Intel Arc B390 vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 D Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The single recorded comparison in the database is the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test, and the result is decisive. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 D scores 8587 points, while the Intel Arc B390 scores 1482 points. That is a delta of negative 82.7 percent from the Intel part's perspective, meaning the NVIDIA card is approximately 5.8 times faster in this specific workload.

The Intel Arc B390 sits at the 9th percentile of all GPUs in the database, with an average benchmark score of 1482. Its nearest rivals are all low-end discrete mobile or OEM parts: the GeForce GT 520MX (1463, 1.3 percent slower), GeForce 800M (1460, 1.5 percent slower), GeForce GT 625 OEM (1446, 2.5 percent slower), and GeForce GT 710 (1443, 2.7 percent slower). The B390 beats those by margins of roughly one to three percentage points, which places it in the entry-level segment for rasterization performance.

The RTX 4090 D, by contrast, sits at the 98th percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 178050 across its three recorded tests. Its nearest rivals are all high-end professional and data center parts. The RTX PRO 5000 Blackwell averages 182109, which is 2.2 percent faster than the RTX 4090 D. The A100 SXM4 80 GB averages 183725, 3.1 percent faster. The RTX 5000 Ada Generation averages 184664, 3.6 percent faster. The A100 SXM4 40 GB averages 187147, 4.9 percent faster. So the RTX 4090 D trails those four cards by single-digit percentages, but it remains far ahead of the entire consumer mid-range and entry-level field.

The Steel Nomad result alone tells the story: the RTX 4090 D delivers 7105 more points than the Arc B390. That gap is not incremental, it is transformational for any workload that depends on raw GPU compute. The B390's 7.680 TFLOPS of FP32 throughput and 60.00 GPixel/s pixel rate are dwarfed by the RTX 4090 D's 73.54 TFLOPS and 443.5 GPixel/s. The data does not show a single benchmark where the Intel part wins.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from fundamentally different design philosophies and market positions. The Intel Arc B390 uses the Panther Lake chip with the Xe3-LPG architecture, built on a 3 nm process at Intel's own foundry. It belongs to the Arc Graphics-M (Panther Lake) generation and is an integrated graphics processor, labeled as IGP. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 D uses the AD102 chip with the Ada Lovelace architecture, built on a 5 nm process at TSMC, and belongs to the GeForce 40 generation.

The RTX 4090 D is a discrete card with a 76,300 million transistor count on a 609 mm² die, giving a transistor density of 125.3M per mm². The Arc B390's transistor count and die size are listed as unknown, so no direct comparison is possible from the recorded data. What is clear is the scale difference: the RTX 4090 D has 14,592 shading units, 456 texture mapping units, 176 raster output units, 114 ray tracing cores, and 456 tensor cores. The Arc B390 has 1,536 shading units, 48 TMUs, 24 ROPs, and 12 ray tracing cores, with no tensor cores listed.

Clock behavior also differs. The Arc B390 has a base clock of 300 MHz and a boost clock of 2500 MHz. The RTX 4090 D has a base clock of 2280 MHz and a boost clock of 2520 MHz. Despite the similar boost clocks, the RTX 4090 D's massive execution resource count produces far higher throughput. Its texture rate is 1,149.1 GTexel/s versus 120.0 GTexel/s for the Arc B390. Its FP32 throughput of 73.54 TFLOPS is roughly 9.6 times the Arc's 7.680 TFLOPS.

Memory is another fundamental split. The Arc B390 uses system shared memory, with a bus width and bandwidth that are system dependent. The RTX 4090 D has 24 GB of GDDR6X on a 384 bit bus, with 1.01 TB/s of bandwidth and a memory clock of 1313 MHz, which translates to 21 Gbps effective. The Arc's memory performance cannot be quantified in the database because it depends entirely on the host system's DRAM.

The RTX 4090 D also carries dedicated tensor cores, which the Arc B390 lacks. Both support DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4, so API feature levels match. But the RTX 4090 D's ray tracing capability is far larger: 114 RT cores versus 12. The power envelope reflects the performance gap: the RTX 4090 D has a 425 W TDP, requires a 1x 16-pin power connector, and a suggested PSU of 800 W, while the Arc B390 has an 80 W TDP, no power connectors, and is an IGP with no slot width.

FAQ

Q: How much faster is the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 D than the Intel Arc B390 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12?

A: The RTX 4090 D scores 8587 against the Arc B390's 1482, a delta of negative 82.7 percent from the Intel part's perspective.

Q: What are the nearest rivals to the Intel Arc B390 in the database?

A: The closest matches are the GeForce GT 520MX (1463, 1.3 percent slower), GeForce 800M (1460, 1.5 percent slower), GeForce GT 625 OEM (1446, 2.5 percent slower), and GeForce GT 710 (1443, 2.7 percent slower).

Q: What are the nearest rivals to the RTX 4090 D in the database?

A: The closest matches are the RTX PRO 5000 Blackwell (182109, 2.2 percent faster), A100 SXM4 80 GB (183725, 3.1 percent faster), RTX 5000 Ada Generation (184664, 3.6 percent faster), and A100 SXM4 40 GB (187147, 4.9 percent faster).

Q: Do both GPUs support the same graphics APIs?

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

Q: What memory does the Intel Arc B390 use?

A: It uses system shared memory, with the bus width, type, and bandwidth all being system dependent.

Q: What memory does the RTX 4090 D use?

A: It uses 24 GB of GDDR6X on a 384 bit bus with 1.01 TB/s bandwidth and a 1313 MHz memory clock, which is 21 Gbps effective.

Q: Which GPU has tensor cores?

A: Only the RTX 4090 D lists tensor cores, with 456 of them. The Arc B390 has no tensor cores recorded.

The Verdict

The data indicates a complete performance separation. The RTX 4090 D is a high-end discrete GPU that sits in the 98th percentile of all GPUs, while the Arc B390 is an integrated part in the 9th percentile. The Steel Nomad score of 8587 versus 1482 is not close, and the gap in raw compute resources is equally wide: 73.54 TFLOPS versus 7.680 TFLOPS FP32, 456 TMUs versus 48, 176 ROPs versus 24, 114 RT cores versus 12.

The RTX 4090 D has a launch MSRP of 1,599 USD. It is an end-of-life product, with a successor in the GeForce 50 series and a predecessor in the GeForce 30 series. The Arc B390 is an active product with no predecessor or successor listed, and it carries no launch MSRP in the database.

For any workload that requires high FPS at high resolutions, ray tracing, or compute-heavy tasks, the RTX 4090 D is the only viable option from this comparison. Its 24 GB GDDR6X memory with 1.01 TB/s bandwidth provides a memory subsystem that the Arc B390 cannot match, since the Intel part relies on system shared memory. The RTX 4090 D also has 456 tensor cores, which the Arc B390 lacks entirely.

However, the Arc B390 consumes only 80 W, requires no power connectors, and occupies no slot width because it is an IGP. The RTX 4090 D consumes 425 W, needs a 1x 16-pin connector, an 800 W suggested PSU, and a triple-slot cooler. For an integrated solution in a portable device, the Arc B390 offers a baseline of 3D capability with no additional hardware cost beyond the host system.

The choice depends on whether the use case is a dedicated desktop workstation or a mobile integrated platform. The recorded data does not show any scenario where the Arc B390 wins a benchmark, so for pure graphics performance, the RTX 4090 D is the clear selection. For power-constrained or space-constrained systems where an IGP is mandatory, the Arc B390 provides a usable, if modest, level of performance.

Specification Differences

The two parts differ in nearly every measured specification. The process node is 3 nm for Intel versus 5 nm for NVIDIA. The foundry is Intel versus TSMC. Transistor count is unknown for the Arc B390 versus 76,300 million for the RTX 4090 D. Die size is unknown versus 609 mm². Transistor density is not recorded for the Arc B390 versus 125.3M per mm² for the RTX 4090 D.

Base clocks are 300 MHz versus 2280 MHz. Boost clocks are 2500 MHz versus 2520 MHz. The Arc B390 uses system shared memory; the RTX 4090 D has 24 GB GDDR6X on a 384 bit bus with 1.01 TB/s bandwidth. Shading units are 1,536 versus 14,592. TMUs are 48 versus 456. ROPs are 24 versus 176. RT cores are 12 versus 114. Tensor cores are not listed for the Arc B390 versus 456 for the RTX 4090 D.

Pixel rate is 60.00 GPixel/s versus 443.5 GPixel/s. Texture rate is 120.0 GTexel/s versus 1,149.1 GTexel/s. FP32 is 7.680 TFLOPS versus 73.54 TFLOPS. FP16 is 15.36 TFLOPS (2:1) versus 73.54 TFLOPS (1:1). TDP is 80 W versus 425 W. Slot width is IGP versus triple-slot. Power connectors are none versus 1x 16-pin. Suggested PSU is not listed versus 800 W. Bus interface is IGP versus PCIe 4.0 x16.

Display outputs are portable device dependent for the Arc B390 versus 1x HDMI 2.1 and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a for the RTX 4090 D. Dimensions are not recorded for the Arc B390; the RTX 4090 D measures 304 mm by 137 mm by 61 mm. Production status is Active versus End-of-life. Release dates are 2026-01-26 for the Arc B390 versus 2023-12-27 for the RTX 4090 D. The RTX 4090 D has a predecessor (GeForce 30) and successor (GeForce 50), while the Arc B390 has neither.

Where Each One Wins

The benchmark data shows no wins for the Intel Arc B390. Its zero wins against one win for the RTX 4090 D in the head-to-head comparison is consistent with its position in the 9th percentile of all GPUs. The Arc B390 is only competitive with the GeForce GT 520MX, GeForce 800M, GeForce GT 625 OEM, and GeForce GT 710, all of which it beats by less than three percent.

The RTX 4090 D wins in every performance category where numbers exist. It delivers roughly 5.8 times the Steel Nomad score, 9.6 times the FP32 throughput, 9.6 times the texture rate, 7.4 times the pixel rate, and 9.5 times the shading units of the Arc B390. Its 24 GB GDDR6X memory with 1.01 TB/s bandwidth provides a dedicated memory pool, while the Arc B390 depends on the host system's shared memory.

For use cases, the RTX 4090 D is suited for high-end desktop gaming, ray tracing workloads, and compute tasks that benefit from tensor cores. Its 456 tensor cores and 114 RT cores are not present on the Arc B390 at all. The RTX 4090 D also supports a triple-slot cooler and requires a high-wattage PSU, which is acceptable for a desktop workstation.

The Arc B390 is suited for portable devices and systems where an IGP is required. Its 80 W TDP, no power connectors, and IGP bus interface mean it can operate in a laptop or compact device without dedicated cooling or a discrete power supply. Its performance level, while low, is sufficient for basic 3D rendering and light gaming, as indicated by its proximity to the GeForce GT 710 and GT 520MX in average scores.

The recorded data does not support any scenario where the Arc B390 outperforms the RTX 4090 D. The only question is whether the use case requires the RTX 4090 D's enormous performance or can accept the Arc B390's integrated approach with its minimal power and space requirements.