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Comeback: AMD reaches NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q levels of performance with the Radeon RX 5500M

Comeback: AMD reaches NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q levels of performance with the Radeon RX 5500M (Image source: Notebookcheck)
Comeback: AMD reaches NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q levels of performance with the Radeon RX 5500M (Image source: Notebookcheck)
We were able to run numerous gaming benchmarks on the AMD Radeon RX 5500M as part of our exclusive hands-on with the MSI Alpha 15, an outline of which we shall provide in this review snippet. In short, the new Navi 14 chip comes closer to the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q than the GTX 1650, while even reaching GTX 1660 Ti levels on occasion.

After a successful return to the processor market with its Ryzen processors, AMD has now set its sights on GPUs with its Navi architecture. We have already seen what the desktop variants offer in our RX 5700 and RX 5700 XT reviews, but now it is the turn of the Radeon RX 5500M to show what AMD can do on laptops. The MSI Alpha 15 will be one of the first gaming laptops that includes the new GPU, while the Ryzen 7 3750H equipped device will also be equally rare for its all-AMD CPU and GPU offering.

MSI kindly provided us with a pre-production model for our hands-on review, during which we had the opportunity to put the Alpha 15 and Radeon RX 5500M through its paces. Initial results are promising, although AMD and MSI need to improvements in some games. In short, the Alpha 15 and Radeon RX 5500M come close to the performance that GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q equipped laptops offer. However, the Radeon RX 5500M also fluctuates between matching the GTX 1650 and nearing GTX 1660 Ti levels in some games. The Alpha 15 scores well in the older 3DMark 11 too, while straddling the gap between the GTX 1650 and GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q in the newer Fire Strike benchmark.

Meanwhile, the sophisticated Time Spy Graphics benchmark sees the combination of the Ryzen 7 3750H CPU and Radeon RX 5500M GPU 12% ahead of the fastest GTX 1650 laptop. The Alpha 15 also scores 18% less than the best GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q laptop of our hands-on review comparison devices.

The Witcher 3 - 1920x1080 Ultra Graphics & Postprocessing (HBAO+)
Average NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Mobile
  (51.6 - 65.1, n=21)
56.2 fps
Asus ROG Zephyrus M15 GU502GU-XB74
Intel Core i7-9750H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Mobile
55.2 fps
HP Gaming Pavilion 15-dk0009ng
Intel Core i7-9750H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q
53.1 fps
Lenovo Legion Y540-15IRH-81SX00B2GE
Intel Core i7-9750H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Mobile
53.1 (50min, 51P1 - 58max) fps
HP Pavilion Gaming 15-ec0017ng
AMD Ryzen 7 3750H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q
52.2 fps
Average NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q
  (44.8 - 53.2, n=7)
50.3 fps
Asus ROG Zephyrus G15 GA502DU
AMD Ryzen 7 3750H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q
48.8 fps
MSI Alpha 15 A3DDK
AMD Ryzen 7 3750H, AMD Radeon RX 5500M
43.6 (36min - 48max) fps
HP Omen 15-dc1020ng
Intel Core i5-9300H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Mobile
37 fps
Asus TUF FX505DT-EB73
AMD Ryzen 7 3750H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Mobile
36.2 fps
Dell G3 3590
Intel Core i5-9300H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Mobile
36.2 fps
Average NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Mobile
  (29.9 - 40.3, n=31)
35.6 fps
Acer Aspire Nitro 5 AN515-54-53Z2
Intel Core i5-9300H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Mobile
35.4 (28min) fps
Lenovo IdeaPad L340-15IRH 81LK00BMGE
Intel Core i5-9300H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Mobile
34.5 (32min, 32P1 - 37max) fps
Dell G5 15 5590-PCNJJ
Intel Core i5-9300H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Mobile
34.4 (26min) fps
Shadow of the Tomb Raider - 1920x1080 Highest Preset AA:T
Average NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Mobile
  (62 - 73, n=8)
68.4 fps
Asus ROG Zephyrus M15 GU502GU-XB74
Intel Core i7-9750H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Mobile
62 fps
Average NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q
  (49 - 67, n=4)
57.3 fps
MSI Alpha 15 A3DDK
AMD Ryzen 7 3750H, AMD Radeon RX 5500M
53 (44min) fps
Asus ROG Zephyrus G15 GA502DU
AMD Ryzen 7 3750H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q
49 fps
HP Pavilion Gaming 15-ec0017ng
AMD Ryzen 7 3750H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q
49 fps
Acer Aspire Nitro 5 AN515-54-53Z2
Intel Core i5-9300H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Mobile
44 (9min) fps
Average NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Mobile
  (34 - 47, n=15)
43.2 fps
Dell G5 15 5590-PCNJJ
Intel Core i5-9300H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Mobile
43 (35min) fps
Asus TUF FX505DT-EB73
AMD Ryzen 7 3750H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Mobile
41 fps
BioShock Infinite - 1920x1080 Ultra Preset, DX11 (DDOF)
Lenovo Legion Y540-15IRH-81SX00B2GE
Intel Core i7-9750H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Mobile
138 fps
Average NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Mobile
  (121.6 - 144.2, n=14)
135.9 fps
HP Gaming Pavilion 15-dk0009ng
Intel Core i7-9750H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q
126.3 fps
MSI Alpha 15 A3DDK
AMD Ryzen 7 3750H, AMD Radeon RX 5500M
123 fps
Asus ROG Zephyrus M15 GU502GU-XB74
Intel Core i7-9750H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Mobile
121.6 fps
Average NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q
  (102.3 - 130, n=5)
117 fps
HP Pavilion Gaming 15-ec0017ng
AMD Ryzen 7 3750H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q
107.4 fps
Asus ROG Zephyrus G15 GA502DU
AMD Ryzen 7 3750H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q
102.3 fps
HP Omen 15-dc1020ng
Intel Core i5-9300H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Mobile
90.8 fps
HP Omen 15-dc1020ng
Intel Core i5-9300H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Mobile
87.7 fps
Average NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Mobile
  (68.5 - 99.4, n=18)
86.4 fps
Dell G5 15 5590-PCNJJ
Intel Core i5-9300H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Mobile
86.1 (3min) fps
Dell G3 3590
Intel Core i5-9300H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Mobile
85.6 fps
Lenovo IdeaPad L340-15IRH 81LK00BMGE
Intel Core i5-9300H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Mobile
78.7 fps
Asus TUF FX505DT-EB73
AMD Ryzen 7 3750H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Mobile
73.9 fps
F1 2019 - 1920x1080 Ultra High Preset AA:T AF:16x
Average NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Mobile
  (91 - 99, n=4)
93.8 fps
HP Pavilion Gaming 15-ec0017ng
AMD Ryzen 7 3750H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q
77 fps
Average NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q
  (71 - 77, n=2)
74 fps
HP Gaming Pavilion 15-dk0009ng
Intel Core i7-9750H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q
71 fps
MSI Alpha 15 A3DDK
AMD Ryzen 7 3750H, AMD Radeon RX 5500M
64 (54min - 70max) fps
HP Omen 15-dc1020ng
Intel Core i5-9300H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Mobile
63 fps
Average NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Mobile
  (59 - 65, n=5)
61.2 fps
HP Omen 15-dc1020ng
Intel Core i5-9300H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Mobile
60 fps
Dell G5 15 5590-PCNJJ
Intel Core i5-9300H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Mobile
59 (53min) fps
Rage 2 - 1920x1080 Ultra Preset (Resolution Scale Off)
Average NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Mobile
  (67.9 - 68.8, n=2)
68.4 fps
HP Pavilion Gaming 15-ec0017ng
AMD Ryzen 7 3750H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q
64.8 fps
Average NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q
  (58.2 - 64.8, n=2)
61.5 fps
HP Omen 15-dc1020ng
Intel Core i5-9300H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Mobile
60 fps
HP Gaming Pavilion 15-dk0009ng
Intel Core i7-9750H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q
58.2 fps
MSI Alpha 15 A3DDK
AMD Ryzen 7 3750H, AMD Radeon RX 5500M
53.4 (47.4P1) fps
Average NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Mobile
  (45.1 - 60, n=3)
50.5 fps
HP Omen 15-dc1020ng
Intel Core i5-9300H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Mobile
46.4 fps
Dell G5 15 5590-PCNJJ
Intel Core i5-9300H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Mobile
45.1 fps
Dirt Rally 2.0 - 1920x1080 Ultra Preset AA:T AF:16x
Average NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Mobile
  (62.3 - 65.6, n=2)
64 fps
HP Gaming Pavilion 15-dk0009ng
Intel Core i7-9750H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q
59.2 fps
MSI Alpha 15 A3DDK
AMD Ryzen 7 3750H, AMD Radeon RX 5500M
58.4 (52min - 68max) fps
Average NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q
  (57.3 - 59.2, n=2)
58.3 fps
HP Pavilion Gaming 15-ec0017ng
AMD Ryzen 7 3750H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q
57.3 fps
Average NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Mobile
  (41.8 - 44.1, n=3)
42.7 fps
Dell G5 15 5590-PCNJJ
Intel Core i5-9300H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Mobile
41.8 (33min) fps

Synthetic benchmarks are all well and good, but games are the true test of a consumer GPU. The Radeon RX 5500M performs admirably here too, with it keeping the GTX 1650 at bay by 18% in The Witcher 3, while trailing the GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q by around 12%. The Alpha 15 fares even better in Shadow of the Tomb Raider, averaging just 2% lower framerates than the average of GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q equipped devices that we have tested. Our pre-production model even overtakes some of our GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q comparison devices too. A similar picture emerges in Bioshock Infinite, an older title that we have added to our comparisons because of the numerous GPUs we have benchmarked with it. The Ryzen 7 3750H and Radeon RX 5500M outperform laptops with a GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q here, while it is closer to the GTX 1650 in F1 2019 and Rage 2. Meanwhile, the Alpha 15 has the GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q in its sights in Dirt Rally 2.0.

Please note: We conducted all our benchmarks with a pre-production model. This device does not necessarily represent final production units, as we expect MSI to improve the BIOS, firmware and software before releasing the Alpha 15. Past experience tells us that the performance of some games depends heavily on GPU drivers, so our results will probably change when we test a retail unit.

Please see our accompanying MSI Alpha 15 hands-on review for our full thoughts on the device and the Radeon RX 5500M.

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> Expert Reviews and News on Laptops, Smartphones and Tech Innovations > News > News Archive > Newsarchive 2019 10 > Comeback: AMD reaches NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q levels of performance with the Radeon RX 5500M
Alex Alderson, 2019-11- 3 (Update: 2019-11- 3)