AMD Radeon HD 7950 vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Mobile Comparison

The Verdict

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Mobile is the overwhelmingly superior product for nearly every modern workload, while the AMD Radeon HD 7950 is a legacy part that cannot compete in compute-heavy or modern API scenarios. The data shows an enormous gap: the RTX 4080 Mobile delivers 24.72 TFLOPS of FP32 compute against 2.867 TFLOPS for the HD 7950, a roughly 8.6x advantage in raw shader throughput. The RTX 4080 Mobile also sits at the 81st percentile of all GPUs, while the HD 7950 sits at the 78th, but that percentile similarity is misleading because the HD 7950 has only a single benchmark entry (Geekbench Metal) in the database, while the RTX 4080 Mobile has nine entries spanning DirectX and compute tests.

The HD 7950 should only be considered by someone running legacy software that relies on its era-specific feature set. It launched in early 2012, uses GCN 1.0 architecture on a 28 nm process, and has no ray tracing cores or tensor cores. The RTX 4080 Mobile, by contrast, is an active product with Ada Lovelace architecture, 58 ray tracing cores, 232 tensor cores, and support for DirectX 12 Ultimate. For anyone choosing between these two for a new system, the RTX 4080 Mobile is the only defensible pick.

Where Each One Wins

The RTX 4080 Mobile wins in every measurable category except one: the HD 7950 has a single benchmark score (Geekbench Metal) of 33951, and the RTX 4080 Mobile has no Metal score in the database, so the HD 7950 technically claims that niche. But that is a narrow and platform-specific test. The RTX 4080 Mobile dominates in OpenCL, Vulkan, DirectX 9/10/11/12, 2D graphics, 3D graphics, and compute. Its Passmark G3D score is 24926, while the HD 7950 has no Passmark scores at all in the database. Its Passmark GPU Compute score is 11191, again with no comparable HD 7950 entry.

The HD 7950 wins in the categories of memory bus width (384 bit vs 192 bit) and physical size (it is a dual-slot card with 278 mm length), but those are not performance wins. The RTX 4080 Mobile has 12 GB of GDDR6 memory versus 3 GB of GDDR5, a 432.0 GB/s memory bandwidth versus 240.0 GB/s, and a 5 nm process node versus 28 nm. The RTX 4080 Mobile also has a much lower TDP of 110 W versus 200 W for the HD 7950, which is remarkable given the massive compute advantage.

Architecture Differences

The architectural gulf between these two GPUs spans over a decade of silicon evolution. The RTX 4080 Mobile uses the AD104 chip built on TSMC's 5 nm process, packing 35,800 million transistors into a 294 mm² die. That yields a transistor density of 121.8 million per mm². The HD 7950 uses the Tahiti chip on TSMC's 28 nm process, with 4,313 million transistors on a 352 mm² die, for a density of 12.3 million per mm². The RTX 4080 Mobile is nearly 10x denser per square millimeter.

The shading resources are also wildly different. The RTX 4080 Mobile has 7424 shading units, 232 TMUs, and 80 ROPs. The HD 7950 has 1792 shading units, 112 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. The RTX 4080 Mobile adds 58 ray tracing cores and 232 tensor cores, neither of which exist on the HD 7950. Pixel rate is 133.2 GPixel/s versus 25.60 GPixel/s, and texture rate is 386.3 GTexel/s versus 89.60 GTexel/s.

Memory architecture differs fundamentally as well. The RTX 4080 Mobile uses 12 GB of GDDR6 on a 192 bit bus, with memory clocked at 2250 MHz (18 Gbps effective) for 432.0 GB/s bandwidth. The HD 7950 uses 3 GB of GDDR5 on a 384 bit bus, with memory at 1250 MHz (5 Gbps effective) for 240.0 GB/s bandwidth. Despite the narrower bus, the RTX 4080 Mobile delivers 80% more bandwidth thanks to much faster memory.

API support separates them further. The RTX 4080 Mobile supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The HD 7950 supports DirectX 12 (11_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.170. The difference in DirectX feature level is significant for modern games. The RTX 4080 Mobile also supports FP16 at 24.72 TFLOPS (1:1 ratio), while the HD 7950 has no recorded FP16 capability.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU is faster in raw compute?

A: The RTX 4080 Mobile delivers 24.72 TFLOPS of FP32 compute, which is roughly 8.6 times the HD 7950's 2.867 TFLOPS.

Q: Does the AMD Radeon HD 7950 support ray tracing?

A: No. The HD 7950 has no ray tracing cores or tensor cores. The RTX 4080 Mobile has 58 ray tracing cores and 232 tensor cores.

Q: How do their memory subsystems compare?

A: The RTX 4080 Mobile has 12 GB of GDDR6 on a 192 bit bus with 432.0 GB/s bandwidth. The HD 7950 has 3 GB of GDDR5 on a 384 bit bus with 240.0 GB/s bandwidth.

Q: Which GPU has better API support?

A: The RTX 4080 Mobile supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) and Vulkan 1.4. The HD 7950 supports DirectX 12 (11_1) and Vulkan 1.2.170.

Q: What are the power requirements for each?

A: The RTX 4080 Mobile has a TDP of 110 W and uses no power connectors. The HD 7950 has a TDP of 200 W, requires 2x 6-pin power connectors, and a recommended 550 W PSU.

Q: Which GPU has a higher benchmark percentile?

A: The RTX 4080 Mobile is at the 81st percentile of all GPUs. The HD 7950 is at the 78th percentile, but its score is based on a single Geekbench Metal test.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

There are no direct head-to-head benchmark entries in the database for these two GPUs. However, comparing their available scores reveals the scale of the performance gap. The RTX 4080 Mobile scores 159575 in Geekbench OpenCL and 145807 in Geekbench Vulkan. The HD 7950 has no OpenCL or Vulkan scores. Its only recorded benchmark is Geekbench Metal at 33951.

The RTX 4080 Mobile's Passmark results further illustrate its strength. It scores 24926 in Passmark G3D and 11191 in Passmark GPU Compute. It also scores 929 in Passmark G2D, 286 in DirectX 9, 244 in DirectX 11, 157 in DirectX 10, and 96 in DirectX 12. The HD 7950 has no Passmark scores in the database at all. Even the RTX 4080 Mobile's lowest DirectX score (96 in Passmark DirectX 12) cannot be compared to the HD 7950 because no equivalent data exists for the older card.

The average benchmark score tells a similar story. The RTX 4080 Mobile has an average benchmark score of 38135. The HD 7950 has an average of 33951. That is a difference of 4184 points, or about 12.3% in favor of the RTX 4080 Mobile. This is a surprisingly small gap given the 8.6x difference in FP32 compute, but it reflects the fact that the HD 7950's only score comes from a single Metal test, while the RTX 4080 Mobile's average incorporates many heavier workloads.

The nearest rivals in the database reinforce the positioning of each card. The RTX 4080 Mobile's closest competitors by average score are the NVIDIA GeForce MX570 (38299, -0.4%), the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 Mobile (38349, -0.6%), the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 (37648, +1.3%), and the NVIDIA Tesla P4 (37628, +1.3%). The HD 7950's nearest rivals are the AMD Radeon RX 480 (33997, -0.1%), the AMD Radeon RX 7700S (33849, +0.3%), the AMD Radeon RX 560 XT (34133, -0.5%), and the NVIDIA RTX A2000 12 GB (34154, -0.6%). The RTX 4080 Mobile competes with modern midrange and upper-midrange cards, while the HD 7950 sits near older and entry-level modern parts.

Specification Differences

The two GPUs differ in nearly every specification field. The RTX 4080 Mobile uses the AD104 chip with Ada Lovelace architecture on a 5 nm process from TSMC, with 35,800 million transistors and a 294 mm² die. The HD 7950 uses the Tahiti chip with GCN 1.0 architecture on a 28 nm process from TSMC, with 4,313 million transistors and a 352 mm² die.

Clock speeds differ substantially. The RTX 4080 Mobile has a base clock of 1290 MHz and a boost clock of 1665 MHz. The HD 7950 has no base or boost clock recorded in the database. Memory clocks are 2250 MHz (18 Gbps effective) for the RTX 4080 Mobile versus 1250 MHz (5 Gbps effective) for the HD 7950.

Memory configuration differs: 12 GB GDDR6 on a 192 bit bus with 432.0 GB/s bandwidth versus 3 GB GDDR5 on a 384 bit bus with 240.0 GB/s bandwidth. Shader resources differ: 7424 shading units, 232 TMUs, and 80 ROPs versus 1792 shading units, 112 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. The RTX 4080 Mobile adds 58 ray tracing cores and 232 tensor cores; the HD 7950 has none.

Power and physical design differ as well. The RTX 4080 Mobile has a TDP of 110 W, is an IGP form factor, and uses no power connectors. The HD 7950 has a TDP of 200 W, is dual-slot, uses 2x 6-pin power connectors, and recommends a 550 W PSU. The HD 7950 measures 278 mm in length, 111 mm in height, and 38 mm in width. The RTX 4080 Mobile has no recorded dimensions.

Bus interface and display outputs also differ. The RTX 4080 Mobile uses PCIe 4.0 x16 with display outputs described as portable device dependent. The HD 7950 uses PCIe 3.0 x16 with 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 1.4a, and 2x mini-DisplayPort 1.2 outputs. The HD 7950 has a launch MSRP of 449 USD, while the RTX 4080 Mobile has no launch MSRP recorded. Production status is Active for the RTX 4080 Mobile and End-of-life for the HD 7950. The RTX 4080 Mobile released in 2023, succeeding the GeForce 30 Mobile series, while the HD 7950 released in 2012, succeeding Northern Islands and preceding Sea Islands.