AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT vs Intel Arc A730M Comparison

The AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT and Intel Arc A730M occupy different ends of the GPU spectrum, but both are end-of-life products. The RX 6800 XT is a desktop flagship from the Radeon RX 6000 series, while the Arc A730M is a mobile part from Intel’s Alchemist generation. Benchmark data shows a decisive performance gap, but the A730M’s 80 W TDP versus the RX 6800 XT’s 300 W TDP tells the real story of intended use cases.

Where Each One Wins

The AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT wins every single head-to-head benchmark in the data set. In 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, it scores 3689 against the Arc A730M’s 1732, a 113% advantage. In Geekbench OpenCL, the RX 6800 XT posts 171304 versus 70352, a 143.5% lead. In Geekbench Vulkan, it scores 136875 against 64693, a 111.6% margin. The RX 6800 XT also holds the overall average benchmark score at 48477, well above the A730M’s 45592.

The Intel Arc A730M wins in one specific category: power efficiency. At 80 W TDP, it consumes less than a third of the RX 6800 XT’s 300 W. This makes it the only sensible choice for portable devices, as its display outputs are listed as "Portable Device Dependent" and its slot width is IGP (integrated graphics processor). The A730M is not a desktop card; it has no dimensions, no power connectors, and no suggested PSU. Its entire existence is tied to mobile form factors where the RX 6800 XT’s 267 mm length and dual-slot width would never fit.

Architecture Differences

The RX 6800 XT uses the Navi 21 chip built on RDNA 2.0 architecture, fabricated on TSMC’s 7 nm process. It packs 26,800 million transistors on a 520 mm² die, giving a transistor density of 51.5M per mm². The Arc A730M uses the DG2-512 chip on Intel’s Xe-HPG architecture, built on TSMC’s 6 nm process. It contains 21,700 million transistors on a 406 mm² die, with a higher density of 53.4M per mm². The A730M’s newer process node and tighter packing show Intel’s design priorities differ from AMD’s.

Core counts diverge significantly. The RX 6800 XT features 4608 shading units, 288 texture mapping units, 128 ROPs, and 72 ray tracing cores. The Arc A730M has 3072 shading units, 192 TMUs, 96 ROPs, and only 24 ray tracing cores. This 3:2 ratio in shader count and 3:1 ratio in RT cores explains much of the performance gap. Memory systems also differ: the RX 6800 XT uses 16 GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus delivering 512.0 GB/s bandwidth, while the A730M has 12 GB GDDR6 on a 192-bit bus providing 336.0 GB/s.

Clock speeds tell a similar story. The RX 6800 XT runs at a base of 1825 MHz, boosts to 2250 MHz, and has a game clock of 2015 MHz. The A730M’s base is 1100 MHz, boosting to 2050 MHz. Memory clocks also differ: 2000 MHz (16 Gbps effective) for the AMD versus 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective) for Intel. Both support DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4, so API compatibility is identical.

The Verdict

The data is unambiguous: the AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT is the superior performer in every measured benchmark. Its 3DMark score is more than double the A730M’s, and its Geekbench OpenCL and Vulkan results are roughly 2.1 to 2.4 times higher. The RX 6800 XT also sits at the 85th percentile of all GPUs, versus the A730M’s 84th percentile, though the A730M’s nearest rivals include the NVIDIA RTX 5090 Mobile and RTX A2000, showing it competes in a different performance class.

The Intel Arc A730M’s only advantage is its 80 W power draw, which is 220 W lower than the RX 6800 XT. This makes it the only viable option for thin-and-light laptops or systems without discrete power connectors. However, its 12 GB memory and 336.0 GB/s bandwidth are still substantial for a mobile part. The choice comes down to form factor: if you need a desktop card, the RX 6800 XT wins outright. If you need mobile graphics, the A730M exists where the RX 6800 XT cannot.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has a higher average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT averages 48477 points, while the Intel Arc A730M averages 45592 points, a difference of roughly 6%.

Q: How much faster is the RX 6800 XT in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12?

A: The RX 6800 XT scores 3689 versus the A730M’s 1732, a 113% lead.

Q: What is the power consumption difference?

A: The RX 6800 XT has a 300 W TDP, while the Arc A730M has an 80 W TDP.

Q: Do both GPUs support the same APIs?

A: Yes, both support DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4.

Q: Which GPU has more ray tracing cores?

A: The RX 6800 XT has 72 RT cores, while the Arc A730M has 24 RT cores.

Q: What are the memory bandwidth figures?

A: The RX 6800 XT delivers 512.0 GB/s over a 256-bit bus, while the A730M provides 336.0 GB/s over a 192-bit bus.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The three head-to-head benchmarks all favor AMD, but the margins vary. The smallest gap is in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, where the RX 6800 XT’s 3689 points beat the A730M’s 1732 by 113%. This test stresses DirectX 12 rasterization, and the AMD card’s 4608 shading units versus 3072 gives it a raw throughput advantage. The RX 6800 XT’s 20.74 TFLOPS FP32 compute is also 64.6% higher than the A730M’s 12.60 TFLOPS, which directly impacts this workload.

Geekbench OpenCL shows the largest delta at 143.5%. The RX 6800 XT scores 171304, more than double the A730M’s 70352. OpenCL compute workloads benefit from the RX 6800 XT’s higher texture rate (648.0 GTexel/s versus 393.6 GTexel/s) and pixel rate (288.0 GPixel/s versus 196.8 GPixel/s). The A730M’s 80 W power budget limits sustained compute performance, while the RX 6800 XT’s 300 W TDP allows full utilization of its 26,800 million transistors.

Geekbench Vulkan shows a 111.6% lead, with the RX 6800 XT at 136875 and the A730M at 64693. Vulkan performance often scales with memory bandwidth, and the AMD card’s 512.0 GB/s versus 336.0 GB/s gives it a substantial edge. The RX 6800 XT also has a higher boost clock at 2250 MHz versus 2050 MHz, though the base clock difference is larger: 1825 MHz versus 1100 MHz.

In the broader benchmark suite, the RX 6800 XT holds a PassMark G3D score of 24980, a PassMark GPU Compute score of 13245, and a Geekbench Metal score of 181337. The A730M has no comparable scores in these tests, limiting direct comparison. The RX 6800 XT’s nearest rivals include the NVIDIA RTX A1000 Mobile (1.5% higher average score) and Intel Arc A550M (2.5% lower), placing it in a competitive desktop-mobile hybrid class. The A730M’s nearest rivals are the AMD Radeon Pro 5500 XT (0.5% higher) and NVIDIA RTX 5880 Ada Generation (0.8% lower), showing it sits among workstation and mobile parts.

Specification Differences

The two GPUs differ in nearly every measurable specification. Process node: 7 nm for AMD versus 6 nm for Intel. Transistor count: 26,800 million versus 21,700 million. Die size: 520 mm² versus 406 mm². Transistor density: 51.5M per mm² versus 53.4M per mm². Base clock: 1825 MHz versus 1100 MHz. Boost clock: 2250 MHz versus 2050 MHz. Memory clock: 2000 MHz versus 1750 MHz. Memory size: 16 GB versus 12 GB. Bus width: 256-bit versus 192-bit. Bandwidth: 512.0 GB/s versus 336.0 GB/s.

Shading units: 4608 versus 3072. TMUs: 288 versus 192. ROPs: 128 versus 96. RT cores: 72 versus 24. Pixel rate: 288.0 GPixel/s versus 196.8 GPixel/s. Texture rate: 648.0 GTexel/s versus 393.6 GTexel/s. FP32 compute: 20.74 TFLOPS versus 12.60 TFLOPS. FP16 compute: 41.47 TFLOPS versus 25.19 TFLOPS. TDP: 300 W versus 80 W. Slot width: Dual-slot versus IGP. Power connectors: 2x 8-pin versus none. Suggested PSU: 700 W versus none. Dimensions: 267 mm length, 120 mm height, 50 mm width versus no dimensions listed. Display outputs: 1x HDMI 2.1, 2x DisplayPort 1.4a, 1x USB Type-C versus "Portable Device Dependent." The RX 6800 XT has a launch MSRP of 649 USD; the A730M has no listed price. Both use PCIe 4.0 x16 and support identical API versions.