AMD Radeon AI PRO R9700S vs AMD Ryzen Z2 GPU Comparison

FAQ

Q: What are the core architectural differences between the AMD Radeon AI PRO R9700S and the AMD Ryzen Z2 GPU?

A: The R9700S uses the Navi 48 chip built on RDNA 4.0 architecture, while the Ryzen Z2 GPU uses the Hawk Point chip built on RDNA 3.0 architecture. Both are manufactured by AMD on a 4 nm process at TSMC.

Q: How do the memory configurations compare?

A: The R9700S has 32 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus with 644.6 GB/s bandwidth. The Ryzen Z2 GPU has 16 GB of LPDDR5X memory on a 128-bit bus with 119.9 GB/s bandwidth.

Q: What is the difference in shading units and ray tracing capabilities?

A: The R9700S contains 4096 shading units and 64 ray tracing cores. The Ryzen Z2 GPU contains 768 shading units and 12 ray tracing cores.

Q: How do the clock speeds differ between the two?

A: The R9700S has a base clock of 1660 MHz and a boost clock of 2920 MHz. The Ryzen Z2 GPU has a base clock of 800 MHz and a boost clock of 2700 MHz.

Q: What are the power requirements for each?

A: The R9700S has a TDP of 300 W and uses a 1x 16-pin power connector with a suggested PSU of 700 W. The Ryzen Z2 GPU has a TDP of 28 W and uses no external power connectors.

Q: Which GPU has a higher transistor count and die size?

A: The R9700S has 53,900 million transistors on a 357 mm² die. The Ryzen Z2 GPU has 25,390 million transistors on a 178 mm² die.

Where Each One Wins

The benchmark data shows a clear split between the two GPUs based on their intended usage environments. The R9700S wins in every compute-heavy category due to its substantially larger execution resources. It delivers 4096 shading units versus 768, 256 texture mapping units versus 48, and 128 render output units versus 32. This translates into a texture rate of 747.5 GTexel/s against 129.6 GTexel/s, and a pixel rate of 373.8 GPixel/s against 86.40 GPixel/s.

The Ryzen Z2 GPU wins in power efficiency and physical integration. Its 28 W TDP allows operation without any power connectors, while the R9700S requires a 1x 16-pin connector and a 700 W suggested PSU. The Ryzen Z2 GPU also integrates into a single USB Type-C output, making it suitable for compact or portable devices. The R9700S, by contrast, occupies a dual-slot form factor measuring 267 mm in length, 109 mm in height, and 39 mm in width.

The R9700S delivers 47.84 TFLOPS of FP32 performance, which is 5.77 times the 8.294 TFLOPS of the Ryzen Z2 GPU. In memory bandwidth, the R9700S reaches 644.6 GB/s compared to 119.9 GB/s. The R9700S also supports PCIe 5.0 x16, whereas the Ryzen Z2 GPU lists no bus interface in the database.

Architecture Differences

The R9700S is built on RDNA 4.0 architecture using the Navi 48 chip, part of the Radeon Pro Navi (Navi IV Series) generation. The Ryzen Z2 GPU uses RDNA 3.0 architecture with the Hawk Point chip, classified under Console GPU (AMD). Both use a 4 nm TSMC process, but the transistor density differs slightly: the R9700S achieves 151.0M transistors per mm², while the Ryzen Z2 GPU achieves 142.6M per mm².

The R9700S has 53,900 million transistors, more than double the 25,390 million in the Ryzen Z2 GPU. The die size is 357 mm² versus 178 mm². Both support DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. Neither GPU lists tensor cores in the database.

The R9700S uses GDDR6 memory with a 256-bit bus, while the Ryzen Z2 GPU uses LPDDR5X on a 128-bit bus. Memory clock rates also differ: the R9700S runs at 2518 MHz with 20.1 Gbps effective, and the Ryzen Z2 GPU runs at 937 MHz with 7.5 Gbps effective. The R9700S provides four DisplayPort 2.1a outputs, while the Ryzen Z2 GPU provides one USB Type-C output.

The R9700S has a predecessor listed as Radeon Pro Vega, and its production status is Active. The Ryzen Z2 GPU has no predecessor listed and is also Active. Release dates place the R9700S at 2025-12-10 and the Ryzen Z2 GPU at 2024-12-31.

Specification Differences

The R9700S has a base clock of 1660 MHz, a boost clock of 2920 MHz, and a game clock of 2350 MHz. The Ryzen Z2 GPU has a base clock of 800 MHz and a boost clock of 2700 MHz, with no game clock listed. Memory bandwidth stands at 644.6 GB/s for the R9700S and 119.9 GB/s for the Ryzen Z2 GPU.

Shading units number 4096 on the R9700S versus 768 on the Ryzen Z2 GPU. Texture mapping units are 256 versus 48, and render output units are 128 versus 32. Ray tracing cores are 64 on the R9700S and 12 on the Ryzen Z2 GPU. FP32 and FP16 performance are both 47.84 TFLOPS on the R9700S and 8.294 TFLOPS on the Ryzen Z2 GPU, with both offering 1:1 FP16 ratios.

The R9700S has a TDP of 300 W, a dual-slot width, a 1x 16-pin power connector, a 700 W suggested PSU, and a PCIe 5.0 x16 bus interface. The Ryzen Z2 GPU has a TDP of 28 W, no power connectors, no suggested PSU, and no bus interface listed. Display outputs differ: 4x DisplayPort 2.1a on the R9700S versus 1x USB Type-C on the Ryzen Z2 GPU. The R9700S provides dimensions of 267 mm length, 109 mm height, and 39 mm width; the Ryzen Z2 GPU has no dimensions recorded.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The recorded data shows no direct benchmark scores for either GPU in the head-to-head comparison. Both have an average benchmark score of 0 and a percentile versus all GPUs of 50. The nearest rivals lists are empty for both products. However, the specification data provides a basis for comparing theoretical peak performance.

FP32 compute is the largest gap. The R9700S delivers 47.84 TFLOPS, which is 5.77 times the 8.294 TFLOPS of the Ryzen Z2 GPU. FP16 performance follows the same ratio at 47.84 TFLOPS versus 8.294 TFLOPS. Texture fill rate shows the R9700S at 747.5 GTexel/s, which is 5.77 times the 129.6 GTexel/s of the Ryzen Z2 GPU. Pixel fill rate is 373.8 GPixel/s versus 86.40 GPixel/s, a factor of 4.33.

Memory bandwidth is 644.6 GB/s on the R9700S versus 119.9 GB/s on the Ryzen Z2 GPU, a 5.38 times difference. The memory size is double, 32 GB versus 16 GB. The R9700S also has a wider 256-bit bus versus 128-bit. Effective memory speed is 20.1 Gbps compared to 7.5 Gbps.

Clock speeds show a smaller gap. The R9700S boosts to 2920 MHz versus 2700 MHz, a 220 MHz advantage. The base clocks differ more substantially: 1660 MHz versus 800 MHz. The R9700S also lists a game clock of 2350 MHz, which the Ryzen Z2 GPU does not have.

Ray tracing resources differ by more than five times: 64 cores versus 12 cores. The R9700S has 4096 shading units versus 768, and 256 TMUs versus 48. The R9700S leads in every computational category in the database.

The Verdict

The R9700S is the choice for workloads requiring maximum compute throughput. Its 47.84 TFLOPS FP32 performance, 64 ray tracing cores, and 644.6 GB/s memory bandwidth position it for demanding rendering and compute tasks. The 32 GB GDDR6 memory and 256-bit bus provide substantial capacity and bandwidth for large datasets. The dual-slot form factor and 300 W TDP indicate a dedicated discrete GPU designed for workstation-class performance.

The Ryzen Z2 GPU is the choice for power-constrained or compact implementations. Its 28 W TDP requires no external power connectors, and its single USB Type-C output suggests integration into portable or embedded systems. The 16 GB LPDDR5X memory and 119.9 GB/s bandwidth are sufficient for less intensive graphical workloads. Its 8.294 TFLOPS FP32 performance and 12 ray tracing cores are modest compared to the R9700S but appropriate for its power envelope.

Both GPUs share the same API support, including DirectX 12 Ultimate, OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. Both use a 4 nm TSMC process. The R9700S achieves a higher transistor density at 151.0M per mm² versus 142.6M per mm². The R9700S was released later, on 2025-12-10, while the Ryzen Z2 GPU was released on 2024-12-31.

The data indicates that the R9700S dominates in raw performance metrics, while the Ryzen Z2 GPU dominates in power efficiency and physical footprint. Neither product has recorded benchmark scores in the database, so real-world performance cannot be verified from the available measurements. The choice between them depends entirely on whether the use case prioritizes compute capacity or power economy.