AMD Radeon HD 7790 vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 OEM Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The database records no direct head-to-head benchmark entries between the AMD Radeon HD 7790 and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 OEM. Instead, the available data consists of separate benchmark suites for each card, which can be compared indirectly through their average scores and percentile rankings.

The AMD Radeon HD 7790's only recorded benchmark is a Geekbench Metal score of 17,666. That single result places it at the 61st percentile among all GPUs in the database. Its nearest rivals in that test are the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 (17,639, a 0.2% delta), the AMD Radeon 780M (17,588, a 0.4% delta), and the AMD Radeon Pro 560 (17,551, a 0.7% delta). The only faster neighbor is the NVIDIA Quadro RTX 4000 at 17,789, which beats the HD 7790 by 0.7%. In other words, the HD 7790 sits at the top of a very tight cluster where a 1% swing separates the slowest from the fastest.

The RTX 3050 OEM presents a more varied benchmark profile. Its Geekbench OpenCL score is 60,740, while its Geekbench Vulkan score is 57,103. The PassMark suite shows a G3D score of 11,857, a GPU compute score of 5,779, and older DirectX tests where the card scores 137 in DirectX 9, 86 in DirectX 11, 61 in DirectX 10, and 58 in DirectX 12. The G2D score is 973. Its average benchmark score across all tests is 15,199, which places it at the 57th percentile. Its nearest rivals are the AMD Radeon RX 7600 (15,171, a 0.2% delta), the AMD Radeon 680M (15,270, a 0.5% delta, faster), the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580 (15,283, a 0.5% delta, faster), and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 (15,290, a 0.6% delta, faster). The RTX 3050 OEM is thus the slowest in its immediate neighbor group, though by margins under 1%.

The striking observation is that these two cards belong to different benchmark ecosystems. The HD 7790's Metal score cannot be directly converted to an OpenCL or Vulkan number, so a true apples-to-apples comparison is impossible from the recorded data. What the numbers do show is that the HD 7790's single strong Metal result pushes its percentile higher (61) than the RTX 3050 OEM's percentile (57), despite the latter having far higher raw scores in its own tests. This suggests the percentile metric is normalized across different test types, not simply ranked by raw output.

FAQ

Q: Which card has a higher average benchmark score?

A: The RTX 3050 OEM has an average benchmark score of 15,199 across its nine recorded tests, while the HD 7790 has a single score of 17,666. However, these averages are not directly comparable because they come from different test suites (OpenCL, Vulkan, and PassMark for the RTX 3050 OEM versus Geekbench Metal for the HD 7790).

Q: How does each card rank among all GPUs?

A: The HD 7790 ranks at the 61st percentile, which is higher than the RTX 3050 OEM's 57th percentile. This is notable because the RTX 3050 OEM has much higher raw benchmark scores, yet sits lower in the percentile distribution.

Q: What are the closest rivals for each card?

A: For the HD 7790, the nearest rival is the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 with a delta of 0.2%, followed by the AMD Radeon 780M (0.4%) and the AMD Radeon Pro 560 (0.7%). For the RTX 3050 OEM, the nearest rival is the AMD Radeon RX 7600 (0.2% delta), with the AMD Radeon 680M, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580, and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 all being slightly faster by 0.5% to 0.6%.

Q: Does the RTX 3050 OEM support newer graphics APIs?

A: Yes, the RTX 3050 OEM supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), while the HD 7790 only supports DirectX 12 (12_0). Both support OpenGL 4.6, but the RTX 3050 OEM has Vulkan 1.4 versus the HD 7790's Vulkan 1.2.170.

Q: Which card has more shading units and texture mapping units?

A: The RTX 3050 OEM has 2,304 shading units and 72 TMUs, compared to the HD 7790's 896 shading units and 56 TMUs. The RTX 3050 OEM also has 32 ROPs versus the HD 7790's 16.

Q: What is the memory configuration difference?

A: The HD 7790 has 1,024 MB of GDDR5 on a 128-bit bus with 96.00 GB/s bandwidth. The RTX 3050 OEM has 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus with 224.0 GB/s bandwidth.

Architecture Differences

The two cards are separated by roughly nine years of GPU design, and the database records show how fundamentally different their underlying architectures are.

The HD 7790 uses the Bonaire chip built on GCN 2.0 architecture, part of the Southern Islands generation (HD 7700 series). It is manufactured by TSMC on a 28 nm process, with 2,080 million transistors packed into a 160 mm² die, giving a transistor density of 13.0 million per mm². The chip was released in March 2013 and is now end-of-life.

The RTX 3050 OEM uses the GA106 chip built on Ampere architecture, part of the GeForce 30-series. It is manufactured by Samsung on an 8 nm process, with 12,000 million transistors on a 276 mm² die, resulting in a transistor density of 43.5 million per mm². It was released in January 2022 and is also end-of-life.

The transistor count difference is dramatic: the RTX 3050 OEM has nearly six times as many transistors (12,000 million versus 2,080 million), and its density is more than three times higher (43.5M per mm² versus 13.0M per mm²). This reflects the shift from 28 nm to 8 nm manufacturing.

Memory technology also differs. The HD 7790 uses GDDR5 at 1,500 MHz (6 Gbps effective), while the RTX 3050 OEM uses GDDR6 at 1,750 MHz (14 Gbps effective). Both use a 128-bit bus, but the RTX 3050 OEM's higher-speed memory yields 224.0 GB/s versus 96.00 GB/s.

The RTX 3050 OEM includes dedicated hardware features absent from the HD 7790: 18 ray tracing cores and 72 tensor cores. The HD 7790 has no equivalent. The RTX 3050 OEM also has a higher FP32 throughput at 8.087 TFLOPS versus 1.792 TFLOPS, and it supports FP16 at 8.087 TFLOPS (1:1), while the HD 7790 has no recorded FP16 capability.

Clock behavior differs as well. The RTX 3050 OEM has a base clock of 1,515 MHz and a boost clock of 1,755 MHz. The HD 7790 has no base or boost clock recorded in the database, only its memory clock.

The RTX 3050 OEM uses a PCIe 4.0 x8 interface, while the HD 7790 uses PCIe 3.0 x16. Both are dual-slot cards, but the RTX 3050 OEM is longer at 242 mm versus 183 mm for the HD 7790, and it has an 8-pin power connector instead of a 6-pin. The suggested PSU is 300 W for the RTX 3050 OEM and 250 W for the HD 7790.

The Verdict

The data points to a clear generational split, but not a simple one. The RTX 3050 OEM is overwhelmingly more powerful in raw compute: its FP32 output is 4.5 times higher (8.087 TFLOPS versus 1.792 TFLOPS), its texture rate is more than double (126.4 GTexel/s versus 56.00 GTexel/s), and its pixel rate is 3.5 times higher (56.16 GPixel/s versus 16.00 GPixel/s). Memory bandwidth is 2.3 times higher (224.0 GB/s versus 96.00 GB/s), and it has 2.6 times more shading units.

Yet the HD 7790 achieves a higher percentile rank (61 versus 57) on the strength of its single Metal benchmark. This is likely an artifact of the test distribution rather than a real performance claim, but the database records it as fact.

The RTX 3050 OEM's nearest rivals are all within 0.6% of its average score, meaning it competes in a dense pack of similar performers. The HD 7790's nearest rivals are similarly tight, with only 1.4% separating the fastest from the slowest in its group.

For a user choosing between these two, the RTX 3050 OEM is the clear winner on every measurable hardware specification. The HD 7790's only advantage is its higher percentile, which is misleading given the different benchmark suites. The RTX 3050 OEM supports modern APIs (DirectX 12 Ultimate, Vulkan 1.4), has ray tracing and tensor cores, and offers 8 GB of memory versus 1 GB.

The HD 7790 remains relevant only in legacy contexts: it supports DirectX 12 (12_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.170, which covers many older games and applications. But its 1 GB frame buffer and 96.00 GB/s bandwidth will constrain it severely in any modern workload.

Specification Differences

The following fields differ between the two cards:

• Chip: Bonaire (HD 7790) versus GA106 (RTX 3050 OEM)
• Architecture: GCN 2.0 versus Ampere
• Generation: Southern Islands (HD 7700) versus GeForce 30
• Process node: 28 nm (TSMC) versus 8 nm (Samsung)
• Transistors: 2,080 million versus 12,000 million
• Die size: 160 mm² versus 276 mm²
• Transistor density: 13.0M / mm² versus 43.5M / mm²
• Memory clock: 1,500 MHz (6 Gbps effective) versus 1,750 MHz (14 Gbps effective)
• Memory size: 1,024 MB versus 8 GB
• Memory type: GDDR5 versus GDDR6
• Memory bandwidth: 96.00 GB/s versus 224.0 GB/s
• Shading units: 896 versus 2,304
• TMUs: 56 versus 72
• ROPs: 16 versus 32
• RT cores: none versus 18
• Tensor cores: none versus 72
• Pixel rate: 16.00 GPixel/s versus 56.16 GPixel/s
• Texture rate: 56.00 GTexel/s versus 126.4 GTexel/s
• FP32: 1.792 TFLOPS versus 8.087 TFLOPS
• FP16: not recorded versus 8.087 TFLOPS (1:1)
• TDP: 85 W versus 130 W
• Power connectors: 1x 6-pin versus 1x 8-pin
• Suggested PSU: 250 W versus 300 W
• Bus interface: PCIe 3.0 x16 versus PCIe 4.0 x8
• Display outputs: 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 1.4a, 2x mini-DisplayPort 1.2 versus 1x HDMI 2.1, 3x DisplayPort 1.4a
• DirectX support: 12 (12_0) versus 12 Ultimate (12_2)
• Vulkan support: 1.2.170 versus 1.4
• Length: 183 mm (7.2 inches) versus 242 mm (9.5 inches)
• Height: not recorded versus 112 mm (4.4 inches)
• Release date: 2013-03-21 versus 2022-01-03
• Predecessor: Northern Islands versus GeForce 20
• Successor: Sea Islands versus GeForce 40
• Launch MSRP: 149 USD versus not recorded

Where Each One Wins

AMD Radeon HD 7790 wins on:

• Percentile ranking: 61st versus 57th.
• Single benchmark score: 17,666 versus the RTX 3050 OEM's 15,199 average.
• Power draw: 85 W versus 130 W (the HD 7790 needs a 250 W PSU versus 300 W).
• Physical size: 183 mm versus 242 mm, making it easier to fit in compact cases.
• Launch MSRP was recorded at 149 USD, while the RTX 3050 OEM has no recorded launch price.

NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 OEM wins on:

• Raw compute: 8.087 TFLOPS FP32 versus 1.792 TFLOPS.
• Memory capacity: 8 GB versus 1,024 MB.
• Memory bandwidth: 224.0 GB/s versus 96.00 GB/s.
• Pixel and texture rates: 56.16 GPixel/s and 126.4 GTexel/s versus 16.00 GPixel/s and 56.00 GTexel/s.
• Modern feature set: ray tracing cores, tensor cores, DirectX 12 Ultimate, Vulkan 1.4.
• Connector options: 3x DisplayPort 1.4a and 1x HDMI 2.1 versus older display outputs.
• PCIe 4.0 interface versus PCIe 3.0.

The HD 7790's wins are mostly about efficiency and legacy compatibility. The RTX 3050 OEM decisively wins on every performance-oriented metric. The data suggests that anyone building a modern system should choose the RTX 3050 OEM, while the HD 7790 might still serve in a retro or low-power build where its 85 W draw and smaller footprint are assets.