Radeon HD 8790M vs Radeon R9 290X
In this comparison between Radeon HD 8790M and Radeon R9 290X you will find out which graphics card performs better in today's games. Bear in mind that third-party versions may have more efficient cooling and higher clock speeds. This will increase cards' performance, though not by much. In addition to raw power you should also take into account the dimensions. Thicker models simply will not fit into a small mini-ITX case. The resolution of your monitor also affects the choice, since 4K gameplay requires a more powerful GPU. And don't overspend on the graphics card. Other parts of your build may also need to be upgraded, save some money for the CPU or power supply. For some people Radeon HD 8790M will be the best choice, for others Radeon R9 290X will be their preference. Study the comparison tables below and make your choice.
Radeon HD 8790M is a Laptop Graphics Card
Note: Radeon HD 8790M 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 8790M here:
Main Specs
Radeon HD 8790M
Radeon R9 290X
Power consumption (TDP)
250 Watt
Interface
MXM-A (3.0)
PCIe 3.0 x16
Supplementary power connectors
None
1 x 6-pin + 1 x 8-pin
Memory type
GDDR5
GDDR5
Maximum RAM amount
2 GB
4 GB
Display Connectors
No outputs
2x DVI, 1x HDMI, 1x DisplayPort
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Radeon HD 8790M is connected by MXM-A (3.0), and Radeon R9 290X uses PCIe 3.0 x16 interface.
Radeon R9 290X has 2 GB more memory, than Radeon HD 8790M.
Radeon HD 8790M is used in Laptops, and Radeon R9 290X - in Desktops.
Radeon HD 8790M and Radeon R9 290X are build with GCN architecture.
Radeon HD 8790M and Radeon R9 290X are manufactured by 28 nm process technology.
Memory clock speed of Radeon HD 8790M is 3250 MHz higher, than Radeon R9 290X.
Game benchmarks
Assassin's Creed Odyssey
Battlefield 5
Call of Duty: Warzone
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
Cyberpunk 2077
Dota 2
Far Cry 5
Fortnite
Forza Horizon 4
Grand Theft Auto V
Metro Exodus
Minecraft
PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS
Red Dead Redemption 2
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
World of Tanks
high / 1080p
3−4
35−40
ultra / 1080p
1−2
24−27
QHD / 1440p
0−1
18−20
4K / 2160p
−
10−11
low / 720p
14−16
60−65
medium / 1080p
6−7
45−50
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 290X in Assassin's Creed Odyssey is 616% more, than Radeon HD 8790M.
high / 1080p
8−9
60−65
ultra / 1080p
6−7
50−55
QHD / 1440p
0−1
35−40
4K / 2160p
−
18−20
low / 720p
21−24
110−120
medium / 1080p
9−10
65−70
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 290X in Battlefield 5 is 572% more, than Radeon HD 8790M.
low / 768p
45−50
50−55
high / 1080p
40−45
−
QHD / 1440p
0−1
0−1
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 290X in Call of Duty: Warzone is 10% more, than Radeon HD 8790M.
low / 768p
120−130
250−260
medium / 768p
100−110
220−230
ultra / 1080p
50−55
190−200
QHD / 1440p
24−27
110−120
4K / 2160p
−
70−75
high / 768p
75−80
210−220
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 290X in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive is 161% more, than Radeon HD 8790M.
low / 768p
70−75
60−65
ultra / 1080p
21−24
−
medium / 1080p
40−45
55−60
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 290X in Cyberpunk 2077 is 5% more, than Radeon HD 8790M.
low / 768p
75−80
120−130
medium / 768p
55−60
110−120
ultra / 1080p
30−35
100−110
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 290X in Dota 2 is 109% more, than Radeon HD 8790M.
high / 1080p
4−5
45−50
ultra / 1080p
4−5
45−50
QHD / 1440p
−
30−35
4K / 2160p
1−2
16−18
low / 720p
14−16
85−90
medium / 1080p
6−7
50−55
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 290X in Far Cry 5 is 733% more, than Radeon HD 8790M.
high / 1080p
12−14
65−70
ultra / 1080p
7−8
50−55
QHD / 1440p
4−5
30−35
4K / 2160p
−
27−30
low / 720p
60−65
180−190
medium / 1080p
18−20
120−130
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 290X in Fortnite is 338% more, than Radeon HD 8790M.
high / 1080p
8−9
65−70
ultra / 1080p
7−8
45−50
QHD / 1440p
0−1
35−40
4K / 2160p
−
24−27
low / 720p
21−24
110−120
medium / 1080p
10−11
70−75
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 290X in Forza Horizon 4 is 525% more, than Radeon HD 8790M.
low / 768p
50−55
140−150
medium / 768p
−
130−140
high / 1080p
10−11
75−80
ultra / 1080p
4−5
30−35
QHD / 1440p
0−1
24−27
medium / 720p
40−45
−
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 290X in Grand Theft Auto V is 286% more, than Radeon HD 8790M.
high / 1080p
2−3
27−30
ultra / 1080p
0−1
21−24
QHD / 1440p
−
18−20
4K / 2160p
0−1
9−10
low / 720p
9−10
70−75
medium / 1080p
4−5
35−40
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 290X in Metro Exodus is 820% more, than Radeon HD 8790M.
low / 768p
85−90
130−140
high / 1080p
70−75
−
medium / 1080p
−
120−130
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 290X in Minecraft is 55% more, than Radeon HD 8790M.
ultra / 1080p
12−14
14−16
low / 720p
30−35
100−110
medium / 1080p
14−16
18−20
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 290X in PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS is 130% more, than Radeon HD 8790M.
high / 1080p
7−8
27−30
ultra / 1080p
4−5
18−20
QHD / 1440p
0−1
12−14
4K / 2160p
−
8−9
low / 720p
8−9
70−75
medium / 1080p
8−9
35−40
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 290X in Red Dead Redemption 2 is 457% more, than Radeon HD 8790M.
low / 768p
20−22
140−150
medium / 768p
12−14
90−95
high / 1080p
7−8
50−55
ultra / 1080p
5−6
27−30
4K / 2160p
1−2
16−18
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 290X in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is 644% more, than Radeon HD 8790M.
low / 768p
75−80
90−95
medium / 768p
40−45
60−65
ultra / 1080p
18−20
55−60
high / 768p
30−35
−
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 290X in World of Tanks is 52% more, than Radeon HD 8790M.
Full Specs
Radeon HD 8790M
Radeon R9 290X
Architecture
GCN
GCN
Code name
Mars XTX
Hawaii XT
Type
Laptop
Desktop
Release date
16 November 2012
24 October 2013
Pipelines
384
2816
Core clock speed
850 MHz
Boost Clock
900 MHz
947 MHz
Transistor count
950 million
6,200 million
Manufacturing process technology
28 nm
28 nm
Texture fill rate
21.60
176.0
Floating-point performance
691.2 gflops
5,632 gflops
Length
275 mm
Memory bus width
128 Bit
512 Bit
Memory clock speed
4500 MHz
1250 MHz
Memory bandwidth
64 GB/s
320 GB/s
Shared memory
-
-
DirectX
12 (11_1)
Shader Model
5.1
6.3
OpenGL
4.6
4.6
OpenCL
1.2
2.0
Vulkan
1.2.131
+
Monero / XMR (CryptoNight)
0.76 kh/s
FreeSync
+
Bus support
PCIe 3.0
HDMI
+
Bitcoin / BTC (SHA256)
80 Mh/s
623 Mh/s
Laptop size
medium sized
Eyefinity
+
HD3D
+
TrueAudio
+
Design
reference
DisplayPort support
+
CrossFire
+
DDMA audio
+
Decred / DCR (Decred)
1.07 Gh/s
Ethereum / ETH (DaggerHashimoto)
25.75 Mh/s
Zcash / ZEC (Equihash)
350 Sol/s
AppAcceleration
+
LiquidVR
+
TressFX
+
UVD
+
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