AMD Radeon Instinct MI25 vs AMD Radeon RX 7600M Comparison

AMD Radeon Instinct MI25 vs. AMD Radeon RX 7600M is a clash of two very different AMD philosophies: a data-center compute monster from the GCN era against a modern, power-sipping mobile gaming chip. The benchmark data shows a clear, if narrow, victory for the older card in raw compute, but the story is far more nuanced when you consider the architectures and target use cases. The Instinct MI25 edges out the RX 7600M in the single available OpenCL benchmark, but the RX 7600M counters with a dramatically more efficient design and modern feature set.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only direct benchmark comparison available is Geekbench OpenCL, and it favors the AMD Radeon Instinct MI25. The MI25 scores 68,562 points, while the RX 7600M scores 63,775 points. That is a 7.5% lead for the Instinct card, a solid margin but not a knockout blow. In the context of their nearest rivals, both cards sit in a similar performance tier. The MI25 is only 0.4% behind the Intel Arc A770 (68,809) and 0.6% behind the NVIDIA CMP 90HX (69,000). It also trails the AMD Radeon Pro WX 8200 (69,870) by 1.9% and the NVIDIA Quadro P6000 (69,986) by 2%. This places the MI25 at the 90th percentile of all GPUs, indicating it still trades blows with modern mid-range and older high-end parts.

The RX 7600M, despite losing the head-to-head, is remarkably close in absolute terms. Its 63,775 score puts it at the 89th percentile, just one point below the AMD Radeon RX 9060 XT LP (63,830, -0.1%) and the NVIDIA CMP 30HX (63,842, -0.1%). It is actually 0.1% ahead of the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 56 (63,693) and 0.7% behind the AMD Radeon Pro WX 9100 (64,212). The delta between the two cards in this test — 7.5% — is smaller than the generational gap would suggest. What is more telling is how each card achieves its score. The MI25 does so with a 300W power draw and 4096 shading units, while the RX 7600M uses just 90W and 1792 shading units. The efficiency difference is stark, but on pure score output, the older card wins.

Where Each One Wins

The AMD Radeon Instinct MI25 wins where raw compute throughput is the sole criterion. Its 12.29 TFLOPS of FP32 performance and 24.58 TFLOPS of FP16 (2:1) performance are substantial, and its 436.2 GB/s of memory bandwidth from 16 GB of HBM2 on a 2048-bit bus gives it a massive data-feeding advantage. This makes it suited for compute workloads that are memory-bandwidth-bound, such as large matrix operations or scientific simulations. Its dual-slot design and 2x 8-pin power connectors also indicate it is built for a workstation or server chassis where space and power are available. The 300W TDP and 700W suggested PSU requirement reinforce that this is not a drop-in consumer part.

The AMD Radeon RX 7600M wins on efficiency and modern feature support. Its 90W TDP is a fraction of the MI25’s power draw, making it viable for laptops and compact systems where thermal and power budgets are tight. Its boost clock of 2410 MHz (with a 2070 MHz game clock) is significantly higher than the MI25’s 1500 MHz boost, which helps it achieve 17.27 TFLOPS of FP32 compute despite having fewer than half the shading units. It also supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) and Vulkan 1.4, while the MI25 is limited to DirectX 12 (12_1) and Vulkan 1.3. For gaming and modern graphics workloads, the RX 7600M’s 28 ray tracing cores are a clear advantage, as the MI25 has no ray tracing hardware at all. The RX 7600M also has a higher pixel rate (154.2 GPixel/s vs. 96.00 GPixel/s), making it better suited for rasterization-heavy tasks.

Architecture Differences

The two cards represent completely different eras of AMD GPU design. The Instinct MI25 is built on the Vega 10 chip using the GCN 5.0 architecture, fabricated on a 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries. This is a massive die at 495 mm², housing 12,500 million transistors for a density of 25.3 million transistors per mm². It features 4096 shading units, 256 texture mapping units, and 64 ROPs. Its memory subsystem is HBM2 with 16 GB on a 2048-bit bus, yielding 436.2 GB/s of bandwidth. The card is PCIe 3.0 x16 and has no display outputs, confirming its compute-only role.

The RX 7600M uses the Navi 33 chip with the RDNA 3.0 architecture, codenamed "Hotpink Bonefish," and is manufactured on a 6 nm process at TSMC. The die is much smaller at 204 mm², yet it packs 13,300 million transistors, giving a density of 65.2 million transistors per mm² — more than 2.5 times higher than the MI25. It has 1792 shading units, 112 TMUs, and 64 ROPs, plus 28 ray tracing cores. Memory is 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus, delivering 256.0 GB/s. The RX 7600M uses PCIe 4.0 x16, doubles the interface bandwidth of the older card. The RX 7600M also supports DirectX 12 Ultimate and Vulkan 1.4, whereas the MI25 caps out at DirectX 12 (12_1) and Vulkan 1.3. The RX 7600M is an integrated graphics package (IGP) with no power connectors, relying on the system’s power delivery, while the MI25 requires dedicated 2x 8-pin connectors.

The Verdict

From the data, the AMD Radeon Instinct MI25 is the pick if raw compute performance and memory bandwidth are the only things that matter, and if you have the power and cooling overhead to accommodate a 300W card. Its 7.5% lead in OpenCL benchmarks and its higher FP32/FP16 throughput make it a viable option for compute tasks that do not require modern graphics features. However, its end-of-life production status and lack of display outputs limit its appeal to legacy server or workstation deployments.

The AMD Radeon RX 7600M is the better choice for almost everyone else. It delivers 90% of the MI25’s compute performance (63,775 vs. 68,562) while drawing only 30% of the power (90W vs. 300W). It is an active product, supports the latest DirectX 12 Ultimate and Vulkan 1.4 APIs, and includes ray tracing hardware. Its higher pixel rate and modern architecture make it more suitable for gaming and real-time graphics, and its portable device-dependent display outputs mean it is designed for mobile integration. For a builder prioritizing efficiency, modern features, and longevity, the RX 7600M is the clear winner. For a compute-focused system with no power constraints, the MI25 still has merit, but the data suggests it is a niche part.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has a higher Geekbench OpenCL score?

A: The AMD Radeon Instinct MI25 scores 68,562, which is 7.5% higher than the AMD Radeon RX 7600M’s 63,775.

Q: How does the power consumption compare between the two cards?

A: The MI25 has a 300W TDP, while the RX 7600M is rated at just 90W. The RX 7600M also requires no power connectors, while the MI25 needs 2x 8-pin connectors and a 700W suggested PSU.

Q: Does the RX 7600M support ray tracing?

A: Yes, the RX 7600M has 28 ray tracing cores. The MI25 has no ray tracing cores listed in its specifications.

Q: What are the memory configurations?

A: The MI25 has 16 GB of HBM2 on a 2048-bit bus with 436.2 GB/s bandwidth. The RX 7600M has 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus with 256.0 GB/s bandwidth.

Q: Which card supports a newer PCIe interface?

A: The RX 7600M uses PCIe 4.0 x16, while the MI25 is limited to PCIe 3.0 x16.

Q: What is the production status of each card?

A: The MI25 is end-of-life, released on 2017-06-26, while the RX 7600M is active, released on 2023-01-03.

Specification Differences

| Field | AMD Radeon Instinct MI25 | AMD Radeon RX 7600M |

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

| Architecture | GCN 5.0 | RDNA 3.0 |

| Process Node | 14 nm | 6 nm |

| Foundry | GlobalFoundries | TSMC |

| Transistors | 12,500 million | 13,300 million |

| Die Size | 495 mm² | 204 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 25.3M / mm² | 65.2M / mm² |

| Base Clock | 1400 MHz | 1500 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 1500 MHz | 2410 MHz |

| Game Clock | — | 2070 MHz |

| Memory Clock | 852 MHz (1704 Mbps effective) | 2000 MHz (16 Gbps effective) |

| Memory Size | 16 GB | 8 GB |

| Memory Type | HBM2 | GDDR6 |

| Memory Bus Width | 2048 bit | 128 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | 436.2 GB/s | 256.0 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 4096 | 1792 |

| TMUs | 256 | 112 |

| ROPs | 64 | 64 |

| RT Cores | — | 28 |

| Pixel Rate | 96.00 GPixel/s | 154.2 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 384.0 GTexel/s | 269.9 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 12.29 TFLOPS | 17.27 TFLOPS |

| FP16 | 24.58 TFLOPS (2:1) | 34.55 TFLOPS (2:1) |

| TDP | 300 W | 90 W |

| Slot Width | Dual-slot | IGP |

| Power Connectors | 2x 8-pin | None |

| Suggested PSU | 700 W | — |

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

| Display Outputs | No outputs | Portable Device Dependent |

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

| Vulkan Support | 1.3 | 1.4 |

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

| Release Date | 2017-06-26 | 2023-01-03 |