AMD Radeon RX 6550M vs Intel Arc A310E Comparison

The Verdict

The AMD Radeon RX 6550M is the substantially stronger GPU in this comparison. The recorded data shows the RX 6550M delivers an average benchmark score of 46,702, placing it in the 85th percentile of all GPUs, while the Intel Arc A310E has no recorded benchmark scores and sits in the 50th percentile. The RX 6550M also shows a 5.816 TFLOPS FP32 throughput against 3.072 TFLOPS for the Arc A310E, giving AMD a 1.89x raw compute advantage. The RX 6550M is the pick for any workload that depends on raw graphics throughput, rasterization, or ray tracing, whereas the Arc A310E offers a smaller single-slot form factor, four DisplayPort outputs, and a wider PCIe bus interface for systems that need those specific traits.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 6550M has an average benchmark score of 46,702 across its recorded tests, while the Intel Arc A310E has no recorded benchmarks in the database, giving it an average score of 0.

Q: How do the two GPUs compare in raw FP32 compute?

A: The RX 6550M delivers 5.816 TFLOPS of FP32 performance, which is nearly double the Arc A310E's 3.072 TFLOPS. The RX 6550M also reaches 11.63 TFLOPS FP16 versus 6.144 TFLOPS for the Arc A310E.

Q: Do both GPUs use the same process node?

A: Yes, both are built on a 6 nm process at TSMC. However, the Arc A310E uses 7,200 million transistors on a 157 mm² die, while the RX 6550M uses 5,400 million transistors on a 107 mm² die.

Q: What memory configurations do they carry?

A: Both have 4 GB of GDDR6 on a 64-bit bus. The RX 6550M reaches 144.0 GB/s bandwidth with 18 Gbps effective memory speed, while the Arc A310E reaches 124.0 GB/s with 15.5 Gbps.

Q: Which GPU supports more display outputs?

A: The Intel Arc A310E provides 4x mini-DisplayPort 2.0 outputs, while the AMD Radeon RX 6550M's display outputs are listed as "Portable Device Dependent," meaning its outputs depend on the portable device design.

Q: What are the production statuses of these GPUs?

A: The RX 6550M is listed as Active, with a release date of January 3, 2023. The Arc A310E is End-of-life, with a release date of March 31, 2024, and its successor is listed as Battlemage.

Architecture Differences

The AMD Radeon RX 6550M is built on the RDNA 2.0 architecture using the Navi 24 chip, while the Intel Arc A310E uses the Xe-HPG architecture with the DG2-128 chip. Both are fabricated on a 6 nm process at TSMC, but the silicon differs significantly. The Intel chip carries 7,200 million transistors across a 157 mm² die, which is larger than AMD's 5,400 million transistors on a 107 mm² die. Consequently, the transistor density is higher on the AMD side at 50.5 million transistors per mm², versus 45.9 million for Intel.

The RX 6550M belongs to the Navi Mobile (RX 6000M) generation, while the Arc A310E belongs to the Alchemist (Arc 3) generation. The AMD part's predecessor is Polaris Mobile, and the Intel part's predecessor is Xe Graphics with Battlemage listed as its successor. The RX 6550M is still in active production, whereas the Arc A310E is end-of-life.

Both GPUs support DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4, so API feature coverage is effectively matched. The ray tracing implementation differs in scale: the RX 6550M packs 16 ray tracing cores, while the Arc A310E has only 6. Neither GPU includes tensor cores in the recorded data, and both list FP16 throughput at a 2:1 ratio relative to FP32.

Specification Differences

The core configuration diverges sharply. The RX 6550M has 1,024 shading units, 64 texture mapping units, and 32 render output units. The Arc A310E is smaller in every count: 768 shading units, 32 TMUs, and 16 ROPs. Clock behavior also differs. The RX 6550M has a base clock of 2000 MHz, a boost clock of 2840 MHz, and a game clock of 2560 MHz. The Arc A310E runs at a flat 2000 MHz for both base and boost, with no game clock listed.

Memory bandwidth favors AMD. The RX 6550M delivers 144.0 GB/s from 4 GB of GDDR6 on a 64-bit bus at 18 Gbps effective, while the Arc A310E manages 124.0 GB/s from the same 4 GB GDDR6 and 64-bit bus at 15.5 Gbps. The pixel and texture rates reflect the same pattern: the RX 6550M hits 90.88 GPixel/s and 181.8 GTexel/s, versus 32.00 GPixel/s and 64.00 GTexel/s for the Arc A310E.

Power and physical design differ as well. The RX 6550M is rated at 80 W TDP and uses an IGP slot width with no power connectors; its display outputs are portable-device dependent. The Arc A310E is rated at 75 W TDP, comes in a single-slot design measuring 168 mm by 69 mm by 20 mm, uses no power connectors, suggests a 250 W power supply, and offers 4x mini-DisplayPort 2.0 outputs. The bus interface also differs: the RX 6550M uses PCIe 4.0 x4, while the Arc A310E uses PCIe 4.0 x8.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The database has no direct head-to-head benchmark records for these two GPUs, and the Arc A310E has no standalone benchmark entries. The comparison therefore relies on the aggregate scores and the nearest-rival data recorded for the RX 6550M.

The RX 6550M's recorded benchmarks are a Geekbench OpenCL score of 42,536 and a Geekbench Vulkan score of 50,867, averaging 46,702. That average places it 0.2% ahead of the Intel Arc A530M, which scores 46,614, and 0.2% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 5600M at 46,601. The RX 6550M is 1.4% ahead of the NVIDIA RTX A2000 at 46,043 and 1.6% ahead of the NVIDIA RTX 5880 Ada Generation at 45,972. These margins are tight, indicating the RX 6550M sits in a crowded performance band, but it leads every one of its nearest rivals in the database.

The Arc A310E, by contrast, has no benchmark scores and no nearest rivals recorded. Its 50th percentile standing confirms it sits at the median of all GPUs, while the RX 6550M's 85th percentile places it well above the median. The compute gap reinforces the benchmark picture: at 5.816 TFLOPS FP32, the RX 6550M offers 1.89x the FP32 throughput of the Arc A310E, and its 181.8 GTexel/s texture rate is 2.84x the Arc A310E's 64.00 GTexel/s. Pixel throughput is even more lopsided, with the RX 6550M at 90.88 GPixel/s versus 32.00 GPixel/s, a 2.84x advantage.

Where Each One Wins

The AMD Radeon RX 6550M wins on nearly every performance metric recorded in the database. It leads in FP32 compute, FP16 compute, pixel fill rate, texture fill rate, memory bandwidth, shading units, TMUs, ROPs, and ray tracing cores. Its 85th percentile ranking versus the Arc A310E's 50th percentile makes the overall performance hierarchy clear. The RX 6550M is the appropriate choice for any workload that stresses the graphics pipeline: high-resolution rendering, texture-heavy scenes, or ray-traced effects, given its 16 ray tracing cores against 6.

The Intel Arc A310E wins on physical and interface traits rather than raw throughput. It is a single-slot card with defined dimensions (168 mm length, 69 mm height, 20 mm width), while the RX 6550M is an IGP with no listed dimensions. The Arc A310E offers 4x mini-DisplayPort 2.0 outputs, enabling multi-display configurations directly from the card, whereas the RX 6550M depends on the host portable device for outputs. The Arc A310E also uses a PCIe 4.0 x8 interface, double the lane width of the RX 6550M's PCIe 4.0 x4, which can matter in bandwidth-sensitive compute or data-transfer tasks despite the lower overall compute throughput. Its 75 W TDP is 5 W lower than the RX 6550M's 80 W, and its suggested power supply of 250 W gives system builders a concrete lower bound.

For users who need a compact, self-contained card with multiple display outputs and a wider bus link, the Arc A310E fits that role. For users who need graphics performance, the RX 6550M is the decisive winner, delivering roughly double the FP32 compute and nearly triple the texture and pixel throughput of the Arc A310E. The production status also favors AMD, since the RX 6550M remains Active while the Arc A310E is End-of-life with Battlemage already listed as its successor.