Radeon 520 vs Radeon HD 7870 XT

When choosing between Radeon 520 and Radeon HD 7870 XT, 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 Radeon 520 and Radeon HD 7870 XT.
Radeon HD 7870 XT

Radeon 520 is a Laptop Graphics Card

Note: Radeon 520 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 520 here:

Main Specs

  Radeon 520 Radeon HD 7870 XT
Power consumption (TDP) 50 Watt 185 Watt
Interface PCIe 3.0 x8 PCIe 3.0 x16
Supplementary power connectors None 2x 6-pin
Memory type DDR3, GDDR5 GDDR5
Maximum RAM amount 2 GB 2 GB
Display Connectors 1x DVI, 1x HDMI, 1x VGA 1x DVI, 1x HDMI, 2x mini-DisplayPort
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  • Radeon HD 7870 XT has 270% more power consumption, than Radeon 520.
  • Radeon 520 is connected by PCIe 3.0 x8, and Radeon HD 7870 XT uses PCIe 3.0 x16 interface.
  • Radeon 520 and Radeon HD 7870 XT have maximum RAM of 2 GB.
  • Radeon 520 is used in Laptops, and Radeon HD 7870 XT - in Desktops.
  • Radeon 520 and Radeon HD 7870 XT are build with GCN 1.0 architecture.
  • Core clock speed of Radeon 520 is 105 MHz higher, than Radeon HD 7870 XT.
  • Radeon 520 and Radeon HD 7870 XT are manufactured by 28 nm process technology.
  • Memory clock speed of Radeon HD 7870 XT is 3750 MHz higher, than Radeon 520.

Game benchmarks

high / 1080p 0−1 35−40
ultra / 1080p 21−24
QHD / 1440p 0−1 16−18
4K / 2160p 10−11
low / 720p 1−2 60−65
medium / 1080p 0−1 40−45
The average gaming FPS of Radeon HD 7870 XT in Assassin's Creed Odyssey is 6100% more, than Radeon 520.

Full Specs

  Radeon 520 Radeon HD 7870 XT
Architecture GCN 1.0 GCN 1.0
Code name Oland Tahiti
Type Laptop Desktop
Release date 21 March 2017 19 November 2012
Pipelines 320 1536
Core clock speed 1030 MHz 925 MHz
Boost Clock 975 MHz
Transistor count 1,040 million 4,313 million
Manufacturing process technology 28 nm 28 nm
Texture fill rate 20.60 93.60
Floating-point performance 659.2 gflops 2,995 gflops
Length 267 mm
Memory bus width 64 Bit 256 Bit
Memory clock speed 2250 MHz 6000 MHz
Memory bandwidth 16 GB/s 192.0 GB/s
Shared memory -
DirectX 12.0 12 (11_1)
Shader Model 5.0 5.1
OpenGL 4.6 4.6
OpenCL 1.2 1.2
Vulkan + 1.2.131
Bitcoin / BTC (SHA256) 346 Mh/s
Ethereum / ETH (DaggerHashimoto) 14.5 Mh/s
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