Radeon HD 6990M vs Radeon HD 7870M

When comparing Radeon HD 6990M and Radeon HD 7870M, 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 6990M and Radeon HD 7870M is the price. Does the additional cost justify the performance hit? Our comparison should help you make the right decision.

Radeon HD 6990M and Radeon HD 7870M are Laptop Graphics Cards

Note: Radeon HD 6990M and Radeon HD 7870M 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 Radeon HD 6990M or Radeon HD 7870M here:

Main Specs

  Radeon HD 6990M Radeon HD 7870M
Power consumption (TDP) 100 Watt 45 Watt
Interface MXM-B (3.0) PCIe 3.0 x16
Supplementary power connectors None
Memory type GDDR5 GDDR5
Maximum RAM amount 2 GB 2 GB
Display Connectors No outputs No outputs
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  • Radeon HD 6990M has 122% more power consumption, than Radeon HD 7870M.
  • Radeon HD 6990M is connected by MXM-B (3.0), and Radeon HD 7870M uses PCIe 3.0 x16 interface.
  • Radeon HD 6990M and Radeon HD 7870M have maximum RAM of 2 GB.
  • Both cards are used in Laptops.
  • Radeon HD 6990M is build with Terascale 2 architecture, and Radeon HD 7870M - with GCN.
  • Core clock speed of Radeon HD 7870M is 85 MHz higher, than Radeon HD 6990M.
  • Radeon HD 6990M is manufactured by 40 nm process technology, and Radeon HD 7870M - by 28 nm process technology.
  • Memory clock speed of Radeon HD 7870M is 3100 MHz higher, than Radeon HD 6990M.

Game benchmarks

high / 1080p 14−16 6−7
ultra / 1080p 8−9 4−5
QHD / 1440p 3−4 0−1
low / 720p 30−33 16−18
medium / 1080p 16−18 8−9
The average gaming FPS of Radeon HD 6990M in Assassin's Creed Odyssey is 100% more, than Radeon HD 7870M.

Full Specs

  Radeon HD 6990M Radeon HD 7870M
Architecture Terascale 2 GCN
Code name Blackcomb XTX Heathrow XT
Type Laptop Laptop
Release date 12 July 2011 24 April 2012
Pipelines 1120 640
Core clock speed 715 MHz 800 MHz
Transistor count 1,700 million 1,500 million
Manufacturing process technology 40 nm 28 nm
Texture fill rate 40.04 32.00
Floating-point performance 1,601.6 gflops 1,024 gflops
Memory bus width 256 Bit 128 Bit
Memory clock speed 900 MHz 4000 MHz
Memory bandwidth 115.2 GB/s 64 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
Laptop size large large
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