AMD Radeon 860M vs AMD Radeon RX 7900M Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The benchmark data presents a stark contrast between the AMD Radeon 860M and the AMD Radeon RX 7900M. Across the two shared tests, the RX 7900M secures a decisive victory in both instances, leaving the 860M without a single winning benchmark. The margin of difference is substantial, indicating a fundamental gap in performance capability between these two mobile graphics solutions.

In the Geekbench OpenCL test, the Radeon RX 7900M scores 129499, while the Radeon 860M manages 22759. This represents a delta of -82.4% for the 860M, meaning the RX 7900M delivers a score approximately 5.7 times higher. Such a disparity is not incremental; it places the two products in entirely different performance tiers. The 860M's score is closer to entry-level discrete graphics, while the RX 7900M operates in a class reserved for high-end mobile gaming and workstation tasks.

The Vulkan benchmark reinforces this pattern. The RX 7900M posts 158760 points, compared to the 860M's 30043 points, a delta of -81.1%. Vulkan is often used in modern game engines and compute workloads, so this result suggests that the RX 7900M will handle graphics-intensive applications with far greater fluidity. The 860M's score, while respectable for an integrated processor, falls short by a wide margin.

The average benchmark score across all recorded tests further illustrates the chasm. The RX 7900M averages 97487 points, while the 860M averages 26401 points. This places the RX 7900M in the 94th percentile of all GPUs in the database, whereas the 860M sits in the 72nd percentile. The percentile gap of 22 points underscores that the RX 7900M is positioned near the top of the performance spectrum, while the 860M is a mid-range contender at best.

It is also worth examining the nearest rivals for context. The 860M's average score of 26401 is virtually identical to the NVIDIA GeForce MX550 (26421, delta -0.1%) and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 (26331, delta 0.3%). This indicates that the 860M lands in a crowded field of mainstream mobile GPUs. Conversely, the RX 7900M's average of 97487 places it just ahead of the AMD Radeon Pro VII (97131, delta 0.4%) and the AMD Radeon Instinct MI60 (92466, delta 5.4%), while trailing the NVIDIA Quadro RTX 6000 (101872, delta -4.3%). These rival comparisons confirm that the RX 7900M competes at a professional and high-end enthusiast level.

Where Each One Wins

The recorded benchmarks offer no overlap in victories. The RX 7900M wins both head-to-head tests, leaving the 860M with zero wins. This binary outcome simplifies the use-case analysis, but the underlying data still reveals distinct strengths for each product.

The Radeon 860M, despite its losses, delivers a meaningful performance profile for its class. Its Geekbench OpenCL score of 22759 and Vulkan score of 30043 are competitive with dedicated entry-level GPUs like the NVIDIA GeForce MX550, which trails the 860M by only 0.1% in average score. For lightweight gaming, media playback, and everyday productivity tasks, the 860M provides adequate graphics acceleration. Its 72nd percentile ranking indicates that it outperforms a majority of all recorded GPUs, making it a viable option for thin-and-light laptops where discrete graphics are absent.

The Radeon RX 7900M, on the other hand, is built for demanding workloads. Its OpenCL score of 129499 and Vulkan score of 158760 suggest it can handle 3D rendering, video encoding, and high-refresh-rate gaming at high settings. The 94th percentile ranking places it among the top 6% of all GPUs in the database, a position that aligns with professional-grade hardware. The RX 7900M also features a dedicated 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 4201, a test that stresses modern DirectX 12 pipelines; the 860M has no recorded result for this benchmark, further indicating the RX 7900M's focus on advanced graphics workloads.

For users who need to run complex simulations, edit large video projects, or play graphically intensive titles, the RX 7900M is the clear choice based on the data. For users who prioritize portability and battery life, the 860M's lower power draw and integrated nature make it a sensible fit, though its performance ceiling is markedly lower. The data does not support any scenario where the 860M outperforms the RX 7900M; it simply offers a lighter-weight alternative for less demanding tasks.

Architecture Differences

The architectural gap between the two GPUs is significant and explains the performance divergence. The Radeon 860M uses the Krackan Point chip, built on the RDNA 3.5 architecture, and belongs to the Navi III IGP (Strix Point Mobile) generation. The Radeon RX 7900M uses the Navi 31 chip, based on the older RDNA 3.0 architecture, and is part of the Navi Mobile (RX 7000M) generation. Despite the 860M's newer architecture, the RX 7900M's sheer scale of hardware resources dominates.

The manufacturing process differs as well. The 860M is fabricated on a 4 nm process at TSMC, while the RX 7900M uses a 5 nm process, also at TSMC. The smaller node gives the 860M an efficiency advantage, but the RX 7900M compensates with a massive chip. The RX 7900M contains 57,700 million transistors on a 529 mm² die, with a transistor density of 109.1M per mm². The 860M's transistor count and die size are listed as unknown, so a direct density comparison is not possible, but the physical size difference is evident from the RX 7900M's specifications.

Core counts tell a clear story. The RX 7900M has 4608 shading units, 288 texture mapping units, and 192 raster operation units. The 860M has 512 shading units, 32 TMUs, and 16 ROPs. The RX 7900M also features 72 ray tracing cores, compared to 8 on the 860M. This 9x difference in shading units and RT cores translates directly into the observed benchmark gaps. The pixel rate of the RX 7900M is 401.3 GPixel/s, versus 48.00 GPixel/s on the 860M. Texture rate follows the same trend: 601.9 GTexel/s for the RX 7900M, 96.00 GTexel/s for the 860M.

Memory architecture is another major differentiator. The RX 7900M uses 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, delivering 576.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The 860M relies on system shared memory, with bandwidth listed as system dependent. This means the 860M's memory performance varies based on the host system's RAM configuration, while the RX 7900M has dedicated high-speed VRAM. The clock speeds also differ markedly: the RX 7900M runs at a base of 1825 MHz and a boost of 2090 MHz, with memory at 2250 MHz (18 Gbps effective), while the 860M has a 600 MHz base and a 3000 MHz boost. The 860M's higher boost clock cannot overcome its far fewer cores and memory limitations.

Both GPUs support DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4, so API compatibility is identical. The bus interface differs: the 860M uses PCIe 4.0 x8, while the RX 7900M uses PCIe 4.0 x16. The RX 7900M's full x16 connection provides more bandwidth to the CPU, which is relevant for data-intensive workloads. Power consumption is not directly comparable in the data, but the TDP figures are recorded: 15 W for the 860M and 180 W for the RX 7900M, a 12x difference that reflects the RX 7900M's much larger hardware footprint.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has a higher average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 7900M has an average benchmark score of 97487, while the AMD Radeon 860M averages 26401. The RX 7900M also holds a 94th percentile ranking versus the 860M's 72nd percentile.

Q: How do the two GPUs compare in the Geekbench OpenCL test?

A: The RX 7900M scores 129499, while the 860M scores 22759. The delta is -82.4% for the 860M, meaning the RX 7900M is roughly 5.7 times faster in this test.

Q: What are the memory specifications for each GPU?

A: The RX 7900M has 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus with 576.0 GB/s bandwidth. The 860M uses system shared memory with no fixed size or bandwidth, as both are system dependent.

Q: Which GPU has more shading units and ray tracing cores?

A: The RX 7900M has 4608 shading units and 72 ray tracing cores. The 860M has 512 shading units and 8 ray tracing cores.

Q: Are there any benchmark tests where the 860M wins?

A: No. The recorded head-to-head data shows the RX 7900M winning both the Geekbench OpenCL and Geekbench Vulkan tests. The 860M has zero wins in the shared benchmarks.

Q: What process nodes do the two GPUs use?

A: The 860M is built on a 4 nm TSMC process, while the RX 7900M uses a 5 nm TSMC process. Both are manufactured by TSMC, but the 860M uses a smaller node.

Specification Differences

The table below lists only the fields where the two AMD GPUs differ, based on recorded data.

| Field | AMD Radeon 860M | AMD Radeon RX 7900M |

|-------|-----------------|---------------------|

| Chip | Krackan Point | Navi 31 |

| Architecture | RDNA 3.5 | RDNA 3.0 |

| Generation | Navi III IGP (Strix Point Mobile) | Navi Mobile (RX 7000M) |

| Process Node | 4 nm | 5 nm |

| Transistors | Unknown | 57,700 million |

| Die Size | Unknown | 529 mm² |

| Transistor Density | N/A | 109.1M / mm² |

| Base Clock | 600 MHz | 1825 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 3000 MHz | 2090 MHz |

| Memory Clock | System Shared | 2250 MHz, 18 Gbps effective |

| Memory Size | System Shared | 16 GB |

| Memory Type | System Shared | GDDR6 |

| Memory Bus Width | System Shared | 256 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | System Dependent | 576.0 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 512 | 4608 |

| TMUs | 32 | 288 |

| ROPs | 16 | 192 |

| Ray Tracing Cores | 8 | 72 |

| Pixel Rate | 48.00 GPixel/s | 401.3 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 96.00 GTexel/s | 601.9 GTexel/s |

| FP32 Performance | 3.072 TFLOPS | 38.52 TFLOPS |

| FP16 Performance | 3.072 TFLOPS (1:1) | 77.05 TFLOPS (2:1) |

| TDP | 15 W | 180 W |

| Bus Interface | PCIe 4.0 x8 | PCIe 4.0 x16 |

| Release Date | 2025-02-28 | 2023-10-18 |

| Predecessor | Navi II IGP | Polaris Mobile |

| Average Benchmark Score | 26401 | 97487 |

| Percentile vs All GPUs | 72 | 94 |