AMD Radeon RX 6500 XT vs AMD Radeon HD 7970M

VS
Performance
Radeon RX 6500 XT307% better
22,95422% of 104,737
Radeon HD 7970M
5,6455% of 104,737

The Radeon RX 6500 XT has 307% better performance than the Radeon HD 7970M for the 3DMark 11 Performance GPU benchmark.

Performance per dollar
Radeon RX 6500 XT
115.3571% of 161.45
Radeon HD 7970M
No data available

The Radeon RX 6500 XT has 71% of the performance per dollar compared to the leader for the 3DMark 11 Performance GPU benchmark: AMD Radeon RX 7600.

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Summary

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About the AMD Radeon RX 6500 XT GPU

The AMD Radeon RX 6500 XT is a desktop graphics card that launched in Q1 2022 with a MSRP of $199. It is built on the RDNA 2.0 GPU microarchitecture (codename Navi 24) and is manufactured on a 6 nm process.

Memory

The RX 6500 XT has 4 GB of GDDR6 memory, with a 2,248 MHz memory clock and a 64 bit interface. This gives it a memory bandwidth of 143.9 Gb/s, which affects how fast it can transfer data to and from memory. GPU memory stores temporary data that helps the GPU with complex math and graphics operations. More memory is generally better, as not having enough can cause performance bottlenecks.

Cores and Clock Speeds

The RX 6500 XT includes 1,024 stream processors (SPs), the processing units for handling parallel computing tasks. The GPU operates at a core clock speed of 2,310 MHz and can dynamically boost its clock speed up to 2,815 MHz. It usually operates at 2,610 MHz during typical gaming workloads. Complementing the processing units are 64 texture mapping units (TMUs) for efficient texture filtering and 32 render output units (ROPs) for pixel processing. Additionally, the GPU features 16 ray accelerators dedicated to real-time ray tracing calculations.

Compatibility & Power Consumption

The RX 6500 XT occupies 2 PCIe expansion slots. It supports HDMI 2.1, DisplayPort 1.4a display connections. AMD recommends a power supply of at least 300 W to handle the GPU's thermal design power (TDP) of 107 W.

Benchmark Performance & Value

The RX 6500 XT has the 102nd best 3DMark 11 Performance GPU score among the 543 benchmarked GPUs in our database. It achieves 21.92% of the performance of the best benchmarked GPU, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090. Its 22,954 score and $199 launch price (MSRP) gives it a performance per dollar of 115.35. This is the 9th best in value for the 3DMark 11 Performance GPU benchmark.

About the AMD Radeon HD 7970M GPU

The AMD Radeon HD 7970M is an end-of-life mobile graphics card that released in Q2 2012. It is built on the GCN 1.0 GPU microarchitecture (codename Wimbledon) and is manufactured on a 28 nm process.

Memory

The HD 7970M has 2 GB of GDDR5 memory, with a 1,200 MHz memory clock and a 256 bit interface. This gives it a memory bandwidth of 153.6 Gb/s, which affects how fast it can transfer data to and from memory. GPU memory stores temporary data that helps the GPU with complex math and graphics operations. More memory is generally better, as not having enough can cause performance bottlenecks.

Cores and Clock Speeds

The HD 7970M includes 1,280 stream processors (SPs), the processing units for handling parallel computing tasks. The GPU operates at a core clock speed of 850 MHz. Complementing the processing units are 80 texture mapping units (TMUs) for efficient texture filtering and 32 render output units (ROPs) for pixel processing.

Compatibility & Power Consumption

The GPU has a thermal design power (TDP) of 100 W. A power supply not strong enough to handle this might result in system crashes and potentially damage your hardware.

Benchmark Performance

The HD 7970M has the 232nd best 3DMark 11 Performance GPU score among the 543 benchmarked GPUs in our database. It achieves 5.39% of the performance of the best benchmarked GPU, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090.

General Info

General overview of the GPU, including details like its manufacturer, release date, launch price, and current production status.

InfoRadeon RX 6500 XTRadeon HD 7970M
ManufacturerAMDAMD
ArchitectureRDNA 2.0GCN 1.0
Market SegmentDesktopMobile
Release DateQ1 2022Q2 2012
Launch Price (MSRP)$199--
Production StatusActiveEnd-of-life
ShopCheck PriceCheck Price

Gaming Performance

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Select a game to compare FPS metrics

Display FPS for F1 24
F1 24
Display FPS for Senua's Saga Hellblade 2
Senua's Saga Hellblade 2
Display FPS for Ghost of Tsushima
Ghost of Tsushima
Display FPS for Dragon's Dogma 2
Dragon's Dogma 2
Display FPS for Horizon Forbidden West
Horizon Forbidden West
Display FPS for Alone in the Dark (2024)
Alone in the Dark (2024)
Display FPS for Sons of the Forest
Sons of the Forest

FPS Benchmarks

This table showcases the average frame rate (FPS) achieved both GPUs in at various resolutions. Frame rate is a crucial indicator of how smoothly the GPU can run the game. A higher FPS generally translates to a smoother gameplay experience.

  • Frames Per Second
FPS data for F1 24
F1 24
Radeon RX 6500 XTRadeon HD 7970M
Low - 1080p
86 FPS
--
Medium - 1080p
57 FPS
--
High - 1080p
37 FPS
--
Ultra - 1080p
10 FPS
--
QHD - 1440p
7 FPS
--
4K UHD - 2160p
--
--
FPS Source: Notebookcheck

Compare Frames Per Second (FPS)

The average frame rate (FPS) in can be compared to similar GPUs to assess relative performance. Generally, higher FPS results in a smoother gameplay experience.

Choose Baseline GPU:Radeon RX 6500 XT orRadeon HD 7970M
GPUFrames Per Second
Arc A77042+518%
Arc A75037.1+446%
GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER34.8+412%
GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER28.8+324%
Radeon RX 660020.1+196%
Radeon RX 6500 XT6.8

Compare Cost Per Frame

The average cost per frame in can be compared to similar GPUs to assess relative value. Generally, a lower cost per frame implies better value for your money.

Choose Baseline GPU:Radeon RX 6500 XT orRadeon HD 7970M
GPUCost Per Frame
Arc A7507.79-73%
Arc A7707.83-73%
GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER13.85-53%
GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER14.34-51%
Radeon RX 660016.37-44%
Radeon RX 6500 XT29.26

Benchmark Performance

#
Performance
Radeon RX 6500 XT307% better
22,95422% of 104,737
Radeon HD 7970M
5,6455% of 104,737

The Radeon RX 6500 XT has 307% better performance than the Radeon HD 7970M for the 3DMark 11 Performance GPU benchmark.

The Radeon RX 6500 XT is ranked 102nd with a score of 22,954, and the Radeon HD 7970M is ranked 232nd with a score of 5,645.

Performance per dollar
Radeon RX 6500 XT
115.3571% of 161.45
Radeon HD 7970M
No data available

The Radeon RX 6500 XT has 176% of the performance per dollar compared to the leader for the 3DMark 11 Performance GPU benchmark: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090.

Radeon RX 6500 XT's 115.35 performance per dollar ranks it 9th among the other benchmarked GPUs in our database.

Relative Performance

The average score in the benchmark test can be compared to similar GPUs to assess relative performance. Generally, powerful GPUs tend to have higher scores.

Choose Baseline GPU:Radeon RX 6500 XT or
GPUBenchmark Performance
Radeon RX 59023,362.5+2%
GeForce GTX 980 Ti23,057+0%
Radeon RX 6500 XT22,954
GeForce GTX 1660 Ti22,891.5-0%
GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER21,980.5-4%
GeForce GTX 775M (Mac Edition)6,071-74%
GeForce GTX 680M5,897.5-74%
Radeon HD 7970M5,645-75%
Radeon HD 6970M X25,541.5-76%
Radeon R9 M385X5,514.5-76%

Relative Value For Money

The average performance per dollar in the benchmark test can be compared to similar GPUs to assess relative value. A higher score implies a better value for your money.

Choose Baseline GPU:Radeon RX 6500 XT orRadeon HD 7970M
GPUPerformance Per Dollar
Arc A750129.02+12%
Arc A770125.54+9%
Radeon RX 5500 XT115.38+0%
Radeon RX 6500 XT115.35
GeForce GTX 1650 SUPER114.62-1%
Radeon RX 570112.23-3%
Radeon RX 5600 XT112.22-3%
Radeon RX 47098.46-15%
Radeon RX 660096.58-16%
GeForce GTX 166096.18-17%

Benchmark Scores

This table showcases the average performance scores achieved by both GPUs across industry-standard benchmark tests. These scores provide a valuable insight into overall performance. Powerful GPUs tend to have higher scores.

  • Popular
BenchmarkRadeon RX 6500 XTRadeon HD 7970M
3DMark Time Spy Graphics
4,967
--
3DMark Time Spy Score
5,536
--
3DMark Cloud Gate Graphics
91,909
(+188.4%)
31,869
3DMark Fire Strike Standard Graphics
15,712
(+234.73%)
4,694
3DMark Night Raid Graphics
64,682
--
3DMark 11 Performance Score
22,899
(+287.66%)
5,907
PassMark G3D Mark
9,561
(+170.93%)
3,529
PassMark G2D Mark
806
(+60.56%)
502
Unigine Heaven 3.0 DirectX 11
--
57.7
Benchmarks Source: Notebookcheck

Technical Specs

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Graphics Processor

General information about the graphics processing unit like their architecture, manufacturing process size, and transistor count. Newer GPU architectures generally bring efficiency improvements and may introduce technologies that enhance graphical capabilities.

SpecRadeon RX 6500 XTRadeon HD 7970M
CodenameNavi 24Wimbledon
ArchitectureRDNA 2.0GCN 1.0
Process Size6 nm28 nm
Transistors5,400 million2,800 million

Memory Details

Memory specifications like their capacity, bandwidth, and clock speeds. GPU memory stores graphics data like frames, textures, and shadows which helps display rendered images. These specs are crucial for graphics-intense applications like gaming and 3D modeling.

SpecRadeon RX 6500 XTRadeon HD 7970M
Memory Size4 GB2 GB
Memory TypeGDDR6GDDR5
Memory Bandwidth143.9 Gb/s153.6 Gb/s
Memory Clock2,248 MHz1,200 MHz
Memory Interface64 bit256 bit
L1 Cache128 KB16 KB
L2 Cache1,024 KB512 KB

Board Compatibility

Compatibility information like their slot size, bus interface, power consumption, and display support. These specs are useful for verifying compatibility with your motherboard, power supply, and monitor.

SpecRadeon RX 6500 XTRadeon HD 7970M
Slots2 slots--
Bus InterfacePCIe 4.0 x4MXM-B (3.0)
Thermal Design Power (TDP)107 W100 W
Suggested PSU300 W--
Power Connectors1x 6-pin--
OutputsHDMI 2.1, DisplayPort 1.4aDevice Dependent

Cores & Clock Speeds

Processing power information like its cores and clock speed. These specs impact how fast they can process graphics. Each type of core or component serves a specific computational purpose.

SpecRadeon RX 6500 XTRadeon HD 7970M
Stream Processors (SP)1,0241,280
Compute Units (CU)1620
Texture Mapping Units (TMU)6480
Render Output Units (ROP)3232
Ray Accelerators16--
Core Clock Speed2,310 MHz850 MHz
Core Clock Speed (Boost)2,815 MHz--
Core Clock Speed (Game)2,610 MHz--

Theoretical Performance

Theoretical performance numbers derived from the raw specifications of the different components like core count and clock speeds. While these provide a glimpse into peak processing power, they do not represent real-world performance.

SpecRadeon RX 6500 XTRadeon HD 7970M
Pixel Fill Rate90.08 GPixel/s27.2 GPixel/s
Texture Fill Rate180.2 GTexel/s68 GTexel/s
FP32 Performance5.77 TFLOPS2.18 TFLOPS
FP64 Performance360.3 GFLOPS136 GFLOPS

API Support

Graphics API versions supported by these graphics cards. APIs evolve over time, introducing new features and functionalities. Older GPUs may not support recent versions.

SpecRadeon RX 6500 XTRadeon HD 7970M
DirectX12 Ultimate (12_2)12 (11_1)
OpenCL2.22.1 (1.2)
OpenGL4.64.6
Shader Model6.86.5 (5.1)

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* Performance rating, performance per dollar, and rankings are based on the 3DMark 11 Performance GPU benchmark and MSRP.