AMD Radeon RX 6650M vs AMD Radeon VII Comparison

The AMD Radeon RX 6650M and AMD Radeon VII target completely different segments, yet their benchmark averages land surprisingly close. The Radeon VII posts a higher raw average score of 66,004, while the RX 6650M trails at 71,768 in aggregate across all tests—wait, the data shows the opposite: the RX 6650M’s average benchmark score is 71,768, versus the Radeon VII’s 66,004. That means the mobile chip actually holds a lead in the overall average, despite losing both head-to-head tests. This contradiction stems from different benchmark suites; the RX 6650M’s scores come from Geekbench OpenCL and Vulkan only, while the Radeon VII includes additional tests like 3DMark Steel Nomad and Geekbench Metal. The practical takeaway is that the Radeon VII dominates in compute-heavy loads, but the RX 6650M is the more balanced modern option.

The Verdict

Pick the AMD Radeon VII if your workload is raw compute throughput. It wins both direct head-to-head matchups: 91,947 versus 65,800 in Geekbench OpenCL (a 28.4% advantage) and 91,788 versus 77,735 in Geekbench Vulkan (a 15.3% edge). Its 13.44 TFLOPS FP32 and 26.88 TFLOPS FP16 figures are substantially higher than the RX 6650M’s 8.659 TFLOPS and 17.32 TFLOPS, respectively. The Radeon VII also offers 16 GB of HBM2 memory with 1.02 TB/s bandwidth, making it suited for large datasets. However, it is a 295 W dual-slot card requiring 2x 8-pin power connectors and a 600 W suggested PSU, with a 280 mm length—it is not a drop-in part for small systems.

Pick the AMD Radeon RX 6650M if you need modern features in a compact, efficient package. It is an IGP (integrated graphics processor) with no power connectors and a 120 W TDP, using the RDNA 2.0 architecture with DirectX 12 Ultimate support, Vulkan 1.4, and 28 ray-tracing cores. Its 91st percentile rank versus 90th for the Radeon VII shows they sit in the same performance tier globally, but the RX 6650M achieves that with far less power draw. The RX 6650M’s average benchmark score of 71,768 exceeds the Radeon VII’s 66,004, indicating better real-world consistency across the tests where they overlap. For a laptop or small-form-factor build prioritizing modern API support and efficiency, the RX 6650M is the rational choice. For desktop compute tasks where power and size are irrelevant, the Radeon VII wins outright.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from different architectural generations. The RX 6650M uses Navi 23 on RDNA 2.0, while the Radeon VII uses Vega 20 on GCN 5.1. Both are fabricated on TSMC’s 7 nm process, but their transistor budgets differ: the Radeon VII packs 13,230 million transistors on a 331 mm² die, versus 11,060 million on 237 mm² for the RX 6650M. The resulting transistor density favors the newer chip: 46.7M / mm² for Navi 23 versus 40.0M / mm² for Vega 20.

Core configuration diverges sharply. The Radeon VII has 3840 shading units, 240 TMUs, and 64 ROPs, while the RX 6650M has 1792 shading units, 112 TMUs, and 64 ROPs. That gives the Radeon VII higher texture rate (420.0 GTexel/s versus 270.6 GTexel/s) but the RX 6650M has a higher pixel rate (154.6 GPixel/s versus 112.0 GPixel/s) due to its faster clocks. The RX 6650M runs at 2068 MHz base and 2416 MHz boost, while the Radeon VII operates at 1400 MHz base and 1750 MHz boost.

Memory architecture is a fundamental split. The RX 6650M uses 8 GB GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus with 224.0 GB/s bandwidth. The Radeon VII uses 16 GB HBM2 on a 4096-bit bus with 1.02 TB/s bandwidth—over 4.5 times the bandwidth. The RX 6650M also adds 28 ray-tracing cores, which the GCN-based Radeon VII lacks entirely. API support differs: the RX 6650M supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) and Vulkan 1.4, while the Radeon VII is limited to DirectX 12 (12_1) and Vulkan 1.3. Both support OpenGL 4.6.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has higher raw compute performance?

A: The AMD Radeon VII. It delivers 13.44 TFLOPS FP32 and 26.88 TFLOPS FP16, compared to the RX 6650M’s 8.659 TFLOPS FP32 and 17.32 TFLOPS FP16.

Q: Does the RX 6650M support ray tracing?

A: Yes. The RX 6650M includes 28 ray-tracing cores and supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2). The Radeon VII has no ray-tracing cores and is limited to DirectX 12 (12_1).

Q: How much memory does each card have, and what is the bandwidth?

A: The RX 6650M has 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus with 224.0 GB/s bandwidth. The Radeon VII has 16 GB of HBM2 on a 4096-bit bus with 1.02 TB/s bandwidth.

Q: Which card is more power-efficient?

A: The RX 6650M. Its TDP is 120 W with no power connectors, while the Radeon VII has a 295 W TDP, requires 2x 8-pin connectors, and suggests a 600 W PSU.

Q: What are the physical size differences?

A: The RX 6650M is listed as an IGP with portable-device-dependent outputs. The Radeon VII is a dual-slot card measuring 280 mm in length, 125 mm in height, and 40 mm in width.

Q: Why does the RX 6650M have a higher average benchmark score despite losing head-to-head tests?

A: The average benchmark score (71,768 for RX 6650M vs 66,004 for Radeon VII) aggregates different test sets. The Radeon VII’s average includes 3DMark Steel Nomad and Geekbench Metal, which pull its mean down, while the RX 6650M’s average is based only on its two Geekbench scores.

Specification Differences

| Field | AMD Radeon RX 6650M | AMD Radeon VII |

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

| Chip | Navi 23 | Vega 20 |

| Architecture | RDNA 2.0 | GCN 5.1 |

| Transistors | 11,060 million | 13,230 million |

| Die Size | 237 mm² | 331 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 46.7M / mm² | 40.0M / mm² |

| Base Clock | 2068 MHz | 1400 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 2416 MHz | 1750 MHz |

| Game Clock | 2222 MHz | null |

| Memory Clock | 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective) | 1000 MHz (2 Gbps effective) |

| Memory Size | 8 GB | 16 GB |

| Memory Type | GDDR6 | HBM2 |

| Memory Bus | 128 bit | 4096 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | 224.0 GB/s | 1.02 TB/s |

| Shading Units | 1792 | 3840 |

| TMUs | 112 | 240 |

| ROPs | 64 | 64 |

| RT Cores | 28 | null |

| Pixel Rate | 154.6 GPixel/s | 112.0 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 270.6 GTexel/s | 420.0 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 8.659 TFLOPS | 13.44 TFLOPS |

| FP16 | 17.32 TFLOPS (2:1) | 26.88 TFLOPS (2:1) |

| TDP | 120 W | 295 W |

| Slot Width | IGP | Dual-slot |

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

| Suggested PSU | null | 600 W |

| Bus Interface | PCIe 4.0 x8 | PCIe 3.0 x16 |

| Display Outputs | Portable Device Dependent | 1x HDMI 2.0b, 3x DisplayPort 1.4a |

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

| Vulkan | 1.4 | 1.3 |

| Length | null | 280 mm (11 inches) |

| Height | null | 125 mm (4.9 inches) |

| Width | null | 40 mm (1.6 inches) |

| Release Date | 2022-01-03 | 2019-02-06 |

| Successor | null | Navi |

| Launch MSRP | null | 699 USD |

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only two directly comparable tests show a clear sweep for the AMD Radeon VII. In Geekbench OpenCL, the Radeon VII scores 91,947 against the RX 6650M’s 65,800, a delta of -28.4% for the mobile part. That 26,147-point gap reflects the Radeon VII’s 3840 shading units and 1.02 TB/s memory bandwidth, which feed its FP32 throughput of 13.44 TFLOPS. The RX 6650M’s 1792 shading units and 224.0 GB/s bandwidth simply cannot match that compute density, even with a 2068 MHz base clock versus the Radeon VII’s 1400 MHz.

In Geekbench Vulkan, the Radeon VII again leads with 91,788 versus 77,735, a 15.3% advantage. The margin narrows here, likely because Vulkan leverages the RX 6650M’s newer RDNA 2.0 architecture and DirectX 12 Ultimate feature set. The RX 6650M’s 28 ray-tracing cores and Vulkan 1.4 support help close the gap, but the Radeon VII’s raw shader count still prevails. This 14,053-point difference is smaller than the OpenCL gap, suggesting the RX 6650M’s architectural efficiency partially compensates for its lower compute ceiling.

The RX 6650M’s only statistical win is the aggregate average benchmark score: 71,768 versus 66,004. This is misleading, however, because the averages include non-overlapping tests. The Radeon VII’s average is dragged down by its 3DMark Steel Nomad score of 2304 and Geekbench Metal score of 77,975, while the RX 6650M has no equivalent low-end outlier. In the tests they share, the Radeon VII wins both by double-digit percentages. The RX 6650M’s higher percentile rank (91 vs 90) is also within the margin of noise. The data supports one conclusion: for pure performance, the Radeon VII is the stronger GPU. For efficiency and modern features, the RX 6650M offers a compelling counterpoint.