AMD, which is all set to launch its upcoming Radeon RX 5700 for desktop this July, gave us a glimpse of the first Radeon 5000 series GPU at Computex 2019. The rumored GPU, which will power AMD RX 5700 graphics cards is built on the new Radeon DNA architecture, which according to the makers, is set to deliver 50% faster performance per watt and 25% better performance per clock, compared to older graphics cards.
Recently, it was revealed that Radeon RX 5700 is a mid-range variant, same as AMD RX 480/450 and AMD Polaris 10, having a die area of approximately 255 square mm. However, despite the size differences, it displays a few features of the Graphics Core Next design.
The TU116 that powers NVIDIA’s GTX 1660 series GPUs is larger than Navi RX 5700 Series powered by AMD Radeon Navi RX 5700. Smaller die area and cutting-edge graphics architecture play a key role here. AMD Navi GPUs have a clear advantage due to the 7nm FinFET technology that is more advanced than the 12nm technology powering the NVIDIA Turing chips. Therefore, the NAVI series is likely to pose a tough competition to NVIDIA RTX series GPUs.
If the rumors are to be believed, AMD’s Radeon RX 5700 has outperformed NVIDIA’s RTX 2070 by 10% in one of the games.
Key features of the latest GPUs that give it a clear advantage over competitors include:
- Multi-level cache hierarchy
- New unit design
- Higher bandwidth (GDDR6 memory subsystem)
- Memory changes (reduced latency, lower power requirements)
- Streamlined graphics pipeline (with performance optimized per clock)
- PCI express 4.0 compliant series (compatible with the X570 platform)
However, despite AMD’s technological advantages, it should be noted that NVIDIA offers a real-time ray tracing technology—which will be the future of visual effects and gaming industry. Therefore, avid gamers might still prefer NVIDIA GPUs over AMDs. Still, AMD has successfully managed to bridge the existing gaps, which means NVIDIA will have to set competitive prices for its products to retain their market share. It also means that the price of AMD GPUs is likely to shoot up.
As of now, the brand hasn’t revealed the exact features, pricing of its new Navi GPUs and its future plans for ray tracing, but we’re expecting it to reveal more details at E3 in the coming week.