GeForce GTS 250 vs Radeon R7 M265

CPU

GPU

GeForce GTS 250

2010Core: 783 MHz

Similar parts

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Radeon R7 M265

2014Boost: 925 MHz

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GeForce GTS 250 vs Radeon R7 M265 Performance Spectrum

GeForce GTS 250

1 GB 106

569

+1.6%

GeForce GTX 1060 6 GB

GeForce GTX 1070 Ti

GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER

Radeon R7 M265

4 GB 150

560

0.0%

Radeon HD 7970 / R9 280X

Radeon RX 7600M

Radeon RX 7600M XT

Radeon RX 6700 XT

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 GTS 250 vs Radeon R7 M265 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 GTS 250 vs Radeon R7 M265: 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 GTS 250

2010

Why buy it

✅Costs $1 less on MSRP ($129 MSRP vs $130 MSRP).
✅Draws 106W instead of 150W, a 44W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Lower average FPS than Radeon R7 M265 across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
❌Less VRAM, with 1 GB vs 4 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
❌2010 hardware with 1 GB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.

Radeon R7 M265

2014

Why buy it

✅48.7% more average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
✅300% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (4 GB vs 1 GB).
✅More future proof: GCN 1.0 (2012−2020) on 28nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.

Trade-offs

❌2014 hardware with 4 GB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.
❌
0.8% HIGHER MSRP
$130 MSRPvs$129 MSRP
❌41.5% higher power demand at 150W vs 106W.

Quick Answers

Which GPU is faster for gaming right now?

Radeon R7 M265 is the faster gaming card right now. In our data, it leads by 48.7% in average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data. PassMark G3D leans toward GeForce GTS 250 instead at 569 vs 560, so for this question the real-game FPS result matters more than the synthetic split.

Which GPU is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond?

GeForce GTS 250 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 GTS 250 makes the most sense to buy today. It is $1 cheaper on MSRP at $129 vs $130, and it leads G3D-per-dollar by 2.4% (4.4 vs 4.3), which is enough to swing the recommendation its way. Radeon R7 M265 still makes more sense if max raw gaming performance matters more than value.

GeForce GTS 250 vs Radeon R7 M265 Technical Specifications

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

GeForce GTS 250

The GeForce GTS 250 is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in September 13 2010. It features the Fermi architecture. The core clock speed is 783 MHz. It has 192 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 106W. Manufactured using 40 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 569 points. Launch price was $129.

Radeon R7 M265

The Radeon R7 M265 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in February 13 2014. It features the GCN 1.0 architecture. The boost clock speed is 925 MHz. It has 1024 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 150W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 560 points. Launch price was $149.

⚡

Graphics Performance

The GeForce GTS 250 scores 569 and the Radeon R7 M265 reaches 560 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 1.6% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The GeForce GTS 250 is built on Fermi while the Radeon R7 M265 uses GCN 1.0, both on 40 nm vs 28 nm. Shader units: 192 (GeForce GTS 250) vs 1,024 (Radeon R7 M265). Raw compute: 0.6013 TFLOPS (GeForce GTS 250) vs 1.894 TFLOPS (Radeon R7 M265).

Feature	GeForce GTS 250	Radeon R7 M265
G3D Mark Score	569+2%	560
Architecture	Fermi	GCN 1.0
Process Node	40 nm	28 nm
Shading Units	192	1024+433%
Compute (TFLOPS)	0.6013 TFLOPS	1.894 TFLOPS+215%
ROPs	16	32+100%
TMUs	32	64+100%
L1 Cache	256 KB	256 KB
L2 Cache	256 KB	512 KB+100%

✨

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The GeForce GTS 250 gets NVIDIA DLSS, which still tends to look cleaner in motion. The Radeon R7 M265 leans on FSR, which is flexible and widely supported, but usually a bit rougher at the same settings.

Feature	GeForce GTS 250	Radeon R7 M265
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 GTS 250 has 1 GB of VRAM, while the Radeon R7 M265 carries 4 GB. Radeon R7 M265 gives you 300% 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 GTS 250 and 128-bit on the Radeon R7 M265. L2 Cache: 256 KB (GeForce GTS 250) vs 512 KB (Radeon R7 M265) — the Radeon R7 M265 has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

Feature	GeForce GTS 250	Radeon R7 M265
VRAM Capacity	1 GB	4 GB+300%
Memory Type	GDDR5	GDDR5
Memory Bandwidth	Unknown	Unknown
Bus Width	128-bit	128-bit
L2 Cache	256 KB	512 KB+100%

🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 11.1 (10_0) (GeForce GTS 250) vs 12 (11_1) (Radeon R7 M265). OpenGL: 3.3 vs 4.4. Maximum simultaneous displays: 2 vs 2.

Feature	GeForce GTS 250	Radeon R7 M265
DirectX	11.1 (10_0)	12 (11_1)+8%
OpenGL	3.3	4.4+33%
Max Displays	2	2

🎬

Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: PureVideo HD VP5 (GeForce GTS 250) vs VCE 1.0 (Radeon R7 M265). Decoder: PureVideo HD VP5 vs UVD 4.0. Supported codecs: H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2 (GeForce GTS 250) vs H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2,MPEG-4 (Radeon R7 M265).

Feature	GeForce GTS 250	Radeon R7 M265
Encoder	PureVideo HD VP5	VCE 1.0
Decoder	PureVideo HD VP5	UVD 4.0
Codecs	H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2	H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2,MPEG-4

🔌

Power & Dimensions

The GeForce GTS 250 draws 106W versus the Radeon R7 M265's 150W — a 34.4% difference. The GeForce GTS 250 is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 450W (GeForce GTS 250) vs 350W (Radeon R7 M265). Power connectors: 1x 6-pin vs Mobile. Typical load temperature: 90°C vs 80°C.

Feature	GeForce GTS 250	Radeon R7 M265
TDP	106W-29%	150W
Recommended PSU	450W	350W-22%
Power Connector	1x 6-pin	Mobile
Length	229mm	—
Height	111mm	—
Slots	2	0-100%
Temp (Load)	90°C	80°C-11%
Perf/Watt	5.4+46%	3.7

💰

Value Analysis

At launch, the GeForce GTS 250 came in at $129, while the Radeon R7 M265 launched at $130. On MSRP, GeForce GTS 250 was 0.8% cheaper ($1 less). Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 4.4 (GeForce GTS 250) vs 4.3 (Radeon R7 M265) — the GeForce GTS 250 offers 2.3% better value. The newer card here is Radeon R7 M265 (2014 vs 2010).

Feature	GeForce GTS 250	Radeon R7 M265
MSRP	$129	$130
Performance per Dollar	4.4+2%	4.3
Codename	GF106	Pitcairn
Release	September 13 2010	February 13 2014
Ranking	#791	#489

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