Radeon HD 7870 XT vs Radeon HD 7970M

Find out if it is worth upgrading your current GPU setup by comparing Radeon HD 7870 XT and Radeon HD 7970M. Here you can take a closer look at graphics cards specs, such as core clock speed, memory type and size, display connectors, etc. The price, overall benchmark and gaming performances are usually defining factors when it comes to choosing between Radeon HD 7870 XT and Radeon HD 7970M. Make sure that the graphics card has compatible dimensions and will properly fit in your new or current computer case. Also these graphics cards may have different system power recommendations, so take that into consideration and upgrade your PSU if necessary.

Radeon HD 7970M is a Laptop Graphics Card

Note: Radeon HD 7970M 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 7970M here:

Main Specs

  Radeon HD 7870 XT Radeon HD 7970M
Power consumption (TDP) 185 Watt 100 Watt
Interface PCIe 3.0 x16 MXM-B (3.0)
Supplementary power connectors 2x 6-pin None
Memory type GDDR5 GDDR5
Maximum RAM amount 2 GB 2 GB
Display Connectors 1x DVI, 1x HDMI, 2x mini-DisplayPort No outputs
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  • Radeon HD 7870 XT has 85% more power consumption, than Radeon HD 7970M.
  • Radeon HD 7870 XT is connected by PCIe 3.0 x16, and Radeon HD 7970M uses MXM-B (3.0) interface.
  • Radeon HD 7870 XT and Radeon HD 7970M have maximum RAM of 2 GB.
  • Radeon HD 7870 XT is used in Desktops, and Radeon HD 7970M - in Laptops.
  • Radeon HD 7870 XT is build with GCN 1.0 architecture, and Radeon HD 7970M - with GCN.
  • Core clock speed of Radeon HD 7870 XT is 75 MHz higher, than Radeon HD 7970M.
  • Radeon HD 7870 XT and Radeon HD 7970M are manufactured by 28 nm process technology.
  • Memory clock speed of Radeon HD 7870 XT is 1200 MHz higher, than Radeon HD 7970M.

Game benchmarks

high / 1080p 35−40 18−20
ultra / 1080p 21−24 10−12
QHD / 1440p 16−18 5−6
4K / 2160p 10−11 4−5
low / 720p 60−65 35−40
medium / 1080p 40−45 21−24
The average gaming FPS of Radeon HD 7870 XT in Assassin's Creed Odyssey is 100% more, than Radeon HD 7970M.

Full Specs

  Radeon HD 7870 XT Radeon HD 7970M
Architecture GCN 1.0 GCN
Code name Tahiti Wimbledon XT
Type Desktop Laptop
Release date 19 November 2012 1 May 2012
Pipelines 1536 1280
Core clock speed 925 MHz 850 MHz
Boost Clock 975 MHz
Transistor count 4,313 million 2,800 million
Manufacturing process technology 28 nm 28 nm
Texture fill rate 93.60 68.00
Floating-point performance 2,995 gflops 2,176 gflops
Length 267 mm
Memory bus width 256 Bit 256 Bit
Memory clock speed 6000 MHz 4800 MHz
Memory bandwidth 192.0 GB/s 153.6 GB/s
Shared memory -
DirectX 12 (11_1) 12 (11_1)
Shader Model 5.1 5.1
OpenGL 4.6 4.6
OpenCL 1.2 1.2
Vulkan 1.2.131 1.2.131
Bitcoin / BTC (SHA256) 346 Mh/s 254 Mh/s
Laptop size large
Ethereum / ETH (DaggerHashimoto) 14.5 Mh/s
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