AMD Radeon HD 7970M vs AMD Radeon RX 7600S Comparison

The AMD Radeon HD 7970M and the AMD Radeon RX 7600S represent two distinct eras of mobile graphics, separated by over a decade of architectural evolution. The data shows a decisive performance gap, with the RX 7600S dominating the single available head-to-head benchmark while the HD 7970M trails significantly. This analysis breaks down the quantitative results, contextualizes each GPU's strengths, and determines which user profile aligns with each part.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only direct comparison available is the Geekbench OpenCL test, and the result is lopsided. The AMD Radeon RX 7600S scores 68,012, while the AMD Radeon HD 7970M scores 17,019. This translates to a -75% delta for the older card, meaning the RX 7600S delivers roughly four times the compute performance in this workload. The margin is so large that it dwarfs any other comparison in the dataset.

To put the HD 7970M's score in perspective, its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 690 (17,037, -0.1% delta) and the AMD Radeon RX 7600 XT (17,083, -0.4% delta). This clustering indicates that the HD 7970M, despite its age, still sits within a tight performance band around the 17,000-point mark. It is essentially tied with those cards in OpenCL, with differences of less than half a percent. Even the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 (17,208, -1.1% delta) is only marginally faster, showing that the HD 7970M's compute throughput has a surprisingly modern baseline.

The RX 7600S, by contrast, sits in a different league. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA T400 4 GB (16,792, -0.6% delta) and the NVIDIA T400 (16,508, 1.1% delta), both of which are far below its score. Interestingly, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D V2 (16,504, 1.2% delta) is also listed as a near rival, meaning the RX 7600S outperforms even that flagship by a small margin in this specific OpenCL test. The RX 7600S's score of 68,012 is not just a win; it is a generational leap that leaves the HD 7970M and its contemporaries in the dust.

Where Each One Wins

The RX 7600S wins the only head-to-head benchmark outright, and its broader benchmark suite reinforces its dominance. It records a Geekbench Vulkan score of 73,868, which is even higher than its OpenCL result, suggesting strong cross-API compute capability. In PassMark tests, it shows a balanced profile: 15,408 in G3D, 6,520 in GPU Compute, and 776 in G2D. These numbers indicate the RX 7600S is not just a compute monster but also a capable 2D and 3D performer for its class.

The HD 7970M has no other benchmark entries beyond its single OpenCL score. This means the data shows zero wins for the HD 7970M, while the RX 7600S claims all available victories. The older card's advantage, if any, lies in its architectural legacy rather than raw numbers. It belongs to the GCN 1.0 generation, which was designed for a different era of graphics APIs and workloads. While it cannot compete on raw throughput, its 27.20 GPixel/s pixel rate and 68.00 GTexel/s texture rate are respectable figures that hint at decent rasterization for its time, even if those numbers are far below the RX 7600S's 140.8 GPixel/s and 246.4 GTexel/s.

The RX 7600S also wins on memory bandwidth, offering 256.0 GB/s over a 128-bit bus, while the HD 7970M manages 153.6 GB/s over a 256-bit bus. Although the older card has a wider interface, the newer GDDR6 memory at 16 Gbps effective more than compensates, delivering 66% more bandwidth. This matters for texture-heavy scenes and high-resolution workloads, where the RX 7600S has a clear edge.

The Verdict

From the data, the AMD Radeon RX 7600S is the superior GPU in virtually every measurable way. Its OpenCL score of 68,012 is 75% higher than the HD 7970M's 17,019, and its Vulkan score of 73,868 further cements its compute leadership. The RX 7600S also offers more than three times the FP32 throughput (15.77 TFLOPS vs 2.176 TFLOPS) and nearly double the memory bandwidth. For any modern workload—gaming, content creation, or GPU compute—the RX 7600S is the obvious choice.

The HD 7970M, however, is not without merit. Its score of 17,019 places it in the 60th percentile of all GPUs, tied with the RX 7600S's own percentile. This means that while it is old, it is not obsolete. It can still handle legacy DirectX 11 titles and light compute tasks, thanks to its 1,280 shading units and 2 GB of GDDR5 memory. Its 100 W TDP is modest, though the RX 7600S is even more efficient at 75 W despite being vastly faster. For a user with a vintage laptop or a specific compatibility need, the HD 7970M remains functional. For everyone else, the RX 7600S is the only rational pick.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has higher compute performance in OpenCL?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 7600S scores 68,012 in Geekbench OpenCL, which is 75% higher than the AMD Radeon HD 7970M's 17,019.

Q: How does the HD 7970M compare to its closest rivals?

A: The HD 7970M is nearly identical to the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 690 (17,037, -0.1% delta) and the AMD Radeon RX 7600 XT (17,083, -0.4% delta). It is slightly behind the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 (17,208, -1.1% delta).

Q: What is the memory configuration difference?

A: The RX 7600S has 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus with 256.0 GB/s bandwidth. The HD 7970M has 2 GB of GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus with 153.6 GB/s bandwidth.

Q: Which GPU has more shading units?

A: The RX 7600S has 1,792 shading units, while the HD 7970M has 1,280. The RX 7600S also has 112 texture mapping units and 64 ROPs, versus 80 TMUs and 32 ROPs on the older card.

Q: Does the RX 7600S support modern APIs?

A: Yes, the RX 7600S supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), Vulkan 1.4, and OpenGL 4.6. The HD 7970M only supports DirectX 12 (11_1) and Vulkan 1.2.170.

Q: What are the transistor counts for each GPU?

A: The RX 7600S has 13,300 million transistors on a 6 nm process, while the HD 7970M has 2,800 million transistors on a 28 nm process.

Architecture Differences

The architectural gap between these two GPUs is stark. The HD 7970M uses the Wimbledon chip, built on GCN 1.0 architecture, a design that debuted in 2012. It is fabricated on a 28 nm process at TSMC, with 2,800 million transistors packed into a 212 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 13.2M / mm². In contrast, the RX 7600S uses the Navi 33 chip, based on RDNA 3.0 architecture, and is built on a 6 nm process, also at TSMC. It crams 13,300 million transistors into a slightly smaller 204 mm² die, achieving a density of 65.2M / mm²—nearly five times higher.

The clock speeds tell a similar story. The HD 7970M has no listed base or boost clock, but its memory runs at 1200 MHz (4.8 Gbps effective). The RX 7600S, by contrast, has a base clock of 1500 MHz, a boost clock of 2200 MHz, and a game clock of 1865 MHz. Its memory runs at 2000 MHz (16 Gbps effective). This higher frequency, combined with more cores, drives the massive performance delta.

Feature-wise, the RX 7600S includes 28 ray tracing cores, a technology entirely absent from the HD 7970M. The newer card also supports DirectX 12 Ultimate, while the older one is limited to DirectX 12 (11_1). The RX 7600S uses a PCIe 4.0 x16 interface, whereas the HD 7970M relies on the older MXM-B (3.0) bus. The RX 7600S is also classified as an IGP, while the HD 7970M is an MXM module, reflecting different design philosophies for mobile integration. The HD 7970M's generation is listed as "London (HD 7900M)," while the RX 7600S belongs to "Navi Mobile (RX 7000M)," with a codename of "Hotpink Bonefish." These differences explain why the RX 7600S achieves 15.77 TFLOPS FP32 and 31.54 TFLOPS FP16 (2:1), versus the HD 7970M's 2.176 TFLOPS FP32.