GeForce GTX 280 vs GeForce GTX 850M

In this comparison between GeForce GTX 280 and GeForce GTX 850M you will find out which graphics card performs better in today's games. Bear in mind that third-party versions may have more efficient cooling and higher clock speeds. This will increase cards' performance, though not by much. In addition to raw power you should also take into account the dimensions. Thicker models simply will not fit into a small mini-ITX case. The resolution of your monitor also affects the choice, since 4K gameplay requires a more powerful GPU. And don't overspend on the graphics card. Other parts of your build may also need to be upgraded, save some money for the CPU or power supply. For some people GeForce GTX 280 will be the best choice, for others GeForce GTX 850M will be their preference. Study the comparison tables below and make your choice.

GeForce GTX 850M is a Laptop Graphics Card

Note: GeForce GTX 850M is only used in laptop graphics. It has lower GPU clock speed compared to the desktop variant, which results in lower power consumption, but also 10-30% lower gaming performance. Check available laptop models with GeForce GTX 850M here:

Main Specs

  GeForce GTX 280 GeForce GTX 850M
Power consumption (TDP) 236 Watt 45 Watt
Interface PCIe 2.0 x16 PCIe 3.0 x16
Supplementary power connectors 6-pin & 8-pin
Memory type GDDR3 DDR3, GDDR5
Maximum RAM amount 1 GB 4 GB
Display Connectors 2x DVI, 1x S-Video No outputs
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  • GeForce GTX 280 has 424% more power consumption, than GeForce GTX 850M.
  • GeForce GTX 280 is connected by PCIe 2.0 x16, and GeForce GTX 850M uses PCIe 3.0 x16 interface.
  • GeForce GTX 850M has 3 GB more memory, than GeForce GTX 280.
  • GeForce GTX 280 is used in Desktops, and GeForce GTX 850M - in Laptops.
  • GeForce GTX 280 is build with Tesla 2.0 architecture, and GeForce GTX 850M - with Maxwell.
  • GeForce GTX 280 is manufactured by 65 nm process technology, and GeForce GTX 850M - by 28 nm process technology.

Game benchmarks

high / 1080p 1−2 12−14
ultra / 1080p 0−1 8−9
QHD / 1440p 0−1 2−3
low / 720p 12−14 27−30
medium / 1080p 3−4 16−18
The average gaming FPS of GeForce GTX 850M in Assassin's Creed Odyssey is 216% more, than GeForce GTX 280.

Full Specs

  GeForce GTX 280 GeForce GTX 850M
Architecture Tesla 2.0 Maxwell
Code name GT200 N15P-GT
Type Desktop Laptop
Release date 16 June 2008 12 March 2014
Pipelines 240 640
Core clock speed 1296 MHz
Transistor count 1,400 million 1,870 million
Manufacturing process technology 65 nm 28 nm
Texture fill rate 48.2 billion/sec 36.08
Floating-point performance 622.1 gflops 1,155 gflops
Length 10.5" (267 mm) (26.7 cm)
Memory bus width 512 Bit 128 Bit
Memory clock speed 1107 MHz
Memory bandwidth 141.7 GB/s 80.0 GB/s
Shared memory -
DirectX 11.1 (10_0) 12 (11_0)
Shader Model 4.0 5.1
OpenGL 2.1 4.5
OpenCL 1.1 1.1
Vulkan N/A 1.1.126
CUDA + +
CUDA cores 240 640
Bus support PCI Express 2.0, PCI Express 3.0
Height 4.376" (111 mm) (11.1 cm)
SLI options + +
Multi monitor support +
HDMI +
Maximum VGA resolution 2048x1536
Audio input for HDMI S/PDIF
Bitcoin / BTC (SHA256) 153 Mh/s
Laptop size medium sized
Standard memory configuration DDR3 or GDDR5
eDP 1.2 signal support Up to 3840x2160
LVDS signal support Up to 1920x1200
DisplayPort Multimode (DP++) support Up to 3840x2160
HDCP content protection +
7.1 channel HD audio on HDMI +
TrueHD and DTS-HD audio bitstreaming +
H.264, VC1, MPEG2 1080p video decoder +
Optimus +
Ethereum / ETH (DaggerHashimoto) 1.8 Mh/s
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