Which graph is better? GTX 1060 vs RX 480

Many of you have been asking us about the great rivalry of the year when it comes to graphics cards. We understand, we are also somewhat involved. We want them all! Unfortunately you have to choose one, and if you are in the range of € 200-300 you will be in this situation. GTX 1060 or RX 480?

This year NVidia and AMD have come up with a great rivalry in the mid-range and it is difficult to know how to choose which graphics best suits us.

So that you remember we leave you a short list with the technical characteristics of each one. For more specific information, we recommend searching on the website of Nvidia and AMD.

Those of us who are not great experts in the field can get little from these tables. We know that the 480GB RX 4 has 1000MHz lower memory frequency compared to the 8GB. Nvidia's, on the other hand, is cut short on the other hand, by its CUDA cores.

Thanks to these cuts, the cheapest versions of the graphics appear. These are the approximate prices:

• RX480 8GB ≈ €270-330
• GTX 1060 6GB ≈ €260-360
• RX480 4GB ≈ €200-240
• GTX 1060 3GB ≈ €230-260

Clearly these They are not the prices that the companies promised us, but you know, those promised prices are only met in the US In Europe you have to add a good peak. There is a clear price range differentiation. Those who have less than € 260 must choose the trimmed models. Those with a larger budget can go to the complete models.

The 1060GB 6 or the 480GB 8?

A difficult choice. Or maybe not so much. We want to make it simple, so here you have what each one stands out for.

RX 480

• Specific hardware for low-level APIs
• It does not suffer as much when the resolution is increased
• Better performance in games with Vulkan API

GTX 1060

• Better gaming performance with DX 11
• Lower consumption and therefore less heat

Here you have to do several remarks. The first is that the GTX 1060 holds up in DX12 type very well. There is a tiny difference between the two graphs. One performs better in one game, and another in another. There is no clear winner. In DX11 there is, the 1060 wins by 10% more performance. Although it is like everything, it depends on the game. In Vulkan AMD destroys Nvidia; without compassion. But how many games are there with Vulkan?

El best before date is another point. AMD's graphics claim to consume only 150W, but assemblers' graphics are about 175W or more. Nvidia can take advantage of this because its graphics consumes much less (120W theoretical) and therefore produces less heat.

And who wins? There are opinions for everyone and they are all respectable. From HardwareSfera we are left with the 1060GB GTX 6 as the winner.

The 1060GB 3 or the 480GB 4?

The basic differences between them are the same that we have explained before. However, here it is necessary to specify even more; They are cropped models. AMD has taken 1000MHz from their GDDR5, although some assemblers have made us overclock them to the value of 8GB. Nvidia has touched its CUDA cores. Exactly has eliminated 10% of the total, that is to say, 128. Such a value might seem insignificant, but it is precisely the difference between the 6Gb model and the 3GB one; 10%.

If we look at benchmarks between these two graphs we will see that they follow in the wake of their older sisters in terms of performance. However, and this is where the important thing is, that drop in CUDAs makes the difference minimum with your competitor. So minimal that in most games they get the 'same' performance, if not the same.

The drop from 6GB to 3GB causes stutters, which is a phenomenon due to the loading time of new textures to the graphics RAM. This causes a considerable drop in  frames. It becomes such that on those occasions the RX 470 (yes, 470) beats it. This was found out by our colleagues at eurogamer.net.

La 1060GB GTX 3 is great graphics to play at 1080p-60fps. You can put the textures on high / ultra that will move it without problems. However, from Hardwaresfera we believe that 3 GB is not enough for gaming for the next 3-4 years, in addition to its cut in the graphics core. Therefore we believe that the best choice it would be a 480GB RX 4.