AMD Radeon HD 8970M vs NVIDIA RTX A4000 Mobile Comparison

The NVIDIA RTX A4000 Mobile and AMD Radeon HD 8970M sit at the same 66th percentile of all GPUs, yet they represent entirely different eras of mobile graphics. The data shows a single head-to-head benchmark, Geekbench OpenCL, where the NVIDIA part delivers a 357.6% higher score. However, the AMD card matches the NVIDIA GPU in average benchmark score, coming within 0.7%. This creates an unusual situation where a modern professional mobile GPU and a decade-old gaming part occupy the same performance tier in aggregate, despite their stark architectural differences.

Where Each One Wins

The NVIDIA RTX A4000 Mobile wins the only direct benchmark comparison available. In Geekbench OpenCL, it scores 97,178 against the AMD Radeon HD 8970M’s 21,237, a 357.6% advantage. This is a compute-oriented workload that heavily favors the NVIDIA architecture’s modern feature set and raw throughput. The NVIDIA GPU also holds wins in every other benchmark category listed in its own profile, including Passmark DirectX 9 (157), DirectX 10 (105), DirectX 11 (127), DirectX 12 (66), G2D (585), G3D (14,796), and GPU compute (6,394).

The AMD Radeon HD 8970M has no benchmark wins in the provided data. Its only listed benchmark is the same Geekbench OpenCL test, where it loses decisively. However, the AMD card’s average benchmark score of 21,237 places it within 0.7% of the NVIDIA RTX A4000 Mobile’s average of 21,379. This aggregate metric suggests that in a broader suite of tests, the two GPUs would trade blows or land at similar overall performance levels, even though the single available comparison shows a massive NVIDIA victory. The AMD part’s nearest rival list shows it within 1.8% of the NVIDIA Quadro RTX 5000 (21,629) and 1.0% of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 (21,035), indicating it still competes with much newer hardware in overall scoring.

Architecture Differences

The NVIDIA RTX A4000 Mobile uses the GA104 chip built on Ampere architecture, fabricated on an 8 nm process at Samsung. It packs 17,400 million transistors into a 392 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 44.4 million per square millimeter. The AMD Radeon HD 8970M uses the Neptune chip with GCN 1.0 architecture, built on TSMC’s 28 nm process. It contains 2,800 million transistors on a 212 mm² die, with a density of 13.2 million per square millimeter. The NVIDIA GPU has over six times the transistor count and nearly double the die area.

Memory configurations differ substantially. The RTX A4000 Mobile offers 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus with 384.0 GB/s bandwidth. The HD 8970M has 4 GB of GDDR5 on the same 256-bit bus but only 153.6 GB/s bandwidth. Clock speeds favor the NVIDIA part: its base clock is 1140 MHz with a 1680 MHz boost, while the AMD card runs at 850 MHz base and 900 MHz boost. Memory clocks also differ, with NVIDIA at 1500 MHz (12 Gbps effective) versus AMD at 1200 MHz (4.8 Gbps effective).

The compute resources are drastically different. The RTX A4000 Mobile has 5,120 shading units, 160 TMUs, 80 ROPs, 40 RT cores, and 160 tensor cores. The HD 8970M has 1,280 shading units, 80 TMUs, and 32 ROPs, with no RT or tensor cores. This translates to a peak FP32 throughput of 17.20 TFLOPS for NVIDIA versus 2.304 TFLOPS for AMD. The NVIDIA GPU also supports FP16 at 17.20 TFLOPS (1:1 ratio), while the AMD card has no listed FP16 capability. Pixel rates are 134.4 GPixel/s versus 28.80 GPixel/s, and texture rates are 268.8 GTexel/s versus 72.00 GTexel/s.

The bus interface differs as well: the RTX A4000 Mobile uses PCIe 4.0 x16, while the HD 8970M uses PCIe 3.0 x16. The AMD card is an MXM Module form factor, while the NVIDIA GPU has no listed slot width. Power consumption is 115 W for NVIDIA and 100 W for AMD. API support shows NVIDIA with DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. AMD offers DirectX 12 (11_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.170.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The sole head-to-head benchmark is Geekbench OpenCL, and the result is lopsided. The NVIDIA RTX A4000 Mobile scores 97,178, which is 357.6% higher than the AMD Radeon HD 8970M’s 21,237. This is a compute benchmark that exercises general GPU compute workloads, not gaming or graphics-specific tasks. The NVIDIA GPU’s advantage here likely stems from its 7.5x higher FP32 throughput (17.20 TFLOPS versus 2.304 TFLOPS), its tensor cores for accelerated compute, and its much higher memory bandwidth of 384.0 GB/s versus 153.6 GB/s.

Looking at the average benchmark scores provides context. The RTX A4000 Mobile averages 21,379 across its nine listed benchmarks, while the HD 8970M averages 21,237 from its single test. This 0.7% difference favors NVIDIA, but it is within noise. The AMD card’s single score happens to equal its average, which means the Geekbench OpenCL result is its only data point. This makes direct comparison tricky: the NVIDIA GPU’s average includes many different workloads (DirectX 9 through 12, G2D, G3D, compute), while the AMD card’s average reflects only OpenCL performance.

The nearest rival data reinforces that these GPUs are close in aggregate. The RTX A4000 Mobile’s rivals include the AMD Radeon HD 8970M at 21,237 (0.7% lower), the AMD Radeon RX Vega M GL at 21,153 (1.1% lower), the NVIDIA Quadro RTX 5000 at 21,629 (1.2% higher), and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 at 21,035 (1.6% lower). The HD 8970M’s rivals include the RX Vega M GL at 21,153 (0.4% lower), the RTX A4000 Mobile at 21,379 (0.7% higher), the RTX 5050 at 21,035 (1.0% lower), and the Quadro RTX 5000 at 21,629 (1.8% higher). Both GPUs sit in a tight cluster where the spread from lowest to highest is only about 3%.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The NVIDIA RTX A4000 Mobile averages 21,379, which is 0.7% higher than the AMD Radeon HD 8970M’s 21,237.

Q: What is the biggest performance gap between the two GPUs?

A: In Geekbench OpenCL, the RTX A4000 Mobile scores 97,178 versus 21,237 for the HD 8970M, a 357.6% difference.

Q: How do the memory bandwidths compare?

A: The RTX A4000 Mobile has 384.0 GB/s bandwidth from 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus. The HD 8970M has 153.6 GB/s from 4 GB of GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus.

Q: Do both GPUs support ray tracing?

A: No. The RTX A4000 Mobile has 40 RT cores and 160 tensor cores. The HD 8970M has no RT cores and no tensor cores.

Q: What is the transistor density of each chip?

A: The RTX A4000 Mobile’s GA104 chip has a density of 44.4 million transistors per square millimeter. The HD 8970M’s Neptune chip has 13.2 million per square millimeter.

Q: Which GPU supports newer PCIe technology?

A: The RTX A4000 Mobile uses PCIe 4.0 x16, while the HD 8970M uses PCIe 3.0 x16.

The Verdict

The data supports choosing the NVIDIA RTX A4000 Mobile for compute-heavy workloads. Its Geekbench OpenCL score is 357.6% higher than the AMD Radeon HD 8970M, and it offers 17.20 TFLOPS FP32 performance versus 2.304 TFLOPS. For tasks that leverage OpenCL compute, tensor cores, or ray tracing, the NVIDIA GPU is clearly superior in the single available comparison.

The AMD Radeon HD 8970M remains competitive in aggregate scoring. Its average benchmark score of 21,237 is within 0.7% of the RTX A4000 Mobile’s 21,379, despite its much older architecture. This suggests that in a broader benchmark suite, the AMD card could match the NVIDIA GPU in overall performance, though the only direct data point shows a massive NVIDIA win. The AMD part also draws less power at 100 W versus 115 W and uses a smaller die (212 mm² versus 392 mm²), which may be relevant for thermal or physical constraints in mobile designs.

Users who prioritize raw compute performance, modern API support (DirectX 12 Ultimate, Vulkan 1.4), larger memory capacity (8 GB versus 4 GB), and higher bandwidth should select the RTX A4000 Mobile. Users who need a lower-power, smaller-die solution and can accept older API support (DirectX 12 at 11_1, Vulkan 1.2.170) might find the HD 8970M adequate, especially given its near-identical average benchmark score. However, the HD 8970M’s single benchmark result provides limited confidence in its broader performance profile.

Specification Differences

| Specification | NVIDIA RTX A4000 Mobile | AMD Radeon HD 8970M |

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

| Chip | GA104 | Neptune |

| Architecture | Ampere | GCN 1.0 |

| Process Node | 8 nm | 28 nm |

| Foundry | Samsung | TSMC |

| Transistors | 17,400 million | 2,800 million |

| Die Size | 392 mm² | 212 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 44.4M / mm² | 13.2M / mm² |

| Base Clock | 1140 MHz | 850 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 1680 MHz | 900 MHz |

| Memory Clock | 1500 MHz (12 Gbps effective) | 1200 MHz (4.8 Gbps effective) |

| Memory Size | 8 GB | 4 GB |

| Memory Type | GDDR6 | GDDR5 |

| Memory Bus | 256 bit | 256 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | 384.0 GB/s | 153.6 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 5120 | 1280 |

| TMUs | 160 | 80 |

| ROPs | 80 | 32 |

| RT Cores | 40 | None |

| Tensor Cores | 160 | None |

| Pixel Rate | 134.4 GPixel/s | 28.80 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 268.8 GTexel/s | 72.00 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 17.20 TFLOPS | 2.304 TFLOPS |

| FP16 | 17.20 TFLOPS (1:1) | None |

| TDP | 115 W | 100 W |

| Slot Width | Not listed | MXM Module |

| Bus Interface | PCIe 4.0 x16 | PCIe 3.0 x16 |

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

| OpenGL | 4.6 | 4.6 |

| Vulkan | 1.4 | 1.2.170 |

| Release Date | 2021-04-11 | 2013-05-13 |

| Predecessor | Quadro Turing-M | London |

| Successor | Ada-MW | Gem System |