AMD Ryzen Z2 Go GPU vs AMD Steam Machine GPU Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The recorded database contains no direct head-to-head benchmark entries for the AMD Ryzen Z2 Go GPU and the AMD Steam Machine GPU. Both products have an empty benchmark array, and the win counts for each side are zero. This means there are no measured frame rate comparisons, no synthetic test scores, and no percentile deltas to reference between these two specific parts. The absence of data is itself informative, as it prevents any claims of superiority based on measured performance. The only way to analyze these two GPUs is through their architectural parameters, memory subsystems, and compute capabilities, all of which are fully documented.

The most striking numerical contrast between the two lies in raw compute throughput. The AMD Ryzen Z2 Go GPU delivers 4.147 TFLOPS of FP32 performance, while the AMD Steam Machine GPU delivers 17.56 TFLOPS. That is roughly 4.2 times higher peak floating point throughput for the Steam Machine GPU. The gap is even more pronounced in FP16: the Ryzen Z2 Go achieves 8.294 TFLOPS with a 2:1 ratio, whereas the Steam Machine GPU achieves 17.56 TFLOPS with a 1:1 ratio. In practical terms, the Steam Machine GPU can process both FP32 and FP16 workloads at the same full rate, while the Ryzen Z2 Go halves its FP32 rate to reach its FP16 figure.

Texture and pixel throughput follow the same pattern. The Steam Machine GPU has a texture rate of 274.4 GTexel/s and a pixel rate of 156.8 GPixel/s. The Ryzen Z2 Go manages 129.6 GTexel/s and 86.40 GPixel/s. The Steam Machine GPU is roughly 2.1 times faster at texture filling and 1.8 times faster at pixel filling. These differences reflect the underlying hardware counts: the Steam Machine GPU has 1792 shading units, 112 texture mapping units, and 64 render output units, while the Ryzen Z2 Go has 768 shading units, 48 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. The Steam Machine GPU has more than double the shader count, more than double the TMUs, and exactly double the ROPs.

Memory bandwidth shows a different kind of separation. The Ryzen Z2 Go uses 16 GB of LPDDR5 memory on a 128 bit bus, yielding 102.4 GB/s of bandwidth. The Steam Machine GPU uses 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on the same 128 bit bus width, but achieves 288.0 GB/s. That is 2.8 times the bandwidth, despite half the capacity. The effective memory clock rates tell the story: the Ryzen Z2 Go runs at 800 MHz with 6.4 Gbps effective, while the Steam Machine GPU runs at 2250 MHz with 18 Gbps effective. The Steam Machine GPU's memory operates at nearly three times the effective data rate.

Clock speeds add another layer. The Ryzen Z2 Go has a base clock of 800 MHz and a boost clock of 2700 MHz. The Steam Machine GPU has a base clock of 1720 MHz, a game clock of 2250 MHz, and a boost clock of 2450 MHz. The Ryzen Z2 Go has a higher maximum boost clock by 250 MHz, but its base clock is far lower, and its sustained game clock is not specified. The Steam Machine GPU's game clock of 2250 MHz represents a more realistic sustained operating point for continuous rendering workloads. The Ryzen Z2 Go's 2700 MHz boost is a peak figure that may not be sustainable under load.

Ray tracing hardware also differs substantially. The Ryzen Z2 Go has 12 RT cores, while the Steam Machine GPU has 28 RT cores. That is more than double the ray tracing hardware. Both support DirectX 12 Ultimate with feature level 12_2, OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4, so API compatibility is identical. The difference is purely in the amount of dedicated hardware available to accelerate ray tracing workloads.

Where Each One Wins

The AMD Steam Machine GPU wins decisively in every compute-oriented category. Its 17.56 TFLOPS FP32 and FP16 performance is roughly 4.2 times the Ryzen Z2 Go's 4.147 TFLOPS FP32 and 2.1 times its 8.294 TFLOPS FP16. Its texture rate of 274.4 GTexel/s is 2.1 times the Ryzen Z2 Go's 129.6 GTexel/s. Its pixel rate of 156.8 GPixel/s is 1.8 times the Ryzen Z2 Go's 86.40 GPixel/s. Its 28 RT cores versus 12 RT cores gives it a clear advantage in ray traced scenes. Its memory bandwidth of 288.0 GB/s is 2.8 times the Ryzen Z2 Go's 102.4 GB/s, which directly benefits high resolution textures and bandwidth sensitive effects.

The AMD Ryzen Z2 Go wins in capacity and efficiency. It has 16 GB of memory, double the Steam Machine GPU's 8 GB. This larger capacity matters for workloads that need to hold large datasets in VRAM, such as complex scenes with high resolution assets or compute tasks that exceed the 8 GB ceiling. The Ryzen Z2 Go also has a significantly lower TDP at 28 W versus 110 W. That is a 82 W difference, or roughly 3.9 times lower power draw. The Ryzen Z2 Go also has a higher boost clock at 2700 MHz versus 2450 MHz, though this advantage is offset by its much lower base clock and the Steam Machine GPU's explicit game clock.

The Ryzen Z2 Go's die efficiency is notable. Its transistor density is 63.0 million per square millimeter on a 208 mm² die, while the Steam Machine GPU achieves 65.2 million per square millimeter on a 204 mm² die. The Steam Machine GPU packs slightly more transistors into a slightly smaller die, with 13,300 million versus 13,100 million. The Ryzen Z2 Go achieves its compute output at a fraction of the power, which points to a design optimized for low power operation rather than maximum throughput.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has higher raw compute performance?

A: The AMD Steam Machine GPU delivers 17.56 TFLOPS FP32 and 17.56 TFLOPS FP16, while the AMD Ryzen Z2 Go delivers 4.147 TFLOPS FP32 and 8.294 TFLOPS FP16. The Steam Machine GPU is about 4.2 times faster in FP32 and about 2.1 times faster in FP16.

Q: How do the memory subsystems compare?

A: The Ryzen Z2 Go uses 16 GB of LPDDR5 memory on a 128 bit bus with 102.4 GB/s bandwidth. The Steam Machine GPU uses 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128 bit bus with 288.0 GB/s bandwidth. The Steam Machine GPU has 2.8 times the bandwidth but half the capacity.

Q: What are the power consumption differences?

A: The Ryzen Z2 Go has a TDP of 28 W, while the Steam Machine GPU has a TDP of 110 W. The Ryzen Z2 Go draws roughly 3.9 times less power.

Q: Which GPU has more ray tracing hardware?

A: The Steam Machine GPU has 28 RT cores, while the Ryzen Z2 Go has 12 RT cores. The Steam Machine GPU has more than double the ray tracing cores.

Q: Are the API feature sets the same?

A: Yes, both GPUs support DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. They are identical in API compatibility.

Q: What are the physical dimensions of each GPU?

A: The Ryzen Z2 Go has no recorded dimensions. The Steam Machine GPU measures 156 mm in length, 152 mm in height, and 162 mm in width.

Specification Differences

The two GPUs differ across nearly every recorded specification. The process node is the same at 6 nm with TSMC as the foundry, but the chip designs differ completely. The Ryzen Z2 Go uses the Rembrandt+ chip, while the Steam Machine GPU uses the Navi 33 chip with the codename Hotpink Bonefish. The Ryzen Z2 Go is classified under Console GPU (AMD) generation, while the Steam Machine GPU is under Console GPU (Valve).

Transistor counts are close but not identical: 13,100 million for the Ryzen Z2 Go and 13,300 million for the Steam Machine GPU. Die sizes are also close: 208 mm² versus 204 mm². Transistor density is 63.0 million per square millimeter versus 65.2 million per square millimeter.

Clock behavior differs significantly. The Ryzen Z2 Go has a base clock of 800 MHz and a boost clock of 2700 MHz, with no game clock recorded. The Steam Machine GPU has a base clock of 1720 MHz, a game clock of 2250 MHz, and a boost clock of 2450 MHz. Memory clocks are 800 MHz with 6.4 Gbps effective for the Ryzen Z2 Go and 2250 MHz with 18 Gbps effective for the Steam Machine GPU.

Memory capacity and type are completely different: 16 GB LPDDR5 for the Ryzen Z2 Go versus 8 GB GDDR6 for the Steam Machine GPU. Bus width is the same at 128 bit, but bandwidth is 102.4 GB/s versus 288.0 GB/s.

Compute unit counts differ across the board. The Ryzen Z2 Go has 768 shading units, 48 TMUs, 32 ROPs, and 12 RT cores. The Steam Machine GPU has 1792 shading units, 112 TMUs, 64 ROPs, and 28 RT cores.

Rates reflect these counts. Pixel rate is 86.40 GPixel/s for the Ryzen Z2 Go and 156.8 GPixel/s for the Steam Machine GPU. Texture rate is 129.6 GTexel/s versus 274.4 GTexel/s. FP32 is 4.147 TFLOPS versus 17.56 TFLOPS. FP16 is 8.294 TFLOPS with a 2:1 ratio versus 17.56 TFLOPS with a 1:1 ratio.

TDP is 28 W for the Ryzen Z2 Go and 110 W for the Steam Machine GPU. Display outputs are 1x USB Type-C for the Ryzen Z2 Go and 1x HDMI 2.1a plus 1x DisplayPort 2.1 for the Steam Machine GPU. The Steam Machine GPU has recorded dimensions of 156 mm by 152 mm by 162 mm, while the Ryzen Z2 Go has none. Neither GPU has power connectors listed, and neither has a launch MSRP.

Architecture Differences

The architectural split is between RDNA 2.0 and RDNA 3.0. The Ryzen Z2 Go uses RDNA 2.0 architecture on the Rembrandt+ chip. The Steam Machine GPU uses RDNA 3.0 architecture on the Navi 33 chip. This is a generational difference within AMD's GPU design lineage. RDNA 3.0 on the Steam Machine GPU delivers the FP16 1:1 ratio, meaning it processes FP16 at the same rate as FP32. The RDNA 2.0 based Ryzen Z2 Go processes FP16 at half the FP32 rate, shown by its 2:1 ratio.

The core counts reflect the architectural scale. The Steam Machine GPU has 1792 shading units, which is 2.3 times the Ryzen Z2 Go's 768. The TMU count of 112 is 2.3 times the 48 on the Ryzen Z2 Go. The ROP count of 64 is double the 32 on the Ryzen Z2 Go. The RT core count of 28 is 2.3 times the 12 on the Ryzen Z2 Go. These ratios are consistent, indicating the Steam Machine GPU is built on a substantially larger execution resource pool.

Both GPUs use the same 6 nm TSMC process node, so the architectural gains come from design improvements rather than process scaling. The transistor density is slightly higher on the Steam Machine GPU at 65.2 million per square millimeter versus 63.0 million per square millimeter. The transistor count difference is small, 13,300 million versus 13,100 million, yet the compute output difference is enormous. This indicates the RDNA 3.0 architecture extracts more performance per transistor than RDNA 2.0.

Memory architecture also differs. The Ryzen Z2 Go uses LPDDR5, which is a low power memory type suited to its 28 W TDP. The Steam Machine GPU uses GDDR6, which is a higher bandwidth memory type suited to its 110 W TDP. Both use a 128 bit bus, but the GDDR6 memory operates at 18 Gbps effective versus 6.4 Gbps effective for LPDDR5. The result is 288.0 GB/s versus 102.4 GB/s.

Display output architecture differs as well. The Ryzen Z2 Go provides a single USB Type-C output. The Steam Machine GPU provides one HDMI 2.1a port and one DisplayPort 2.1 port. This suggests different intended connection methods for the two devices. The Steam Machine GPU has physical dimensions recorded at 156 mm by 152 mm by 162 mm, while the Ryzen Z2 Go has no dimensions recorded.

The clock behavior indicates different design priorities. The Ryzen Z2 Go has a high boost clock of 2700 MHz but a low base clock of 800 MHz, suggesting aggressive burst behavior with power management. The Steam Machine GPU has a more moderate boost clock of 2450 MHz but a high base clock of 1720 MHz and an explicit game clock of 2250 MHz, suggesting sustained high frequency operation. The release dates differ, with the Ryzen Z2 Go released on 2024-12-31 and the Steam Machine GPU on 2026-06-28.

The Verdict

The data indicates two GPUs designed for different operating envelopes. The AMD Steam Machine GPU is the clear performance leader in every measurable compute category. Its 17.56 TFLOPS FP32, 288.0 GB/s memory bandwidth, 274.4 GTexel/s texture rate, and 28 RT cores place it far ahead of the Ryzen Z2 Go in raw capability. It is the appropriate choice for workloads that demand maximum throughput, high resolution rendering, or ray traced effects. Its 8 GB memory capacity is the only limiting factor, and that limit will bind in scenarios where VRAM usage exceeds 8 GB.

The AMD Ryzen Z2 Go offers a different tradeoff. Its 16 GB memory capacity is double that of the Steam Machine GPU, which makes it suitable for workloads that need large memory pools. Its 28 W TDP is roughly 3.9 times lower than the Steam Machine GPU's 110 W, making it the better fit for power constrained environments. Its compute performance is far lower, but its memory capacity and power efficiency are distinct advantages. The RDNA 2.0 architecture and Rembrandt+ chip deliver 4.147 TFLOPS FP32 and 102.4 GB/s bandwidth, which is modest by comparison but sufficient for less demanding tasks.

The percentile ranking for both GPUs is 50, indicating each sits at the median of all recorded GPUs in the database. The average benchmark score is zero for both, meaning no direct performance measurements exist. The choice between them depends on whether the priority is maximum compute throughput or maximum memory capacity with minimum power draw. The Steam Machine GPU dominates the former, the Ryzen Z2 Go dominates the latter. No benchmark data exists to refine this conclusion further, so the architectural parameters are the only basis for comparison.