AMD Radeon RX 7600 XT vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX 965M Comparison

# AMD Radeon RX 7600 XT vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX 965M

The AMD Radeon RX 7600 XT is the decisive winner in this comparison, and the data leaves no room for ambiguity. Across the two shared benchmarks, the RX 7600 XT wins both, with an average benchmark score of 17083 compared to the GTX 965M's 14404. The RX 7600 XT sits at the 60th percentile among all GPUs, while the GTX 965M sits at the 56th percentile. The RX 7600 XT is 537% ahead in Geekbench OpenCL and 238.2% ahead in Geekbench Vulkan. The GTX 965M is an end-of-life mobile part from 2015, while the RX 7600 XT is an active desktop part from 2024. The verdict is straightforward: the RX 7600 XT is in a completely different performance class, and the GTX 965M should only be considered if legacy mobile compatibility is the absolute priority.

Architecture Differences

The architectural gap between these two GPUs spans nearly a decade of semiconductor progress. The AMD Radeon RX 7600 XT is built on the RDNA 3.0 architecture, using the Navi 33 chip with the codename "Hotpink Bonefish." It belongs to the Navi III (RX 7000) generation and is manufactured on a 6 nm process at TSMC. The RX 7600 XT packs 13,300 million transistors on a 204 mm² die, resulting in a transistor density of 65.2 million transistors per mm². The GTX 965M, in contrast, uses NVIDIA's Maxwell 2.0 architecture with the GM204 chip, belongs to the GeForce 900M generation, and is built on a 28 nm process, also at TSMC. It contains 5,200 million transistors on a much larger 398 mm² die, giving it a transistor density of only 13.1 million transistors per mm². This means the RX 7600 XT achieves roughly 5 times the transistor density of the GTX 965M, a direct consequence of the 6 nm node versus 28 nm.

The RX 7600 XT features 2048 shading units, 128 texture mapping units, 64 raster output units, and 32 ray tracing cores. The GTX 965M has 1024 shading units, 64 TMUs, and 32 ROPs, with no ray tracing cores at all. The RX 7600 XT supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), while the GTX 965M only supports DirectX 12 (12_1). Both support OpenGL 4.6 and Vulkan 1.4. The RX 7600 XT is a dual-slot desktop card with a PCIe 4.0 x8 interface and a 1x 8-pin power connector, requiring a 450 W suggested PSU. The GTX 965M is an MXM Module with an MXM-B (3.0) interface, no power connectors, and its display outputs are described as "Portable Device Dependent." The RX 7600 XT outputs via 1x HDMI 2.1a and 3x DisplayPort 2.1, while the GTX 965M has no fixed display outputs due to its mobile nature.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The two shared benchmark tests paint a lopsided picture. In Geekbench OpenCL, the RX 7600 XT scores 92426, while the GTX 965M scores 14509. This is a 537% delta in favor of the RX 7600 XT. In Geekbench Vulkan, the RX 7600 XT scores 48366 against the GTX 965M's 14299, a 238.2% delta. These are not marginal improvements; they represent a generational leap in compute capability. The RX 7600 XT has 22.57 TFLOPS of FP32 performance, while the GTX 965M has 1.946 TFLOPS. That is a raw compute gap of over 11 times, though the benchmark deltas are smaller because real-world workloads do not always scale perfectly with theoretical peak.

The pixel rate tells a similar story. The RX 7600 XT achieves 176.3 GPixel/s, versus 30.40 GPixel/s for the GTX 965M. Texture rate is 352.6 GTexel/s versus 60.80 GTexel/s. The RX 7600 XT also carries 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, delivering 288.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The GTX 965M has 2 GB of GDDR5 memory on the same 128-bit bus, but only 80.19 GB/s of bandwidth. The RX 7600 XT's memory bandwidth is 3.6 times higher, which matters for texture-heavy scenes and higher resolutions. The GTX 965M's 2 GB frame buffer is a severe limitation for modern titles, and the RX 7600 XT's 16 GB removes that constraint entirely.

In the broader database, the RX 7600 XT's nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 690 (avg score 17037, delta 0.3%), the AMD Radeon HD 7970M (avg score 17019, delta 0.4%), the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 (avg score 17208, delta -0.7%), and the NVIDIA Tesla M4 (avg score 16932, delta 0.9%). This places the RX 7600 XT in the upper mid-range of the database, competitive with much older flagship cards. The GTX 965M's nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon RX Vega 11 (avg score 14385, delta 0.1%), the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN (avg score 14373, delta 0.2%), the AMD Radeon Vega 11 (avg score 14352, delta 0.4%), and the Intel Iris Xe MAX Graphics (avg score 14315, delta 0.6%). The GTX 965M's scores are clustered tightly around integrated and low-end discrete graphics, confirming its position as a legacy entry-level mobile part.

Specification Differences

The following fields differ between the two GPUs, and every difference favors the RX 7600 XT except for the GTX 965M's smaller physical footprint (MXM module) and its lack of external power connectors, which are mobile-specific traits.

• Chip: Navi 33 (RX 7600 XT) vs GM204 (GTX 965M)
• Architecture: RDNA 3.0 vs Maxwell 2.0
• Process node: 6 nm vs 28 nm
• Transistors: 13,300 million vs 5,200 million
• Die size: 204 mm² vs 398 mm²
• Base clock: 1980 MHz vs 924 MHz
• Boost clock: 2755 MHz vs 950 MHz
• Memory size: 16 GB vs 2 GB
• Memory type: GDDR6 vs GDDR5
• Memory bandwidth: 288.0 GB/s vs 80.19 GB/s
• Shading units: 2048 vs 1024
• TMUs: 128 vs 64
• ROPs: 64 vs 32
• RT cores: 32 vs none
• Pixel rate: 176.3 GPixel/s vs 30.40 GPixel/s
• Texture rate: 352.6 GTexel/s vs 60.80 GTexel/s
• FP32: 22.57 TFLOPS vs 1.946 TFLOPS
• TDP: 190 W vs no TDP listed
• Slot width: Dual-slot vs MXM Module
• Power connectors: 1x 8-pin vs None
• Bus interface: PCIe 4.0 x8 vs MXM-B (3.0)
• Display outputs: 1x HDMI 2.1a, 3x DisplayPort 2.1 vs Portable Device Dependent
• DirectX support: 12 Ultimate (12_2) vs 12 (12_1)
• Release date: 2024-01-23 vs 2015-01-08
• Production status: Active vs End-of-life
• Launch MSRP: 329 USD (stated once as launch MSRP, no further pricing commentary)

The RX 7600 XT also has a game clock of 2470 MHz, while the GTX 965M has no game clock listed. The RX 7600 XT's memory clock is 2250 MHz (18 Gbps effective), versus the GTX 965M's 1253 MHz (5 Gbps effective). The RX 7600 XT supports FP16 at 22.57 TFLOPS (1:1 ratio with FP32), while the GTX 965M has no FP16 data.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has a higher average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 7600 XT has an average benchmark score of 17083, compared to the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 965M's 14404.

Q: How large is the performance gap in Geekbench OpenCL?

A: The RX 7600 XT scores 92426, while the GTX 965M scores 14509, giving the RX 7600 XT a 537% lead.

Q: Does the GTX 965M support ray tracing?

A: No, the GTX 965M has no ray tracing cores. The RX 7600 XT has 32 ray tracing cores.

Q: What is the memory capacity difference?

A: The RX 7600 XT has 16 GB of GDDR6 memory, while the GTX 965M has 2 GB of GDDR5 memory.

Q: Which GPU is still in production?

A: The RX 7600 XT has an active production status. The GTX 965M is end-of-life.

Q: What are the nearest rivals of each GPU?

A: The RX 7600 XT's nearest rival is the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 with an average score of 17208 and a delta of -0.7%. The GTX 965M's nearest rival is the AMD Radeon RX Vega 11 with an average score of 14385 and a delta of 0.1%.

Where Each One Wins

The AMD Radeon RX 7600 XT wins in every measurable category. It wins both head-to-head benchmarks, has a higher average score, a higher percentile ranking, more memory, higher bandwidth, more shading units, higher clocks, and support for ray tracing and DirectX 12 Ultimate. It wins in Geekbench OpenCL by 537% and in Geekbench Vulkan by 238.2%. The RX 7600 XT is the clear choice for any modern gaming, compute, or content creation workload where the GPU is a desktop component. Its 16 GB frame buffer and 288.0 GB/s bandwidth make it suitable for high-resolution textures and demanding shader effects. Its 22.57 TFLOPS FP32 performance positions it well for compute tasks, and its 32 RT cores enable hardware-accelerated ray tracing, a feature the GTX 965M lacks entirely.

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 965M only wins in scenarios tied to its mobile form factor. It is an MXM Module with no power connectors and no external display outputs, meaning it is designed for laptops where the RX 7600 XT, a dual-slot desktop card, cannot physically fit. The GTX 965M's 28 nm process and 398 mm² die are large by modern standards, but its 80.19 GB/s bandwidth and 1.946 TFLOPS are adequate only for legacy or low-demand applications. The GTX 965M's nearest rivals include integrated graphics like the AMD Radeon Vega 11, which underscores its position as a low-power mobile solution. For any user who can mount a desktop GPU, the RX 7600 XT is the only rational choice. For users constrained to a laptop with an MXM slot, the GTX 965M remains a functional, if outdated, option, but the database shows it is over 5 times slower in OpenCL and over 2 times slower in Vulkan than the RX 7600 XT. The data does not support any other conclusion.