GeForce GTX 480 vs Mobility Radeon HD 5870

When comparing GeForce GTX 480 and Mobility Radeon HD 5870, we look primarily at benchmarks and game tests. But it is not only about the numbers. Often you can find third-party models with higher clock speeds, better cooling, or a customizable RGB lighting. Not all of them will have all the features you need. Another thing to consider is the port selection. Most graphics cards have at least one DisplayPort and HDMI interface, but some monitors require DVI. Before you buy, check the TDP of the graphics card - this characteristic will help you estimate the consumption of the graphics card. You may even have to upgrade your PSU to meet its requirements. An important factor when choosing between GeForce GTX 480 and Mobility Radeon HD 5870 is the price. Does the additional cost justify the performance hit? Our comparison should help you make the right decision.

Mobility Radeon HD 5870 is a Laptop Graphics Card

Note: Mobility Radeon HD 5870 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 Mobility Radeon HD 5870 here:

Main Specs

  GeForce GTX 480 Mobility Radeon HD 5870
Power consumption (TDP) 250 Watt 50 Watt
Interface PCIe 2.0 x16 MXM-B (3.0)
Supplementary power connectors 6-pin & 8-pin
Memory type GDDR5 DDR3, GDDR3, GDDR5
Maximum RAM amount 1536 MB 1 GB
Display Connectors 2x DVI, 1x mini-HDMI No outputs
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  • GeForce GTX 480 has 400% more power consumption, than Mobility Radeon HD 5870.
  • GeForce GTX 480 is connected by PCIe 2.0 x16, and Mobility Radeon HD 5870 uses MXM-B (3.0) interface.
  • GeForce GTX 480 has 1535 GB more memory, than Mobility Radeon HD 5870.
  • GeForce GTX 480 is used in Desktops, and Mobility Radeon HD 5870 - in Laptops.
  • GeForce GTX 480 is build with Fermi architecture, and Mobility Radeon HD 5870 - with Terascale 2.
  • Both graphics cards have the same core clock speed.
  • GeForce GTX 480 and Mobility Radeon HD 5870 are manufactured by 40 nm process technology.
  • Memory clock speed of GeForce GTX 480 is 848 MHz higher, than Mobility Radeon HD 5870.

Game benchmarks

high / 1080p 21−24 10−11
ultra / 1080p 12−14 6−7
QHD / 1440p 6−7 0−1
4K / 2160p 5−6
low / 720p 40−45 21−24
medium / 1080p 24−27 12−14
The average gaming FPS of GeForce GTX 480 in Assassin's Creed Odyssey is 92% more, than Mobility Radeon HD 5870.

Full Specs

  GeForce GTX 480 Mobility Radeon HD 5870
Architecture Fermi Terascale 2
Code name GF100 Broadway-XT
Type Desktop Laptop
Release date 7 December 2010 7 January 2010
Pipelines 480 800
Core clock speed 700 MHz 700 MHz
Transistor count 3,100 million 1,040 million
Manufacturing process technology 40 nm 40 nm
Texture fill rate 42 billion/sec 28.00
Floating-point performance 1,345.0 gflops 1,120.0 gflops
Length 10.5" (267 mm) (26.7 cm)
Memory bus width 384 Bit 128 Bit
Memory clock speed 1848 MHz (3696 data rate) 1000 MHz
Memory bandwidth 177.4 GB/s 64 GB/s
Shared memory - -
DirectX 12 (11_0) 11.2 (11_0)
Shader Model 5.1 5.0
OpenGL 4.2 4.4
OpenCL 1.1 1.2
Vulkan N/A N/A
CUDA +
CUDA cores 480
Bus support 16x PCI-E 2.0
Height 4.376" (111 mm) (11.1 cm)
SLI options +
Multi monitor support +
HDMI +
HDCP +
Maximum VGA resolution 2048x1536
Audio input for HDMI Internal
Bitcoin / BTC (SHA256) 117 Mh/s
Laptop size large
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