AMD Radeon HD 7950 vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 Mobile Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The recorded data shows no direct head-to-head benchmark runs between the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 Mobile and the AMD Radeon HD 7950. Instead, the comparison relies on each card's average benchmark score and its position within the database's percentile ranking. The RTX 5080 Mobile holds an average benchmark score of 38,349, placing it in the 81st percentile of all GPUs. The HD 7950, by contrast, records an average score of 33,951, which places it in the 78th percentile. The raw gap is 4,398 points, a meaningful margin that reflects the generational divide between the two products.

Looking at the RTX 5080 Mobile's nearest rivals provides context for its score. It sits within 0.1% of the GeForce MX570 (38,299), 0.6% above the RTX 4080 Mobile (38,135), and 0.9% below both the MX570 A (38,691) and the Radeon Pro 580X (38,706). These deltas are small, indicating that the RTX 5080 Mobile's average score clusters tightly with other mobile and workstation parts in its vicinity. The HD 7950, meanwhile, is nearly identical to the Radeon RX 480 (33,997, a delta of -0.1%), slightly ahead of the RX 7700S (33,849, a delta of 0.3%), and marginally behind the RX 560 XT (34,133, a delta of -0.5%) and the RTX A2000 12 GB (34,154, a delta of -0.6%). The HD 7950's positioning among these cards suggests it remains competitive with much newer entry-level and mid-range parts, despite its age.

The RTX 5080 Mobile's advantage in average score is roughly 13% over the HD 7950 when calculated from the recorded averages. In absolute terms, the 4,398-point gap is substantial, but the percentile difference of only 3 points (81 versus 78) indicates that both cards sit in the upper tier of the database's distribution, with the RTX 5080 Mobile holding a modest but consistent edge. There are no individual test scores shared between the two cards, so a test-by-test win breakdown is not possible; the comparison must rest on the aggregate figures.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from entirely different eras and design philosophies. The RTX 5080 Mobile uses the GB203 chip, built on NVIDIA's Blackwell 2.0 architecture, fabricated by TSMC on a 5 nm process. It integrates 45,600 million transistors on a die size of 378 mm², yielding a transistor density of 120.6 million per mm². The HD 7950, in contrast, uses the Tahiti chip with AMD's GCN 1.0 architecture, also from TSMC but on a 28 nm process. It packs 4,313 million transistors into a 352 mm² die, for a density of just 12.3 million per mm². The density difference is nearly tenfold, reflecting the process node advancement between 2012 and 2025.

Memory subsystems diverge sharply. The RTX 5080 Mobile ships with 16 GB of GDDR7 on a 256-bit bus, delivering 896.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The HD 7950 offers 3 GB of GDDR5 on a wider 384-bit bus, but its bandwidth tops out at 240.0 GB/s. The RTX 5080 Mobile's memory clock is listed at 1750 MHz with 28 Gbps effective, while the HD 7950 runs at 1250 MHz with 5 Gbps effective. The result is that the newer card moves nearly 3.7 times as much data per second, despite the narrower bus.

Compute resources are also vastly different. The RTX 5080 Mobile has 7,680 shading units, 240 texture mapping units, and 96 ROPs, along with 60 ray tracing cores and 240 tensor cores. The HD 7950 has 1,792 shading units, 112 TMUs, and 32 ROPs, with no ray tracing or tensor cores present. Pixel throughput stands at 144.0 GPixel/s for the RTX 5080 Mobile versus 25.25 GPixel/s for the HD 7950 (the recorded pixel rate is 25.60 GPixel/s). Texture rate is 360.0 GTexel/s versus 89.60 GTexel/s. FP32 compute is 23.04 TFLOPS against 2.867 TFLOPS, an eightfold gap. The RTX 5080 Mobile also supports FP16 at 23.04 TFLOPS (1:1), while the HD 7950 has no recorded FP16 capability.

Power and physical design differ as well. The RTX 5080 Mobile is rated at 80 W TDP with an IGP slot width and no power connectors, making it a laptop-class part. The HD 7950 draws 200 W, occupies a dual-slot form factor, requires two 6-pin power connectors, and lists a suggested PSU of 550 W. Its dimensions are 278 mm in length, 111 mm in height, and 38 mm in width. The RTX 5080 Mobile has no recorded dimensions, consistent with its mobile integration.

API support is another differentiator. The RTX 5080 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 newer card's feature set includes hardware ray tracing, mesh shaders, and other DirectX 12 Ultimate features, none of which are available on the older AMD part. The bus interface is PCIe 5.0 x16 on the RTX 5080 Mobile, while the HD 7950 uses PCIe 3.0 x16.

Where Each One Wins

The RTX 5080 Mobile is the clear winner in scenarios that demand high compute throughput, large memory pools, and modern API features. Its 23.04 TFLOPS of FP32 compute, 896.0 GB/s of bandwidth, and 16 GB of GDDR7 memory make it suited for workloads such as machine learning inference, AI-accelerated rendering, and modern DirectX 12 Ultimate applications, particularly where ray tracing is involved. The presence of 240 tensor cores further extends its reach into AI-heavy tasks that the HD 7950 cannot attempt. The 81st percentile ranking and an average score of 38,349 reinforce its position among contemporary mobile GPUs, and its proximity to cards like the RTX 7950's nearest rivals (RTX 4080 Mobile at 38,135, MX570 at 38,299) suggests it competes well within the mobile segment.

The HD 7950, despite being end-of-life, still occupies the 78th percentile with an average score of 33,951. Its closest rivals include the RX 480 (33,997), RX 7700S (33,849), RX 560 XT (34,133), and RTX A2000 12 GB (34,154), meaning it remains within 0.6% of several much newer cards. For legacy applications, older DirectX titles, or scenarios where the 384-bit bus and 3 GB of GDDR5 are sufficient, the HD 7950 can still hold its own. Its 1.2.170 Vulkan support and DirectX 12 (11_1) feature level allow it to run many modern games, though without ray tracing or tensor core acceleration. It also draws 200 W from a desktop power supply, as opposed to the RTX 5080 Mobile's 80 W mobile power envelope, so it fits only in desktop systems with adequate cooling and a 550 W PSU.

The RTX 5080 Mobile wins on every measurable compute dimension: FP32 (23.04 TFLOPS vs 2.867 TFLOPS), texture rate (360.0 GTexel/s vs 89.60 GTexel/s), pixel rate (144.0 GPixel/s vs 25.60 GPixel/s), memory bandwidth (896.0 GB/s vs 240.0 GB/s), and transistor density (120.6M/mm² vs 12.3M/mm²). The HD 7950 wins on none of the recorded metrics; its only advantage is the wider 384-bit memory bus, but that does not translate into higher bandwidth. The RTX 5080 Mobile also has a higher average benchmark score (38,349 vs 33,951) and a higher percentile (81 vs 78).

For a user seeking raw performance in current workloads, the RTX 5080 Mobile is the definitive choice. For a user constrained to a desktop platform with older software, the HD 7950 remains a functional part, but the data shows no scenario in which it outperforms the RTX 5080 Mobile in any recorded test or specification.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 Mobile records an average benchmark score of 38,349, compared to the AMD Radeon HD 7950's 33,951, a difference of 4,398 points.

Q: How do the two cards compare in memory bandwidth?

A: The RTX 5080 Mobile delivers 896.0 GB/s over a 256-bit GDDR7 interface, while the HD 7950 provides 240.0 GB/s over a 384-bit GDDR5 interface.

Q: What are the FP32 compute capabilities of each card?

A: The RTX 5080 Mobile achieves 23.04 TFLOPS of FP32 compute, while the HD 7950 reaches 2.867 TFLOPS.

Q: Does the HD 7950 support ray tracing or tensor cores?

A: No, the HD 7950 has no ray tracing cores and no tensor cores. The RTX 5080 Mobile includes 60 ray tracing cores and 240 tensor cores.

Q: What is the power consumption difference?

A: The RTX 5080 Mobile has a TDP of 80 W, while the HD 7950 has a TDP of 200 W and requires two 6-pin power connectors.

Q: Which card has the higher percentile ranking in the database?

A: The RTX 5080 Mobile sits in the 81st percentile of all GPUs, while the HD 7950 is in the 78th percentile.

Specification Differences

| Specification | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 Mobile | AMD Radeon HD 7950 |

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

| Architecture | Blackwell 2.0 | GCN 1.0 |

| Process Node | 5 nm | 28 nm |

| Transistors | 45,600 million | 4,313 million |

| Die Size | 378 mm² | 352 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 120.6M / mm² | 12.3M / mm² |

| Memory Size | 16 GB | 3 GB |

| Memory Type | GDDR7 | GDDR5 |

| Memory Bus Width | 256 bit | 384 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | 896.0 GB/s | 240.0 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 7,680 | 1,792 |

| TMUs | 240 | 112 |

| ROPs | 96 | 32 |

| RT Cores | 60 | None |

| Tensor Cores | 240 | None |

| Pixel Rate | 144.0 GPixel/s | 25.60 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 360.0 GTexel/s | 89.60 GTexel/s |

| FP32 Compute | 23.04 TFLOPS | 2.867 TFLOPS |

| TDP | 80 W | 200 W |

| Slot Width | IGP | Dual-slot |

| Power Connectors | None | 2x 6-pin |

| Bus Interface | PCIe 5.0 x16 | PCIe 3.0 x16 |

| DirectX Support | 12 Ultimate (12_2) | 12 (11_1) |

| Vulkan Support | 1.4 | 1.2.170 |

| Production Status | Active | End-of-life |

| Release Date | 2025-04-01 | 2012-01-30 |

| Launch MSRP | Not available | 449 USD |

| Suggested PSU | Not available | 550 W |

| Dimensions | Not available | 278 mm x 111 mm x 38 mm |