AMD Radeon RX 570 vs AMD Radeon RX 7800M Comparison

The AMD Radeon RX 570 and AMD Radeon RX 7800M represent two distinct eras of AMD mobile graphics, separated by a generational chasm in architecture and design philosophy. The data reveals a stark performance hierarchy, with the newer RX 7800M dominating every shared benchmark, yet the older RX 570 holds its own in the broader context of its release period. This analysis compares the two based solely on the provided benchmark results and technical specifications.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The head-to-head data is unambiguous: the RX 7800M wins all three shared tests, often by a commanding margin. In the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test, the RX 7800M scores 2994, a figure that is 70.6% higher than the RX 570’s 880. This is not a marginal improvement; it represents a fundamental leap in raw graphical throughput for modern DirectX 12 workloads.

The gap widens further in compute-oriented benchmarks. In Geekbench OpenCL, the RX 7800M posts 120778 points against the RX 570’s 32084, a delta of 73.4% in favor of the newer card. The Vulkan result tells a similar story, with the RX 7800M achieving 126668 points compared to the RX 570’s 42752, a 66.2% advantage. These deltas indicate that the RX 7800M is not merely faster; it is in a different performance class for both graphics and general-purpose compute tasks as measured by these specific tests.

The RX 570’s average benchmark score of 28766 places it within a tight competitive cluster. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX 6800M, scores 28874, a delta of just -0.4%, meaning the RX 570 is essentially performance-equivalent to that mobile flagship from a later generation. The RX 7800M’s average score of 27883, while lower than the RX 570’s average, is misleading because it includes a wider variety of tests, including Passmark DX9 and G2D scores that drag its average down. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 20, scores 27839, a delta of only 0.2%, showing the RX 7800M is similarly tightly grouped with its direct competitors.

Architecture Differences

The fundamental difference lies in the silicon. The RX 570 uses the Polaris 20 chip based on the GCN 4.0 architecture, built on a 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries. It houses 5,700 million transistors on a 232 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 24.6M per mm². In contrast, the RX 7800M uses the Navi 32 chip with the RDNA 3.0 architecture, fabricated by TSMC on a 5 nm process. This newer chip packs 28,100 million transistors into a 346 mm² die, achieving a density of 81.2M per mm². The data implies a massive efficiency and complexity advantage for the RDNA 3.0 part.

Clock speeds reflect the architectural maturity. The RX 570 has a base clock of 1168 MHz and a boost of 1244 MHz. The RX 7800M starts at a higher 1295 MHz base, but its boost reaches 2335 MHz, with a game clock rated at 2145 MHz. This nearly 90% higher boost clock is a primary driver of its performance lead. Memory technology also diverges sharply: the RX 570 uses 4 GB of GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus, delivering 224.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The RX 7800M uses 12 GB of GDDR6 on a 192-bit bus, yet achieves 432.0 GB/s due to a much higher effective memory clock of 18 Gbps versus 7 Gbps. The RX 7800M also features 60 ray tracing cores, a capability entirely absent from the RX 570, and supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) compared to the RX 570’s DirectX 12 (12_0).

Where Each One Wins

Based on the data, the RX 7800M wins decisively in every measured category. Its 3DMark Steel Nomad score of 2994 indicates superior performance in modern, graphics-intensive DirectX 12 games. Its Geekbench Vulkan and OpenCL scores of 126668 and 120778, respectively, show a clear advantage in cross-platform rendering APIs and compute workloads. The RX 7800M’s 60 ray tracing cores and DirectX 12 Ultimate support give it a feature set for future titles that the RX 570 cannot match.

The RX 570’s wins are contextual rather than direct. Its average benchmark score of 28766 is actually higher than the RX 7800M’s 27883, a quirk driven by the RX 7800M’s inclusion of low-scoring Passmark DirectX 10 and DirectX 9 tests (99 and 174, respectively). While the RX 7800M still wins the DirectX 11 test with 176 versus the RX 570’s unspecified score, the RX 570’s 74th percentile versus the RX 7800M’s 73rd percentile suggests that, in the broader database of all GPUs, the older card is not as obsolete as the head-to-head deltas imply. The RX 570 also has a lower TDP of 150 W versus 180 W, making it a potentially more power-conscious choice for older systems.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU is faster in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 7800M is substantially faster, scoring 2994 compared to the RX 570’s 880, a difference of 70.6% in favor of the RX 7800M.

Q: How do the two compare in Geekbench Vulkan performance?

A: The RX 7800M leads significantly, with a score of 126668 versus the RX 570’s 42752. This represents a 66.2% higher score for the RX 7800M.

Q: Does the RX 570 have any ray tracing hardware?

A: No. The RX 570 has no ray tracing cores (rtCores: null), while the RX 7800M is equipped with 60 ray tracing cores.

Q: What are the memory specifications of each card?

A: The RX 570 has 4 GB of GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus with 224.0 GB/s bandwidth. The RX 7800M has 12 GB of GDDR6 on a 192-bit bus with 432.0 GB/s bandwidth.

Q: Which GPU has a higher average benchmark score?

A: The RX 570 has a higher average score of 28766, compared to the RX 7800M’s 27883. However, this is influenced by the RX 7800M’s inclusion of a broader set of Passmark tests in its average.

Q: What is the process node difference between the two?

A: The RX 570 is built on a 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries, while the RX 7800M is built on TSMC’s 5 nm process.

Specification Differences

The specification sheet highlights the generational gap. The RX 570 uses the GCN 4.0 architecture, while the RX 7800M uses RDNA 3.0. The RX 570 has 2048 shading units, 128 TMUs, and 32 ROPs; the RX 7800M more than doubles those figures with 3840 shading units, 240 TMUs, and 96 ROPs. Pixel rate jumps from 39.81 GPixel/s on the RX 570 to 224.2 GPixel/s on the RX 7800M, and texture rate rises from 159.2 GTexel/s to 560.4 GTexel/s. FP32 compute increases from 5.095 TFLOPS on the RX 570 to 35.87 TFLOPS on the RX 7800M.

The RX 7800M also uses a PCIe 4.0 x16 interface versus the RX 570’s PCIe 3.0 x16, and its display outputs are listed as "Portable Device Dependent" versus the RX 570’s fixed set of 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 2.0b, and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a. The RX 7800M is designated as an IGP (integrated graphics processor) with no power connectors and no suggested PSU, while the RX 570 is a dual-slot card requiring a 1x 6-pin power connector and a 450 W PSU. The RX 7800M supports Vulkan 1.4, while the RX 570 supports Vulkan 1.3. Finally, the RX 570 has a launch MSRP of 169 USD, while the RX 7800M has no launch MSRP listed.

The Verdict

The data is clear: for any modern workload, the AMD Radeon RX 7800M is the superior choice. Its performance in DirectX 12, Vulkan, and OpenCL is categorically higher, and its hardware ray tracing support and DirectX 12 Ultimate API compatibility position it for games and applications that will never run properly on the RX 570. The RX 7800M’s higher boost clock, larger memory pool, and doubled bandwidth make it the only sensible option for gaming at higher resolutions or with ray tracing enabled.

The RX 570, however, is not without a niche. Its higher average benchmark score and superior 74th percentile ranking suggest it holds up well against a wide range of GPUs, and its lower 150 W TDP makes it a more power-efficient choice for legacy systems where the RX 7800M’s 180 W TDP and IGP form factor may not be compatible. But the head-to-head data is damning: zero wins for the RX 570. For users building a new system or upgrading for current games, the RX 7800M is the unequivocal winner. The RX 570 is a relic of a different era, best suited for budget-conscious builds that prioritize low power draw over raw performance.