GeForce GTX 870M vs Radeon R9 M280X

When choosing between GeForce GTX 870M and Radeon R9 M280X, it is worth examining the specifications of the models in detail. Do they meet the recommended requirements of modern games and software? Storage capacity, form factor, TDP, available ports, warranty and manufacturer support are all important. For example, the size of a PC case can limit the maximum thickness and length of the card. Often, instead of the factory overclocked card and RGB backlight, it is better to choose a reference model with a more efficient GPU. And make sure that your current power supply unit has the correct connection pins (using adapters is not recommended). This GPUs compare tool is meant to help you to choose the best graphics card for your build. Let's find out the difference between GeForce GTX 870M and Radeon R9 M280X.

GeForce GTX 870M and Radeon R9 M280X are Laptop Graphics Cards

Note: GeForce GTX 870M and Radeon R9 M280X are only used in laptop graphics. They have 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 870M or Radeon R9 M280X here:

Main Specs

  GeForce GTX 870M Radeon R9 M280X
Power consumption (TDP) 100 Watt
Interface MXM-B (3.0) PCIe 3.0 x16
Supplementary power connectors None
Memory type GDDR5 Not Listed
Maximum RAM amount 6 GB
Display Connectors No outputs No outputs
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  • GeForce GTX 870M is connected by MXM-B (3.0), and Radeon R9 M280X uses PCIe 3.0 x16 interface.
  • Both cards are used in Laptops.
  • GeForce GTX 870M is build with Kepler architecture, and Radeon R9 M280X - with GCN.
  • Core clock speed of GeForce GTX 870M is 41 MHz higher, than Radeon R9 M280X.
  • GeForce GTX 870M and Radeon R9 M280X are manufactured by 28 nm process technology.

Game benchmarks

high / 1080p 16−18 2−3
ultra / 1080p 10−11 1−2
QHD / 1440p 4−5 0−1
low / 720p 35−40 14−16
medium / 1080p 21−24 4−5
The average gaming FPS of GeForce GTX 870M in Assassin's Creed Odyssey is 320% more, than Radeon R9 M280X.

Full Specs

  GeForce GTX 870M Radeon R9 M280X
Architecture Kepler GCN
Code name N15P-GT Saturn XT
Type Laptop Laptop
Release date 12 March 2014 1 February 2015
Pipelines 1344 896
Core clock speed 941 MHz 900 MHz
Boost Clock 967 MHz
Transistor count 3,540 million 2,080 million
Manufacturing process technology 28 nm 28 nm
Texture fill rate 108.3 61.60
Floating-point performance 2,599 gflops 1,792 gflops
Memory bus width 192 Bit
Memory bandwidth 120.0 GB/s 96 GB/s
Shared memory - -
DirectX 12 (11_0)
Shader Model 5.1 6.3
OpenGL 4.5 4.4
OpenCL 1.1 Not Listed
Vulkan 1.1.126
CUDA +
FreeSync +
CUDA cores 1344
Bus support PCI Express 2.0, PCI Express 3.0 Not Listed
SLI options +
HDMI +
Bitcoin / BTC (SHA256) 82 Mh/s
Laptop size large large
Standard memory configuration 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 +
HD3D +
PowerTune +
DualGraphics +
ZeroCore +
Switchable graphics +
Mantle +
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