AMD Radeon 8060S vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 Mobile Comparison

The AMD Radeon 8060S and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 Mobile represent two distinct approaches to integrated graphics in the mobile space. The data available shows a remarkably close contest, with the AMD part holding a narrow edge in the single benchmark recorded for both. Both GPUs sit at the 94th percentile of all GPUs tested, placing them firmly in the upper echelon of mobile graphics performance, though the specific strengths behind those scores differ significantly.

Where Each One Wins

Based on the benchmark results, the AMD Radeon 8060S is the outright winner in the only direct head-to-head test available. It scores 84626 in Geekbench OpenCL, which is 0.5% ahead of the RTX 5050 Mobile’s 84171. This is a very slim margin, but it indicates that in raw compute workloads using OpenCL, the Radeon 8060S has a slight advantage. This edge is likely derived from its substantially higher FP32 throughput of 14.85 TFLOPS, compared to the RTX 5050's 7.680 TFLOPS, and its higher texture fill rate of 464.0 GTexel/s versus 120.0 GTexel/s.

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 Mobile’s win condition is not visible in the direct comparison data. However, its architecture suggests a different set of priorities. It is the only one of the two with dedicated tensor cores (80 of them), which are essential for AI-accelerated features like DLSS. While no benchmark data for these features is present in the pack, the presence of these cores is a clear architectural differentiator. The RTX 5050 also has a dedicated 8 GB pool of GDDR7 memory with a 384.0 GB/s bandwidth, which is a fixed resource that does not depend on system memory. This could provide more consistent performance in memory-intensive scenarios compared to the Radeon 8060S, whose memory bandwidth is listed as "System Dependent."

The data indicates that the Radeon 8060S wins on raw computational throughput in a general-purpose compute API. The RTX 5050’s potential wins would come from its dedicated AI and ray tracing hardware, as well as its dedicated high-speed memory, though these advantages are not quantified in the provided benchmark scores.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU is faster in the Geekbench OpenCL benchmark?

A: The AMD Radeon 8060S is faster, scoring 84626 points compared to the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 Mobile’s 84171 points, a difference of 0.5%.

Q: How do both GPUs compare to the rest of the market?

A: Both the AMD Radeon 8060S and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 Mobile are placed at the 94th percentile of all GPUs, indicating that they are both high-performance parts in the current landscape.

Q: What is the architectural difference between the two?

A: The AMD Radeon 8060S uses the RDNA 3.5 architecture on a 4 nm process, while the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 Mobile uses the Blackwell 2.0 architecture on a 5 nm process.

Q: Do both GPUs have the same amount of shading units?

A: Yes, both the AMD Radeon 8060S and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 Mobile have 2560 shading units. However, the AMD part has 160 TMUs and 64 ROPs, while the NVIDIA part has 80 TMUs and 32 ROPs.

Q: What is the difference in memory configuration?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 Mobile has a dedicated 8 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 128-bit bus with 384.0 GB/s bandwidth. The AMD Radeon 8060S uses system-shared memory, with its size, type, and bus width also listed as "System Shared" and bandwidth as "System Dependent."

Q: Which GPU has a higher boost clock?

A: The AMD Radeon 8060S has a significantly higher boost clock of 2900 MHz, compared to the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 Mobile’s boost clock of 1500 MHz.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only direct benchmark comparison available is the Geekbench OpenCL test. In this test, the AMD Radeon 8060S scores 84626, while the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 Mobile scores 84171. This gives the AMD part a win with a delta of 0.5%. While this is a narrow victory, it is consistent with the AMD GPU's other raw performance specifications. For instance, the Radeon 8060S's FP32 compute is 14.85 TFLOPS, which is nearly double the 7.680 TFLOPS of the RTX 5050. This suggests that in pure compute tasks that scale with shader throughput, the AMD part should have a more pronounced lead than the 0.5% benchmark delta shows. The benchmark result may be limited by other factors, such as memory bandwidth, where the NVIDIA part has a dedicated 384.0 GB/s versus the AMD's system-dependent bandwidth.

The Radeon 8060S also holds a massive lead in other theoretical metrics. Its pixel rate is 185.6 GPixel/s, which is nearly four times higher than the RTX 5050's 48.00 GPixel/s. Its texture rate is also far higher, at 464.0 GTexel/s versus 120.0 GTexel/s. These figures suggest that in fill-rate-limited scenarios, the AMD GPU would be substantially faster. However, the lack of a second direct benchmark means we can only extrapolate from these specifications. The RTX 5050’s 80 tensor cores are a feature the Radeon 8060S lacks entirely, implying that in workloads that utilize these cores, such as AI inference or DLSS upscaling, the NVIDIA part would have a distinct, albeit unquantified here, advantage.

Specification Differences

The two GPUs differ in nearly every core specification. The AMD Radeon 8060S is built on a 4 nm TSMC process, while the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 Mobile uses a 5 nm process. The AMD chip, Strix Halo, has a die size of 308 mm², which is more than double the 149 mm² of the NVIDIA GB207 chip. The transistor count is only listed for the NVIDIA part, at 16,900 million, giving it a density of 113.4M / mm².

Clock speeds show a major divergence: the AMD GPU has a base clock of 1295 MHz and a boost of 2900 MHz, while the NVIDIA GPU has a much lower base of 1020 MHz and boost of 1500 MHz. The AMD part has 160 TMUs and 64 ROPs, compared to the NVIDIA part's 80 TMUs and 32 ROPs. The RTX 5050 has 20 RT cores and 80 tensor cores, while the 8060S has 40 RT cores and no tensor cores listed. The memory subsystem is completely different, with the AMD using system-shared memory and the NVIDIA having a dedicated 8 GB GDDR7 configuration with a 128-bit bus and 384.0 GB/s bandwidth. The TDP also differs, with the AMD part rated at 55 W and the NVIDIA at 50 W. Both use a PCIe 5.0 x16 bus interface and are listed as IGP slot width with no power connectors.

Architecture Differences

The AMD Radeon 8060S is based on the RDNA 3.5 architecture, manufactured on a 4 nm process at TSMC. It is part of the Navi Mobile (RX 8000M) generation and uses the Strix Halo chip. This architecture is a continuation of AMD's gaming-focused design, emphasizing high shader throughput and fill rates. The lack of tensor cores suggests a reliance on general-purpose compute for any AI features. It has 40 ray tracing cores, which is double the amount on the NVIDIA part.

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 Mobile is based on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture, built on a 5 nm process, also at TSMC. It belongs to the GeForce 50 Mobile generation and uses the GB207 chip. This architecture is NVIDIA's latest, and the inclusion of 80 tensor cores and 20 RT cores shows a focus on AI-driven rendering and ray tracing. The RTX 5050's predecessor is listed as GeForce 40 Mobile, while the 8060S's predecessor is Polaris Mobile, showing a generational leap for AMD from an older architecture. Both support DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The NVIDIA part has a transistor density of 113.4M / mm², a figure not provided for the AMD chip.

The Verdict

From the data, the AMD Radeon 8060S is the clear choice for users prioritizing raw compute performance in OpenCL workloads. Its 0.5% lead in the Geekbench OpenCL test, combined with its vastly superior FP32 throughput, pixel rate, and texture rate, makes it the more powerful GPU for traditional rendering and compute tasks that do not rely on specialized hardware. The data suggests its higher TDP of 55 W is being put to use to achieve these higher clock speeds and fill rates.

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 Mobile is the more balanced part for modern gaming features. While it trails in raw compute, its dedicated 8 GB of GDDR7 memory with 384.0 GB/s of bandwidth ensures it is not dependent on system memory performance. The presence of 80 tensor cores is a significant architectural advantage for AI-accelerated technologies, and its 20 RT cores, while fewer than the AMD's 40, are based on a newer architecture. For users who value these specific features, the RTX 5050 is the logical pick, despite its lower raw compute scores. The choice ultimately comes down to whether the workload is generic compute (AMD) or leverages AI and dedicated memory (NVIDIA).