Intel Arc Pro B390 vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Max-Q Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The recorded data shows no direct head-to-head benchmark entries for the Intel Arc Pro B390 against the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Max-Q. Both products sit at the 50th percentile among all GPUs in the database, and neither has an average benchmark score recorded. This absence of comparative run data is itself informative: the two parts occupy different segments of the mobile graphics landscape, and their measurable performance profiles must be inferred from their architectural and specification sheets rather than from direct frame-rate comparisons.

The Intel Arc Pro B390 delivers 7.680 TFLOPS of FP32 compute, while the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Max-Q delivers 20.04 TFLOPS. That is a 2.61x advantage for the NVIDIA part in raw single-precision throughput. Pixel throughput tells a similar story: the RTX 4080 Max-Q outputs 108.0 GPixel/s versus 60.00 GPixel/s for the Arc Pro B390, a 1.8x difference. Texture fill rate moves further in NVIDIA's favor, with 313.2 GTexel/s against 120.0 GTexel/s, a 2.61x gap that mirrors the FP32 ratio.

The shading unit count explains much of this. The RTX 4080 Max-Q carries 7424 shading units, 232 TMUs, and 80 ROPs. The Arc Pro B390 has 1536 shading units, 48 TMUs, and 24 ROPs. The NVIDIA part holds a 4.83x lead in shading units, a 4.83x lead in TMUs, and a 3.33x lead in ROPs. Ray tracing hardware follows the same pattern: 58 RT cores on the NVIDIA side versus 12 on the Intel side, a 4.83x difference. The RTX 4080 Max-Q also includes 232 tensor cores; the Arc Pro B390 lists no tensor core count at all.

Clock behavior introduces a wrinkle. The Arc Pro B390 boosts to 2500 MHz, while the RTX 4080 Max-Q boosts to only 1350 MHz. Despite this 1.85x clock advantage for Intel, the NVIDIA part still wins decisively on every throughput metric because of its massive parallel resource advantage. The data suggests that architectural efficiency and raw resource counts dominate clock speed in this comparison.

Memory bandwidth is another categorical win for NVIDIA. The RTX 4080 Max-Q uses 12 GB of GDDR6 on a 192-bit bus, delivering 432.0 GB/s. The Arc Pro B390 uses system shared memory, with bandwidth listed as system dependent. In practical terms, the dedicated GDDR6 implementation provides a fixed, high-bandwidth path that the shared-memory Intel part cannot match when the system memory subsystem is slower than dedicated VRAM.

The Verdict

The database indicates that the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Max-Q is the stronger performer across every compute and memory metric recorded. Its 20.04 TFLOPS FP32 output, 432.0 GB/s memory bandwidth, and 108.0 GPixel/s pixel rate place it in a different performance class than the Intel Arc Pro B390. The Intel part counters with a higher boost clock, a smaller process node, and a lower thermal design power, but these advantages do not translate into raw performance wins.

The RTX 4080 Max-Q also carries a larger feature set for AI workloads, with 232 tensor cores available for accelerated matrix operations. The Arc Pro B390 has no tensor core count listed, which limits its applicability in machine learning inference and training tasks. For workloads that depend on ray tracing, the 58 RT cores of the NVIDIA part provide substantially more dedicated hardware than the 12 RT cores on the Intel part.

The Intel Arc Pro B390 does hold advantages in process technology and power draw. Its 3 nm process node from Intel Foundry contrasts with the 5 nm TSMC node of the RTX 4080 Max-Q. The Intel part consumes 80 W against 60 W for the NVIDIA part, meaning the NVIDIA GPU achieves its far higher performance while using 25% less power. Neither part requires external power connectors, and both are integrated into portable devices.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from different architectural lineages. Intel uses the Xe3-LPG architecture on the Panther Lake chip, part of the Arc Graphics-WM generation. NVIDIA uses Ada Lovelace on the AD104 chip, part of the GeForce 40 Mobile generation. These are fundamentally different designs with different priorities.

The process node separation is significant. Intel fabricates the Arc Pro B390 on a 3 nm process at Intel Foundry. NVIDIA fabricates the RTX 4080 Max-Q on a 5 nm process at TSMC. The smaller node gives Intel a theoretical density advantage, though the database records transistor counts only for NVIDIA: 35,800 million transistors on a 294 mm² die, yielding a density of 121.8 million transistors per square millimeter. The Intel die size and transistor count are listed as unknown.

Memory architecture differs completely. The Arc Pro B390 uses system shared memory, with no dedicated VRAM, no dedicated bus width, and bandwidth that depends on the host system. The RTX 4080 Max-Q uses 12 GB of GDDR6 on a 192-bit bus at 2250 MHz, with 18 Gbps effective speed and 432.0 GB/s of bandwidth. This dedicated memory subsystem is central to the NVIDIA part's performance advantage.

The compute resource distribution also diverges. The Arc Pro B390 allocates 1536 shading units, 48 TMUs, 24 ROPs, and 12 RT cores. The RTX 4080 Max-Q allocates 7424 shading units, 232 TMUs, 80 ROPs, 58 RT cores, and 232 tensor cores. The Intel part has a 2:1 FP16 to FP32 ratio, delivering 15.36 TFLOPS of half-precision compute. The NVIDIA part has a 1:1 ratio, delivering 20.04 TFLOPS of half-precision compute. The NVIDIA part's FP16 throughput is therefore 1.3x higher than Intel's, despite the Intel part's dedicated 2:1 conversion path.

Specification Differences

The two parts differ on nearly every recorded specification. Clock speeds show Intel at 300 MHz base and 2500 MHz boost, while NVIDIA sits at 795 MHz base and 1350 MHz boost. The Intel boost clock is 1.85x higher, but the NVIDIA base clock is 2.65x higher. Power draw favors NVIDIA at 60 W versus 80 W for Intel, a 25% reduction. Both are IGP slot-width parts with no power connectors and portable-device-dependent display outputs.

The bus interface differs: the Arc Pro B390 uses IGP, while the RTX 4080 Max-Q uses PCIe 4.0 x16. The NVIDIA part has a known transistor count of 35,800 million on a 294 mm² die, while the Intel part's transistor count and die size are unknown. Release dates place the Intel part at January 26, 2026, and the NVIDIA part at January 2, 2023, a three-year gap in market availability.

API support is identical for both: DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The manufacturing foundries differ, with Intel using its own foundry and NVIDIA using TSMC. The production status for both is Active, and neither has a launch MSRP recorded. The predecessor and successor relationships also differ: the Arc Pro B390 follows HD Graphics-WM with no successor listed, while the RTX 4080 Max-Q follows GeForce 30 Mobile and is succeeded by GeForce 50 Mobile.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has higher FP32 compute performance?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Max-Q delivers 20.04 TFLOPS of FP32 performance, which is 2.61x higher than the Intel Arc Pro B390's 7.680 TFLOPS.

Q: Does the Intel Arc Pro B390 have a higher boost clock?

A: Yes, the Intel part boosts to 2500 MHz, while the NVIDIA part boosts to 1350 MHz. The Intel boost clock is 1.85x higher, but this does not overcome the NVIDIA part's larger compute resource pool.

Q: Which GPU uses less power?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Max-Q has a 60 W TDP, while the Intel Arc Pro B390 has an 80 W TDP. The NVIDIA part uses 25% less power while delivering higher throughput.

Q: What are the memory configurations?

A: The NVIDIA part uses 12 GB of GDDR6 on a 192-bit bus with 432.0 GB/s bandwidth. The Intel part uses system shared memory with system-dependent bandwidth and no dedicated VRAM.

Q: Which GPU has more ray tracing cores?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Max-Q has 58 RT cores, while the Intel Arc Pro B390 has 12 RT cores. The NVIDIA part has 4.83x more RT hardware.

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.

Where Each One Wins

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Max-Q wins on every throughput metric in the database: FP32 compute, FP16 compute, pixel fill rate, texture fill rate, and memory bandwidth. Its 20.04 TFLOPS FP32 output and 432.0 GB/s bandwidth make it suitable for high-resolution gaming, GPU-accelerated rendering, and compute-heavy workloads. The 232 tensor cores provide dedicated hardware for AI inference and training tasks. The 58 RT cores handle ray-traced effects with substantially more parallelism than the Intel part's 12 RT cores. The 60 W TDP also makes it more power-efficient per unit of performance.

The Intel Arc Pro B390 wins on process node, using a 3 nm fabrication process versus the NVIDIA part's 5 nm process. It also has a higher boost clock at 2500 MHz versus 1350 MHz. These advantages suggest the Intel part may be more competitive in scenarios where the workload scales with clock speed rather than raw core count, though the database records no benchmark data to confirm this. The system shared memory architecture eliminates the need for dedicated VRAM, which could simplify system design in portable devices.

The three-year release gap matters for platform integration. The Intel part launched on January 26, 2026, while the NVIDIA part launched on January 2, 2023. The Intel part belongs to the Arc Graphics-WM generation with Panther Lake, while the NVIDIA part belongs to the GeForce 40 Mobile generation with AD104. For systems built around newer Intel platforms, the Arc Pro B390 offers integrated graphics with a 3 nm process and a 2500 MHz boost clock. For systems prioritizing peak performance and dedicated memory bandwidth, the RTX 4080 Max-Q remains the data-supported choice.