GeForce GTX 280 vs Radeon HD 7870M
If you are going to buy a new graphics card and are choosing between GeForce GTX 280 and Radeon HD 7870M, there are a couple of things to consider. Cards with more VRAM in general perform better and allow you to play on higher graphics settings. Size also makes a difference. A model with a large heatsink can occupy up to three expansion slots on a motherboard. Be sure you have enough room in your PC case. When comparing GPUs with different architectures, more processing cores and even higher TFLOPS will not always translate to better performance. To help you decide which GPU you need, we have measured frame rates in a number of popular games. For more on how the GeForce GTX 280 stacks up against Radeon HD 7870M, check out specs charts below.
GeForce GTX 280
Radeon HD 7870M is a Laptop Graphics Card
Note: Radeon HD 7870M 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 7870M here:
Main Specs
| GeForce GTX 280 | Radeon HD 7870M | |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 236 Watt | 45 Watt |
| Interface | PCIe 2.0 x16 | PCIe 3.0 x16 |
| Supplementary power connectors | 6-pin & 8-pin | |
| Memory type | GDDR3 | GDDR5 |
| Maximum RAM amount | 1 GB | 2 GB |
| Display Connectors | 2x DVI, 1x S-Video | No outputs |
| Check Price |
- GeForce GTX 280 has 424% more power consumption, than Radeon HD 7870M.
- GeForce GTX 280 is connected by PCIe 2.0 x16, and Radeon HD 7870M uses PCIe 3.0 x16 interface.
- Radeon HD 7870M has 1 GB more memory, than GeForce GTX 280.
- GeForce GTX 280 is used in Desktops, and Radeon HD 7870M - in Laptops.
- GeForce GTX 280 is build with Tesla 2.0 architecture, and Radeon HD 7870M - with GCN.
- Core clock speed of GeForce GTX 280 is 496 MHz higher, than Radeon HD 7870M.
- GeForce GTX 280 is manufactured by 65 nm process technology, and Radeon HD 7870M - by 28 nm process technology.
- Memory clock speed of Radeon HD 7870M is 2893 MHz higher, than GeForce GTX 280.
Game benchmarks
| high / 1080p | 1−2 | 6−7 |
| ultra / 1080p | 0−1 | 4−5 |
| QHD / 1440p | 0−1 | 0−1 |
| low / 720p | 12−14 | 16−18 |
| medium / 1080p | 3−4 | 8−9 |
| The average gaming FPS of Radeon HD 7870M in Assassin's Creed Odyssey is 66% more, than GeForce GTX 280. | ||
| high / 1080p | − | 12−14 |
| ultra / 1080p | 4−5 | 10−11 |
| QHD / 1440p | 0−1 | 0−1 |
| low / 720p | 16−18 | 24−27 |
| medium / 1080p | 5−6 | 12−14 |
| The average gaming FPS of Radeon HD 7870M in Battlefield 5 is 77% more, than GeForce GTX 280. | ||
| low / 768p | 45−50 | 45−50 |
| high / 1080p | 40−45 | 45−50 |
| QHD / 1440p | 0−1 | 0−1 |
| The average gaming FPS of Radeon HD 7870M in Call of Duty: Warzone is 4% more, than GeForce GTX 280. | ||
| low / 768p | 120−130 | 130−140 |
| medium / 768p | 90−95 | 110−120 |
| ultra / 1080p | 40−45 | 50−55 |
| QHD / 1440p | 21−24 | 30−33 |
| 4K / 2160p | 18−20 | 27−30 |
| high / 768p | 65−70 | 80−85 |
| The average gaming FPS of Radeon HD 7870M in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive is 21% more, than GeForce GTX 280. | ||
| low / 768p | 85−90 | 55−60 |
| ultra / 1080p | 16−18 | 18−20 |
| medium / 1080p | 40−45 | 45−50 |
| The average gaming FPS of GeForce GTX 280 in Cyberpunk 2077 is 19% more, than Radeon HD 7870M. | ||
| low / 768p | 75−80 | 80−85 |
| medium / 768p | 50−55 | 60−65 |
| ultra / 1080p | 24−27 | 30−35 |
| The average gaming FPS of Radeon HD 7870M in Dota 2 is 15% more, than GeForce GTX 280. | ||
| high / 1080p | 2−3 | 8−9 |
| ultra / 1080p | 2−3 | 8−9 |
| 4K / 2160p | 0−1 | 3−4 |
| low / 720p | 10−12 | 18−20 |
| medium / 1080p | 3−4 | 9−10 |
| The average gaming FPS of Radeon HD 7870M in Far Cry 5 is 175% more, than GeForce GTX 280. | ||
| high / 1080p | 10−11 | 14−16 |
| ultra / 1080p | 5−6 | 10−11 |
| QHD / 1440p | 2−3 | − |
| low / 720p | 50−55 | 60−65 |
| medium / 1080p | 10−12 | 21−24 |
| The average gaming FPS of Radeon HD 7870M in Fortnite is 42% more, than GeForce GTX 280. | ||
| high / 1080p | 4−5 | 12−14 |
| ultra / 1080p | − | 10−12 |
| QHD / 1440p | 0−1 | 1−2 |
| low / 720p | 16−18 | 24−27 |
| medium / 1080p | 7−8 | 14−16 |
| The average gaming FPS of Radeon HD 7870M in Forza Horizon 4 is 88% more, than GeForce GTX 280. | ||
| low / 768p | 40−45 | 50−55 |
| medium / 768p | − | 45−50 |
| high / 1080p | 5−6 | 12−14 |
| ultra / 1080p | 2−3 | 6−7 |
| QHD / 1440p | 0−1 | 0−1 |
| medium / 720p | 35−40 | − |
| The average gaming FPS of Radeon HD 7870M in Grand Theft Auto V is 50% more, than GeForce GTX 280. | ||
| high / 1080p | 1−2 | 5−6 |
| ultra / 1080p | 0−1 | 3−4 |
| 4K / 2160p | 0−1 | 0−1 |
| low / 720p | 5−6 | 12−14 |
| medium / 1080p | 3−4 | 6−7 |
| The average gaming FPS of Radeon HD 7870M in Metro Exodus is 166% more, than GeForce GTX 280. | ||
| low / 768p | 90−95 | 95−100 |
| high / 1080p | 85−90 | 90−95 |
| ultra / 1080p | 70−75 | 80−85 |
| medium / 1080p | 90−95 | 90−95 |
| The average gaming FPS of Radeon HD 7870M in Minecraft is 5% more, than GeForce GTX 280. | ||
| high / 1080p | − | 16−18 |
| ultra / 1080p | 12−14 | 14−16 |
| low / 720p | 27−30 | 30−35 |
| medium / 1080p | 14−16 | 18−20 |
| The average gaming FPS of Radeon HD 7870M in PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS is 22% more, than GeForce GTX 280. | ||
| ultra / 1080p | 4−5 | 7−8 |
| QHD / 1440p | 0−1 | 0−1 |
| low / 720p | 6−7 | 12−14 |
| medium / 1080p | − | 10−12 |
| The average gaming FPS of Radeon HD 7870M in Red Dead Redemption 2 is 100% more, than GeForce GTX 280. | ||
| low / 768p | 12−14 | 24−27 |
| medium / 768p | 8−9 | 16−18 |
| high / 1080p | 4−5 | 9−10 |
| ultra / 1080p | 3−4 | 6−7 |
| 4K / 2160p | 0−1 | 6−7 |
| The average gaming FPS of Radeon HD 7870M in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is 100% more, than GeForce GTX 280. | ||
| low / 768p | 75−80 | 85−90 |
| medium / 768p | 35−40 | 45−50 |
| ultra / 1080p | 16−18 | 20−22 |
| high / 768p | 30−35 | 35−40 |
| The average gaming FPS of Radeon HD 7870M in World of Tanks is 17% more, than GeForce GTX 280. | ||
Full Specs
| GeForce GTX 280 | Radeon HD 7870M | |
| Architecture | Tesla 2.0 | GCN |
| Code name | GT200 | Heathrow XT |
| Type | Desktop | Laptop |
| Release date | 16 June 2008 | 24 April 2012 |
| Pipelines | 240 | 640 |
| Core clock speed | 1296 MHz | 800 MHz |
| Transistor count | 1,400 million | 1,500 million |
| Manufacturing process technology | 65 nm | 28 nm |
| Texture fill rate | 48.2 billion/sec | 32.00 |
| Floating-point performance | 622.1 gflops | 1,024 gflops |
| Length | 10.5" (267 mm) (26.7 cm) | |
| Memory bus width | 512 Bit | 128 Bit |
| Memory clock speed | 1107 MHz | 4000 MHz |
| Memory bandwidth | 141.7 GB/s | 64 GB/s |
| Shared memory | - | |
| DirectX | 11.1 (10_0) | 12 (11_1) |
| Shader Model | 4.0 | 5.1 |
| OpenGL | 2.1 | 4.6 |
| OpenCL | 1.1 | 1.2 |
| Vulkan | N/A | 1.2.131 |
| CUDA | + | |
| CUDA cores | 240 | |
| Height | 4.376" (111 mm) (11.1 cm) | |
| SLI options | + | |
| Multi monitor support | + | |
| Maximum VGA resolution | 2048x1536 | |
| Audio input for HDMI | S/PDIF | |
| Laptop size | large | |
| Check Price |