, while the Mobility Radeon HD 4330 carries 512 MB. GeForce 9600M GS gives you 100% more memory capacity, which matters more once you move into heavier textures, mods, or higher resolutions. Memory bus width is 64-bit on the GeForce 9600M GS and 64-bit on the Mobility Radeon HD 4330.

FeatureGeForce 9600M GSMobility Radeon HD 4330
VRAM Capacity
1 GB+100%
0.5 GB
Memory Type
GDDR5
GDDR5
Memory Bandwidth
Unknown
Unknown
Bus Width
64-bit
64-bit
🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 10.0 (GeForce 9600M GS) vs 10.1 (Mobility Radeon HD 4330). Vulkan: None vs N/A. OpenGL: 3.3 vs 3.3. Maximum simultaneous displays: 1 vs 2.

FeatureGeForce 9600M GSMobility Radeon HD 4330
DirectX
10.0
10.1
Vulkan
None
N/A
OpenGL
3.3
3.3
Max Displays
1
2+100%
🎬

Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: No (GeForce 9600M GS) vs UVD2 (Mobility Radeon HD 4330). Decoder: PureVideo HD VP3 vs UVD2. Supported codecs: MPEG-2,H.264,VC-1 (GeForce 9600M GS) vs H.264,VC-1,MPEG-4 (Mobility Radeon HD 4330).

FeatureGeForce 9600M GSMobility Radeon HD 4330
Encoder
No
UVD2
Decoder
PureVideo HD VP3
UVD2
Codecs
MPEG-2,H.264,VC-1
H.264,VC-1,MPEG-4
🔌

Power & Dimensions

The GeForce 9600M GS draws 150W versus the Mobility Radeon HD 4330's 30W — a 133.3% difference. The Mobility Radeon HD 4330 is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 350W (GeForce 9600M GS) vs 350W (Mobility Radeon HD 4330). Power connectors: Legacy vs PCIe-powered. Card length: 0mm vs 0mm, occupying 0 vs 0 slots. Typical load temperature: 85°C vs 80°C.

FeatureGeForce 9600M GSMobility Radeon HD 4330
TDP
150W
30W-80%
Recommended PSU
350W
350W
Power Connector
Legacy
PCIe-powered
Length
0mm
0mm
Height
0mm
0mm
Slots
0
0
Temp (Load)
85°C
80°C-6%
Perf/Watt
0.9
4.5+400%
💰

Value Analysis

At launch, the GeForce 9600M GS came in at $70, while the Mobility Radeon HD 4330 launched at $49. On MSRP, Mobility Radeon HD 4330 was 30% cheaper ($21 less). Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 1.9 (GeForce 9600M GS) vs 2.8 (Mobility Radeon HD 4330) — the Mobility Radeon HD 4330 offers 47.4% better value. The newer card here is Mobility Radeon HD 4330 (2009 vs 2008).

FeatureGeForce 9600M GSMobility Radeon HD 4330
MSRP
$70
$49-30%
Performance per Dollar
1.9
2.8+47%
Codename
NB9E-GTX
M98
Release
July 15 2008
January 9 2009
Ranking
#825
#927

Affiliate Disclosure

ChipVERSUS is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. We may earn a commission on qualifying purchases made through our links. This comes at no additional cost to you and helps support our work in providing comprehensive PC building guides and tools.

Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates.