NVIDIA GTX 1630 vs AMD RX 6400 | What was NVIDIA even thinking?

Nvidia launched a new GPU, GTX 1630 yesterday, at around 150-ish dollar category. That directly sparks the comparison of GTX 1630 vs Radeon RX 6400, which comes at an extra 9 dollars. So if you are curious to know which one is the better entry-level GPU, then continue reading this article where we will discuss just that.

1. GTX 1630 Specifications | Why Nvidia?

Specifications of the GTX 1630 are as follows:

• Graphics processor: TU117, 12 nm

• GPU cores: 512

• Base Clock: 1740 MHz

• Boost Clock: 1785 MHz

• TDP: 75 W

• Interface: PCIe 3.0 x8

• Bandwidth: 64

• Memory type: GDDR6

• Bandwidth: 64 GB/s

• Memory Size: 4GB

• RTX & DLSS: No

The GTX 1630 looks like the GTX 1030 replacement, but according to some rumors it was supposed to be the GTX 1050 TI replacement, but is it really?

It gets a measly number of 512 Cuda cores and runs at a low TDP of 75 Watts, but still needs a six-pin PCIe power connector, which wasn’t present in the 1050 ti. The only thing it has better than the 1050 TI is the GDDR6 Memory and Shadowplay. Also, GTX 1630 can’t be overclocked like the 1050 TI, further limiting the maximum you can get out of it. According to benchmarks, GTX 1630 is more or less the same, or worse than the 1050 TI, which makes it stupid to call GTX 1630 its successor. 

Although the GTX 1630 is 3 times faster than the five-year-old GT 1030, which makes it okay for entry-level, the price tag is the sole reason why it is getting the backlash. DLSS could have been so good for this card but as this lacks the Tensor Cores it does not get that. We are not going to discuss RTX because it is not the main concern when you are looking for a card at this price bracket. Overall, GTX 1630 is by far the worst in terms of price to performance.

2. RX 6400 Specifications | Good Price for Performance Ratio

• Graphics processor: Navi 24 XL, 6 nm

• GPU cores: 768

• Base Clock: 1923 MHz

• Boost Clock: 2123 MHz

• TDP: 53 W

• Interface: PCIe 4.0 x16

• Memory type: GDDR6

• Bandwidth: 128 GB/s

• Memory Size: 4GB

• RTX & DLSS: No

3. NVIDIA GTX 1630 vs AMD RX 6400

This is not a very hard comparison to do, as GTX 1630 makes the RX 6400 look so good. With more cores, better clock speeds, Ray Tracing capabilities, and better consistent performance, the RX 6400 is a no-brainer between these two.

It gives almost 60% more performance than GTX 1630, at about the same real-life TDP as GTX 1630 (which cannot be increased for both of these). 

4. What you should really buy, GTX 1630 vs RX 6400, or around that budget?

RX 6400 just annihilates the Team Green at that price range and there is no question that you should buy the RX 6400. However, you will have to spend 10 dollars more than 1630 but you are getting a 60% performance boost.

But, if you can get your hands on an old 1070, or 1060 ti or cards like those in good condition around the price of 150 dollars or less you should definitely go for that.

We shouldn’t forget Intel’s Arc Lineup either, their A380 is priced at around 1030 yen (or 150 USD) in China and it can be a dominator in this price bracket. It seems like Intel is going to be the budget segment king sooner or later.

The GTX 1630 not only is a disappointment but also looks like a lost opportunity for Nvidia.