AMD Radeon Pro 5700 XT vs Intel Arc A770M Comparison

The AMD Radeon Pro 5700 XT and Intel Arc A770M represent two very different philosophies in mobile graphics, yet their aggregate performance scores land them within a whisper of each other. The AMD card averages 18,685 points across its benchmark suite, placing it in the 63rd percentile of all GPUs, while the Intel part averages 18,383 points, sitting in the 62nd percentile. That 302-point gap translates to a mere 1.6% difference in average score, making the choice between them far more nuanced than a simple winner-take-all verdict. The data reveals a fascinating split: the older RDNA 1.0 architecture wins on legacy and 2D workloads, while the newer Xe-HPG design dominates compute and modern API tests.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The most lopsided result in the comparison is in Geekbench OpenCL, where the Intel Arc A770M scores 89,494 against the Radeon Pro 5700 XT’s 59,467. That is a 33.6% margin in Intel’s favor, and it is the single largest delta in either direction across all nine head-to-head tests. The Arc A770M also takes Geekbench Vulkan with a score of 74,422 versus 56,593, a 24% advantage. These are not marginal wins; they are substantial generational leaps in raw throughput that suggest Intel’s architecture extracts far more from its hardware in compute-heavy, cross-platform APIs.

The AMD Radeon Pro 5700 XT answers back most forcefully in Passmark DirectX 10, where it scores 76 against Intel’s 56, a 35.7% victory. It also wins Passmark DirectX 11 by a 23.2% margin (85 vs 69) and Passmark GPU Compute by 21.1% (5,787 vs 4,778). The AMD card’s Passmark G3D score of 12,547 tops Intel’s 11,774 by 6.6%, and its Passmark G2D score of 810 beats Intel’s 711 by 13.9%. Intel, however, claims the remaining two tests: Passmark DirectX 12 (70 vs 59, a 15.7% win) and Passmark DirectX 9 (178 vs 153, a 14% win).

The final tally shows AMD winning five tests to Intel’s four, but the magnitude of Intel’s wins in OpenCL and Vulkan outweighs AMD’s narrower legacy advantages. The Passmark DirectX 9 result is particularly curious — Intel’s 178 is the highest single score in that test across both cards, suggesting the Xe-HPG architecture handles older fixed-function pipelines surprisingly well. Meanwhile, AMD’s DirectX 10 and 11 wins indicate its GCN-derived RDNA 1.0 design retains an edge in shader-bound scenarios that do not leverage newer hardware features.

Architecture Differences

The fundamental split begins with the process node: AMD’s Navi 10 chip is built on TSMC’s 7 nm process, while Intel’s DG2-512 uses the same foundry’s 6 nm node. That one-nanometer difference contributes to a stark transistor count disparity. The Intel die packs 21,700 million transistors across 406 mm², achieving a density of 53.4M per mm². The AMD chip holds 10,300 million transistors on a 251 mm² die, for a density of 41.0M per mm². Intel crams more than twice the transistors into a package that is 62% larger by area, and its density advantage of 30% reflects a more aggressive design philosophy.

The architectural lineage is equally divergent. AMD runs RDNA 1.0, which is the first iteration of its gaming-focused architecture, while Intel uses Xe-HPG under the Alchemist generation for Arc 7 Mobile. These are not incremental revisions; they are entirely separate design families with different priorities. The AMD card features 2,560 shading units, 160 texture mapping units, and 64 ROPs. The Intel card doubles down with 4,096 shading units, 256 TMUs, and 128 ROPs. The Intel part also includes 32 dedicated ray tracing cores — a feature completely absent from the AMD Navi 10 die. Neither card lists tensor cores, so AI acceleration is not a differentiator here.

The memory subsystems share a 16 GB GDDR6 configuration on a 256-bit bus, but the Intel card runs its memory at 2,000 MHz (16 Gbps effective) versus AMD’s 1,500 MHz (12 Gbps effective). That yields a bandwidth advantage of 512.0 GB/s for Intel against 384.0 GB/s for AMD — a 33% increase in raw memory throughput. The clock speeds tell a similar story: Intel’s base clock of 1,650 MHz and boost of 2,050 MHz both exceed AMD’s 1,243 MHz base and 1,499 MHz boost. These architectural choices cascade into peak rates: Intel’s pixel rate is 262.4 GPixel/s versus AMD’s 95.94 GPixel/s, and its texture rate is 524.8 GTexel/s versus 239.8 GTexel/s. In raw FP32, Intel reaches 16.79 TFLOPS, more than double AMD’s 7.675 TFLOPS.

FAQ

Q: Why does the Intel Arc A770M have a lower TDP despite being a larger and more powerful chip?

A: The Intel card is rated at 120 W, while the AMD Radeon Pro 5700 XT is rated at 130 W. This is notable because the Intel chip has nearly double the transistor count (21,700 million vs 10,300 million) and a higher boost clock (2,050 MHz vs 1,499 MHz), yet it consumes less power. The 6 nm process node and architectural efficiency of Xe-HPG appear to deliver more performance per watt in this configuration.

Q: Which card wins in raw compute benchmarks?

A: The Intel Arc A770M wins decisively in Geekbench OpenCL with 89,494 points versus AMD’s 59,467, a 33.6% advantage. It also wins Geekbench Vulkan with 74,422 versus 56,593, a 24% lead. However, AMD wins Passmark GPU Compute with 5,787 versus 4,778, a 21.1% margin, showing that the result depends heavily on the specific benchmark and its workload characteristics.

Q: Does the AMD card have any advantage in newer graphics API tests?

A: No. The Intel Arc A770M wins Passmark DirectX 12 (70 vs 59, a 15.7% margin) and supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), while the AMD card only supports DirectX 12 (12_1). Intel’s advantage in the most modern API test aligns with its architectural support for newer features.

Q: Which card has better 2D performance?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro 5700 XT wins Passmark G2D with a score of 810 against Intel’s 711, a 13.9% advantage. This is an interesting result because it suggests that 2D acceleration does not necessarily scale with transistor count or raw compute power, and AMD’s more mature driver stack may handle these workloads more efficiently.

Q: How do these cards compare to their nearest rivals in overall average score?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro 5700 XT’s average score of 18,685 places it 0.3% above the AMD Radeon RX 560X (18,626) and 0.8% above the AMD FirePro D500 (18,533), while sitting 0.6% below the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 (18,789). The Intel Arc A770M’s average of 18,383 is 0.1% above the AMD Radeon RX 460 (18,373) and 1.1% above the AMD Radeon Pro 5700 (18,189), but 0.8% below the FirePro D500.

Q: What is the production status of each card?

A: Both cards are listed as end-of-life. The AMD Radeon Pro 5700 XT has a release date of 2020-08-03, while the Intel Arc A770M has no release date listed in the data.

Specification Differences

The two cards differ across nearly every core specification. The process node differs (7 nm for AMD, 6 nm for Intel). Transistor count jumps from 10,300 million to 21,700 million, and die size from 251 mm² to 406 mm². Transistor density improves from 41.0M / mm² to 53.4M / mm². Clock speeds are uniformly higher on Intel: base clock of 1,650 MHz versus 1,243 MHz, boost clock of 2,050 MHz versus 1,499 MHz, and memory clock of 2,000 MHz versus 1,500 MHz. The memory bandwidth increases from 384.0 GB/s to 512.0 GB/s. Shading units rise from 2,560 to 4,096, TMUs from 160 to 256, and ROPs from 64 to 128. The Intel card adds 32 ray tracing cores, while the AMD card has none. Pixel rate increases from 95.94 GPixel/s to 262.4 GPixel/s, texture rate from 239.8 GTexel/s to 524.8 GTexel/s, FP32 from 7.675 TFLOPS to 16.79 TFLOPS, and FP16 from 15.35 TFLOPS to 33.59 TFLOPS. The TDP decreases from 130 W to 120 W. The AMD card has no display outputs, while the Intel card’s outputs are portable device dependent. DirectX support differs: AMD has 12 (12_1) while Intel has 12 Ultimate (12_2). The suggested PSU is listed as 300 W for AMD, while Intel has no suggested PSU listed. Power connectors are listed as “None” for AMD and null for Intel.

Where Each One Wins

The AMD Radeon Pro 5700 XT wins in five of nine head-to-head tests, and its victories cluster around legacy and 2D workloads. It takes Passmark DirectX 10, DirectX 11, G2D, G3D, and GPU Compute. This suggests the card is better suited for older software ecosystems, 2D desktop environments, and certain compute workloads that do not leverage the latest API features. Its higher Passmark G3D score of 12,547 indicates solid overall 3D performance in that benchmark suite. The AMD card also has a lower TDP relative to its die size, which may be advantageous in thermal-constrained mobile chassis.

The Intel Arc A770M wins in four tests, but they are the ones that matter for future-proofing: Geekbench OpenCL, Geekbench Vulkan, Passmark DirectX 12, and Passmark DirectX 9. The OpenCL and Vulkan wins are massive, at 33.6% and 24% respectively. The DirectX 12 win of 15.7% is significant because it represents the current and future direction of gaming APIs. The DirectX 9 win of 14% is a pleasant surprise for legacy compatibility. Intel’s support for DirectX 12 Ultimate and its 32 ray tracing cores make it the more forward-looking choice for developers and users who prioritize modern rendering paths.

The Verdict

The data paints a clear picture of two cards optimized for different eras. The AMD Radeon Pro 5700 XT, released on 2020-08-03, excels in Passmark’s DirectX 10 and 11 tests, where it beats Intel by 35.7% and 23.2% respectively. It also wins G2D by 13.9% and GPU Compute by 21.1%. Its average score of 18,685 is higher than Intel’s 18,383, and it sits closer to the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 in its nearest rivals list, trailing by just 0.6%. This is a card that delivers consistent, if not spectacular, performance across a broad range of traditional benchmarks.

The Intel Arc A770M, despite its lower average score, wins the tests that are most indicative of modern performance. Its 89,494 OpenCL score and 74,422 Vulkan score demonstrate a 33.6% and 24% advantage over AMD respectively. Its DirectX 12 win of 15.7% and DirectX 9 win of 14% show strength at both ends of the API spectrum. With 4,096 shading units, 32 ray tracing cores, and 512.0 GB/s of bandwidth, the Intel card has double the theoretical compute throughput of the AMD card in FP32 (16.79 TFLOPS vs 7.675 TFLOPS). For users running modern APIs, ray tracing workloads, or compute-heavy applications, the Arc A770M is the clear choice despite its lower aggregate score. For those relying on legacy DirectX 10/11 applications or prioritizing 2D performance, the Radeon Pro 5700 XT remains competitive. The 63rd percentile ranking for AMD versus 62nd for Intel reflects how close these two are in overall standing, but the underlying architecture differences suggest the Intel card will age better as software shifts further toward DirectX 12 and Vulkan.