AMD Radeon 860M vs AMD Radeon Instinct MI300A Comparison

FAQ

Q: How do the two GPUs compare in raw compute capability?

A: The AMD Radeon 860M delivers 3.072 TFLOPS FP32 performance, while the AMD Radeon Instinct MI300A delivers 81.72 TFLOPS FP32. The Instinct part is roughly 26.6 times higher in FP32 throughput.

Q: What is the difference in memory capacity and bandwidth?

A: The Radeon 860M uses system-shared memory with bandwidth described as system dependent. The Instinct MI300A has 192 GB of HBM3 memory on an 8192-bit bus, delivering 10.3 TB/s of bandwidth.

Q: Which GPU has better benchmark results?

A: The Radeon 860M has recorded benchmark scores of 22759 in Geekbench OpenCL and 30043 in Geekbench Vulkan, with an average score of 26401. The Instinct MI300A has no recorded benchmark scores in the database.

Q: What are the process nodes and transistor counts?

A: The Radeon 860M uses a 4 nm process at TSMC with transistor count listed as unknown. The Instinct MI300A uses a 5 nm process at TSMC with 153,000 million transistors on a 1017 mm² die.

Q: How do their power requirements differ?

A: The Radeon 860M has a TDP of 15 W and requires no power connectors. The Instinct MI300A has a TDP of 750 W, also requiring no power connectors, but the suggested PSU rating is 1150 W.

Q: What are the form factors and display outputs?

A: The Radeon 860M is an IGP with display outputs listed as portable device dependent. The Instinct MI300A is an OAM Module with no display outputs.

Architecture Differences

The Radeon 860M and the Radeon Instinct MI300A come from fundamentally different architectural lineages within AMD's portfolio. The Radeon 860M is built on the RDNA 3.5 architecture, specifically the Krackan Point chip, and belongs to the Navi III IGP (Strix Point Mobile) generation. The Instinct MI300A uses the CDNA 3.0 architecture with the Aqua Vanjaram chip, part of the Radeon Instinct (MIx) generation.

The process technology differs significantly. The Radeon 860M is fabricated on a 4 nm process at TSMC, while the Instinct MI300A uses a 5 nm process, also at TSMC. The transistor count for the 860M is listed as unknown, whereas the MI300A integrates 153,000 million transistors on a 1017 mm² die, giving a transistor density of 150.4M per mm².

Core configuration presents a major divergence. The Radeon 860M has 512 shading units, 32 texture mapping units, and 16 ROPs. The Instinct MI300A has 19,456 shading units and 1,216 TMUs, but reports 0 ROPs with a pixel rate of 0 MPixel/s. The 860M also includes 8 ray tracing cores, which the MI300A does not list.

Clock behavior differs substantially. The Radeon 860M operates with a base clock of 600 MHz and a boost clock of 3000 MHz. The Instinct MI300A has a base clock of 1000 MHz and a boost clock of 2100 MHz. The memory clock on the MI300A is specified as 2525 MHz, translating to 10.1 Gbps effective, while the 860M's memory clock is system shared.

The feature sets reflect their intended roles. The Radeon 860M supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The Instinct MI300A lists no API support in the database, consistent with its compute-focused design. The 860M is a PCIe 4.0 x8 device, while the MI300A uses PCIe 5.0 x16. The 860M is an IGP with a 15 W TDP and no power connectors. The MI300A is an OAM Module with a 750 W TDP and a suggested PSU rating of 1150 W.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The database contains no direct head-to-head benchmark results between the Radeon 860M and the Instinct MI300A. The wins count for each side is 0. However, the Radeon 860M has two recorded benchmark entries, while the MI300A has none. This absence of data for the MI300A prevents a direct numerical comparison across the same test suite.

The Radeon 860M scores 22759 in Geekbench OpenCL and 30043 in Geekbench Vulkan. Its average benchmark score is 26401. The Instinct MI300A has an average benchmark score of 0 and no entries in the database. The percentile ranking places the 860M at 72 percent versus all GPUs, while the MI300A sits at 50 percent based on its empty benchmark record.

Looking at the nearest rivals for the Radeon 860M provides context for its performance level. The NVIDIA GeForce MX550 has an average score of 26421, which is 0.1 percent higher than the 860M. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 scores 26331, 0.3 percent lower. The AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT 50th Anniversary scores 26553, 0.6 percent higher. The NVIDIA RTX A4000 scores 26683, 1.1 percent higher. These small deltas place the 860M in a tight competitive band where the differences are within roughly one percent.

The Instinct MI300A has no nearest rivals listed and no benchmark scores. Its compute capabilities, based on the specification data, are far beyond those of the 860M in raw throughput, but the database lacks any measured results to confirm practical performance.

Specification Differences

The two GPUs differ across nearly every measurable specification field.

Process and Die: The Radeon 860M uses a 4 nm process; the Instinct MI300A uses 5 nm. Transistor count is unknown for the 860M, while the MI300A has 153,000 million transistors. Die size is unknown for the 860M, but the MI300A measures 1017 mm². Transistor density is not listed for the 860M, while the MI300A has 150.4M per mm².

Clocks: The 860M has a base clock of 600 MHz and a boost clock of 3000 MHz. The MI300A has a base clock of 1000 MHz and a boost clock of 2100 MHz. Memory clock for the 860M is system shared; for the MI300A it is 2525 MHz with 10.1 Gbps effective.

Memory: The 860M uses system-shared memory with a system-shared type, bus width, and system-dependent bandwidth. The MI300A has 192 GB of HBM3 memory, an 8192-bit bus, and 10.3 TB/s bandwidth.

Core Configuration: The 860M has 512 shading units, 32 TMUs, and 16 ROPs. The MI300A has 19,456 shading units, 1,216 TMUs, and 0 ROPs. The 860M has 8 ray tracing cores; the MI300A lists none.

Rates and Throughput: The 860M has a pixel rate of 48.00 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 96.00 GTexel/s. The MI300A has a pixel rate of 0 MPixel/s and a texture rate of 2,553.6 GTexel/s. FP32 performance is 3.072 TFLOPS for the 860M and 81.72 TFLOPS for the MI300A. FP16 is 3.072 TFLOPS (1:1) for the 860M and 653.7 TFLOPS (8:1) for the MI300A.

Power and Form Factor: The 860M has a TDP of 15 W; the MI300A has a TDP of 750 W. Both have no power connectors, but the MI300A lists a suggested PSU of 1150 W. The 860M is an IGP; the MI300A is an OAM Module.

Bus and Outputs: The 860M uses PCIe 4.0 x8 with display outputs described as portable device dependent. The MI300A uses PCIe 5.0 x16 with no display outputs.

API Support: The 860M supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The MI300A lists no APIs.

Release Timing: The 860M has a release date of 2025-02-28, while the MI300A was released on 2023-12-05.

The Verdict

The data indicates two entirely different product classes. The Radeon 860M is an integrated graphics processor designed for mobile or portable systems, with a 15 W TDP, system-shared memory, and a full consumer API stack including DirectX 12 Ultimate and Vulkan 1.4. Its benchmark scores are recorded, showing solid performance relative to its nearest rivals, with deltas all within 1.1 percent of the comparison points. Its percentile rank of 72 versus all GPUs confirms it sits above the median in the database.

The Instinct MI300A is a data center accelerator with no display outputs, no consumer API support, and a 750 W TDP. Its specifications are oriented toward massive parallel compute: 19,456 shading units, 192 GB of HBM3 memory, 10.3 TB/s bandwidth, and 81.72 TFLOPS FP32. The database contains no benchmark scores for this part, so its practical performance cannot be assessed from recorded measurements. Its percentile rank of 50 reflects the absence of data rather than measured capability.

Users choosing between these parts should base the decision on the workload class. For client-side graphics, rendering, or any task requiring display output and standard graphics APIs, the Radeon 860M is the only option that fits. For compute-heavy data center workloads where display output is irrelevant and massive memory bandwidth and FP32 throughput are required, the Instinct MI300A is the appropriate choice. The specifications show the MI300A is vastly more powerful in raw compute, but the lack of benchmark data means that advantage is projected from specifications, not measured results.

Where Each One Wins

Radeon 860M wins in client graphics and portability. The 860M is an IGP with a 15 W TDP, making it suitable for power-constrained systems. It has 8 ray tracing cores, supports DirectX 12 Ultimate, OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4, and provides display outputs. Its benchmark scores are recorded at 22759 in OpenCL and 30043 in Vulkan, placing it at the 72nd percentile versus all GPUs. Its nearest rivals are all within 1.1 percent, indicating tight competition in its segment. The PCIe 4.0 x8 interface and system-shared memory keep the design simple for portable devices.

Instinct MI300A wins in raw compute and memory capacity. The MI300A delivers 81.72 TFLOPS FP32, which is 26.6 times the 860M's 3.072 TFLOPS. Its FP16 throughput of 653.7 TFLOPS (8:1) dwarfs the 860M's 3.072 TFLOPS (1:1). The 192 GB HBM3 memory with 10.3 TB/s bandwidth far exceeds the 860M's system-shared memory. The texture rate of 2,553.6 GTexel/s is over 26 times higher than the 860M's 96.00 GTexel/s. The 1,216 TMUs versus 32 TMUs further indicates a texture-heavy compute design. The PCIe 5.0 x16 interface and 750 W TDP reflect a data center accelerator built for sustained throughput.

The texture rate comparison is particularly illustrative. The MI300A's 2,553.6 GTexel/s versus the 860M's 96.00 GTexel/s shows a 26.6-fold advantage in texture processing, closely matching the FP32 ratio. The MI300A's 19,456 shading units versus 512 shading units also follows the same multiplier. These consistent ratios across multiple specification fields indicate the MI300A is designed for massively parallel workloads, while the 860M is tuned for balanced client-side graphics within a 15 W power envelope.

The 860M's benchmark record provides a measured performance anchor. Its Geekbench Vulkan score of 30043 is higher than its OpenCL score of 22759, suggesting strong Vulkan driver performance. The average benchmark score of 26401 places it near the NVIDIA GeForce MX550 at 26421 and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 at 26331. The AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT 50th Anniversary at 26553 and NVIDIA RTX A4000 at 26683 are slightly ahead. These data points give a concrete reference for the 860M's position in the GPU landscape.

The MI300A has no measured benchmark data. Its average benchmark score is 0, and it has no nearest rivals listed. The database shows its specifications but no performance results. This means the MI300A's capabilities are best understood through its architecture and memory subsystem, not through recorded test outcomes. Its 50th percentile rank is a placeholder based on missing data, not a measured position.