Radeon HD 6850M vs Radeon HD 7870 XT

When comparing Radeon HD 6850M and Radeon HD 7870 XT, 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 Radeon HD 6850M and Radeon HD 7870 XT is the price. Does the additional cost justify the performance hit? Our comparison should help you make the right decision.

Radeon HD 6850M is a Laptop Graphics Card

Note: Radeon HD 6850M 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 Radeon HD 6850M here:

Main Specs

  Radeon HD 6850M Radeon HD 7870 XT
Power consumption (TDP) 50 Watt 185 Watt
Interface PCIe 2.0 x16 PCIe 3.0 x16
Supplementary power connectors 2x 6-pin
Memory type DDR3, GDDR5 GDDR5
Maximum RAM amount 1 GB 2 GB
Display Connectors No outputs 1x DVI, 1x HDMI, 2x mini-DisplayPort
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  • Radeon HD 7870 XT has 270% more power consumption, than Radeon HD 6850M.
  • Radeon HD 6850M is connected by PCIe 2.0 x16, and Radeon HD 7870 XT uses PCIe 3.0 x16 interface.
  • Radeon HD 7870 XT has 1 GB more memory, than Radeon HD 6850M.
  • Radeon HD 6850M is used in Laptops, and Radeon HD 7870 XT - in Desktops.
  • Radeon HD 6850M is build with Terascale 2 architecture, and Radeon HD 7870 XT - with GCN 1.0.
  • Core clock speed of Radeon HD 7870 XT is 350 MHz higher, than Radeon HD 6850M.
  • Radeon HD 6850M is manufactured by 40 nm process technology, and Radeon HD 7870 XT - by 28 nm process technology.
  • Memory clock speed of Radeon HD 7870 XT is 5200 MHz higher, than Radeon HD 6850M.

Game benchmarks

high / 1080p 2−3 35−40
ultra / 1080p 0−1 21−24
QHD / 1440p 0−1 16−18
4K / 2160p 10−11
low / 720p 12−14 60−65
medium / 1080p 3−4 40−45
The average gaming FPS of Radeon HD 7870 XT in Assassin's Creed Odyssey is 683% more, than Radeon HD 6850M.

Full Specs

  Radeon HD 6850M Radeon HD 7870 XT
Architecture Terascale 2 GCN 1.0
Code name Granville Pro/LP Tahiti
Type Laptop Desktop
Release date 6 January 2011 19 November 2012
Pipelines 800 1536
Core clock speed 575 / 675 MHz 925 MHz
Boost Clock 975 MHz
Transistor count 1,040 million 4,313 million
Manufacturing process technology 40 nm 28 nm
Texture fill rate 27.00 93.60
Floating-point performance 1,080.0 gflops 2,995 gflops
Length 267 mm
Memory bus width 128 Bit 256 Bit
Memory clock speed 800 MHz 6000 MHz
Memory bandwidth 25.6 GB/s 192.0 GB/s
Shared memory -
DirectX 11.2 (11_0) 12 (11_1)
Shader Model 5.0 5.1
OpenGL 4.4 4.6
OpenCL 1.2 1.2
Vulkan N/A 1.2.131
Bitcoin / BTC (SHA256) 346 Mh/s
Laptop size large
Ethereum / ETH (DaggerHashimoto) 14.5 Mh/s
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