AMD Radeon R9 M290X vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 Mobile Comparison

The AMD Radeon R9 M290X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 Mobile represent two distinct eras of mobile graphics, separated by over a decade of architectural evolution. The data reveals a stark generational chasm, with the RTX 5060 Mobile delivering a transformative performance leap, yet the older R9 M290X still holds a place in the historical benchmark database. This analysis pits the 2014-era GCN 1.0 chip against the 2025 Blackwell 2.0 part, using only the provided benchmark scores and specifications to quantify their respective positions.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The single direct comparison available in the data is the Geekbench OpenCL test, and the result is overwhelmingly one-sided. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 Mobile scores 96,969 points, while the AMD Radeon R9 M290X manages only 22,028 points. This translates to a deltaPct of -77.3% for the AMD part, meaning the RTX 5060 Mobile is approximately 4.4 times faster in this compute-oriented workload. The margin is not incremental; it is a complete rout that underscores the fundamental progress in raw compute throughput over the intervening years.

Looking at the broader average benchmark scores, the disparity persists, though with a slightly different perspective. The R9 M290X has an average benchmark score of 23,276, which places it at the 68th percentile of all GPUs. The RTX 5060 Mobile, despite its massive OpenCL win, has an average score of 22,435, landing at the 67th percentile. This apparent contradiction is explained by the benchmark suite composition. The RTX 5060 Mobile’s average is dragged down by its low scores in older DirectX tests (e.g., Passmark DirectX 9 at 203 and DirectX 10 at 119), which are legacy workloads where the modern architecture does not excel. Conversely, the R9 M290X’s average is based solely on its two Geekbench scores (OpenCL and Metal), which are more favorable to its GCN design.

This divergence is critical for interpretation. In a modern, compute-heavy API like OpenCL, the RTX 5060 Mobile is in a different league. However, its average score suggests that its performance is heavily workload-dependent, excelling in modern scenarios while lagging in older, legacy rasterization tests. The R9 M290X, on the other hand, shows a more consistent, if lower, performance profile across the tests it was subjected to. The data implies that the RTX 5060 Mobile’s strengths are not universal across all benchmark types, a nuance that a simple score comparison would miss.

Architecture Differences

The architectural gap between these two GPUs is vast, beginning with the manufacturing process. The R9 M290X is built on a 28 nm TSMC node, while the RTX 5060 Mobile uses a 5 nm TSMC process. This node shrink is a primary driver of the performance and efficiency differences. The transistor count tells a similar story: the R9 M290X packs 2,800 million transistors on a 212 mm² die, resulting in a transistor density of 13.2 million per mm². In contrast, the RTX 5060 Mobile integrates 21,900 million transistors on a smaller 181 mm² die, achieving a density of 121.0 million per mm². This is a nine-fold increase in density, enabling far more complex logic in a smaller physical footprint.

The core configurations are fundamentally different. The R9 M290X, based on the GCN 1.0 architecture with the Neptune chip, features 1280 shading units, 80 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. It has no dedicated ray tracing or tensor cores. The RTX 5060 Mobile, built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture with the GB206 chip, is a much larger design with 3328 shading units, 104 TMUs, and 48 ROPs. Critically, it introduces 26 ray tracing cores and 104 tensor cores, features that are entirely absent from the older AMD part. This represents a fundamental shift in GPU design from a pure rasterizer to a more versatile processor for AI and real-time ray tracing.

The memory subsystems also reflect their respective eras. The R9 M290X uses 4 GB of GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus, yielding a bandwidth of 153.6 GB/s. The RTX 5060 Mobile uses 8 GB of GDDR7 on a 128-bit bus, but achieves a significantly higher bandwidth of 384.0 GB/s thanks to faster memory clocks. The newer card’s higher bandwidth, despite the narrower bus, confirms the advancements in memory technology. Furthermore, the API support diverges sharply, with the R9 M290X supporting DirectX 12 (11_1) and Vulkan 1.2.170, while the RTX 5060 Mobile supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) and Vulkan 1.4, making it ready for the latest graphics features.

Where Each One Wins

Based on the benchmark data, the RTX 5060 Mobile is the clear winner in modern, compute-intensive workloads. Its 96,969 OpenCL score versus the R9 M290X’s 22,028 shows a 77.3% advantage, making it the obvious choice for tasks that leverage general-purpose GPU computing, such as scientific simulations, video encoding, and AI inference. The presence of tensor cores further suggests a massive advantage in AI-specific applications, though no direct benchmark is provided. The RTX 5060 Mobile’s higher pixel rate (69.84 GPixel/s vs 28.80 GPixel/s) and texture rate (151.3 GTexel/s vs 72.00 GTexel/s) also indicate superior performance in modern, high-fidelity gaming scenarios that demand high fill rates.

The R9 M290X’s wins are more nuanced and are not reflected in a head-to-head score. Its 68th percentile ranking versus the RTX 5060 Mobile’s 67th percentile suggests that in the aggregate of all its benchmark scores, it performs relatively better against the entire GPU population. This is likely because its average score is inflated by its strong Geekbench Metal performance (24,524), a test that the RTX 5060 Mobile does not have a recorded score for. Furthermore, its higher average score than the RTX 5060 Mobile (23,276 vs 22,435) implies that in legacy or mixed workloads, the older card might not be as severely disadvantaged. For users running older DirectX 9 or 10 applications, the RTX 5060 Mobile’s Passmark scores (203 and 119, respectively) suggest poor optimization, whereas the R9 M290X, with its older architecture, may be more proficient in those specific legacy scenarios, though no comparable score is provided for the AMD card.

Specification Differences

The two cards differ across nearly every specification field. The process node is 28 nm for the R9 M290X versus 5 nm for the RTX 5060 Mobile. The transistor count is 2,800 million versus 21,900 million, and the die size is 212 mm² versus 181 mm². Clock speeds differ significantly: the R9 M290X has a base clock of 850 MHz and a boost of 900 MHz, while the RTX 5060 Mobile has a base of 952 MHz and a boost of 1455 MHz. Memory configurations are different: 4 GB GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus versus 8 GB GDDR7 on a 128-bit bus. The bandwidth is 153.6 GB/s versus 384.0 GB/s.

The core counts show the RTX 5060 Mobile’s advantage: 3328 shading units versus 1280, 104 TMUs versus 80, and 48 ROPs versus 32. The RTX 5060 Mobile also has 26 ray tracing cores and 104 tensor cores, which the R9 M290X lacks entirely. The TDP is also lower for the newer card, at 45 W versus 100 W for the AMD part, despite its higher performance. The bus interface has evolved from PCIe 3.0 x16 to PCIe 5.0 x16. The production status is "End-of-life" for the R9 M290X and "Active" for the RTX 5060 Mobile. Their release dates are 2014-01-08 and 2025-05-19, respectively.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU is faster in the Geekbench OpenCL test?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 Mobile is significantly faster, scoring 96,969 compared to the AMD Radeon R9 M290X’s 22,028, a delta of -77.3% for the AMD card.

Q: What is the difference in shading unit count?

A: The RTX 5060 Mobile has 3328 shading units, while the R9 M290X has 1280. This represents a 2.6x increase in shading units for the newer NVIDIA part.

Q: Does the RTX 5060 Mobile support ray tracing?

A: Yes, the RTX 5060 Mobile has 26 dedicated ray tracing cores. The R9 M290X has none.

Q: How does the memory bandwidth compare between the two?

A: The RTX 5060 Mobile offers a bandwidth of 384.0 GB/s with 8 GB of GDDR7 on a 128-bit bus. The R9 M290X provides 153.6 GB/s with 4 GB of GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus.

Q: What is the TDP difference?

A: The R9 M290X has a TDP of 100 W, while the RTX 5060 Mobile has a lower TDP of 45 W.

Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Radeon R9 M290X has a higher average benchmark score of 23,276, compared to the RTX 5060 Mobile’s 22,435, despite the latter’s massive win in the OpenCL test.

The Verdict

The data is unambiguous for modern workloads: the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 Mobile is the superior product. Its 77.3% lead in OpenCL performance, combined with its support for DirectX 12 Ultimate, ray tracing cores, and tensor cores, makes it the definitive choice for any contemporary gaming, creative, or compute task. The RTX 5060 Mobile’s lower TDP (45 W vs 100 W) and support for PCIe 5.0 also indicate a more efficient and future-proof platform. The benchmark results show it is in a completely different performance class.

The AMD Radeon R9 M290X, however, is not without a place in the data. Its higher average benchmark score and 68th percentile ranking suggest that in a specific set of legacy benchmarks, it can hold its own relative to the broader GPU landscape. For a user constrained to older software that does not leverage modern APIs or features, the R9 M290X may not be the bottleneck one might expect. The data shows it as a historical data point, a capable GPU for its time, but one that is now firmly end-of-life. For anyone building or buying a system today, the choice is clear: the RTX 5060 Mobile’s architectural advantages and benchmark dominance make it the only logical selection from this comparison.