Radeon HD 6870 vs Radeon R7 M380

When comparing Radeon HD 6870 and Radeon R7 M380, 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 6870 and Radeon R7 M380 is the price. Does the additional cost justify the performance hit? Our comparison should help you make the right decision.

Radeon R7 M380 is a Laptop Graphics Card

Note: Radeon R7 M380 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 R7 M380 here:

Main Specs

  Radeon HD 6870 Radeon R7 M380
Power consumption (TDP) 151 Watt
Interface PCIe 2.0 x16 PCIe 3.0 x16
Supplementary power connectors 2x 6-pin
Memory type GDDR5 DDR3
Maximum RAM amount 1 GB 4 GB
Display Connectors 2x DVI, 1x HDMI, 2x mini-DisplayPort No outputs
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  • Radeon HD 6870 is connected by PCIe 2.0 x16, and Radeon R7 M380 uses PCIe 3.0 x16 interface.
  • Radeon R7 M380 has 3 GB more memory, than Radeon HD 6870.
  • Radeon HD 6870 is used in Desktops, and Radeon R7 M380 - in Laptops.
  • Radeon HD 6870 is build with Terascale 2 architecture, and Radeon R7 M380 - with GCN.
  • Radeon HD 6870 is manufactured by 40 nm process technology, and Radeon R7 M380 - by 28 nm process technology.
  • Memory clock speed of Radeon HD 6870 is 50 MHz higher, than Radeon R7 M380.

Game benchmarks

high / 1080p 10−12 6−7
ultra / 1080p 6−7 4−5
QHD / 1440p 1−2 0−1
low / 720p 24−27 16−18
medium / 1080p 12−14 8−9
The average gaming FPS of Radeon HD 6870 in Assassin's Creed Odyssey is 55% more, than Radeon R7 M380.

Full Specs

  Radeon HD 6870 Radeon R7 M380
Architecture Terascale 2 GCN
Code name RV940 Barts Tropo
Type Desktop Laptop
Release date 22 October 2010 7 May 2015
Pipelines 1120 640
Core clock speed 915 MHz
Boost Clock 900 MHz 915 MHz
Transistor count 1,700 million 1,500 million
Manufacturing process technology 40 nm 28 nm
Texture fill rate 50.40 36.60
Floating-point performance 2,016.0 gflops 1,171 gflops
Length 220 mm
Memory bus width 256 Bit 128 Bit
Memory clock speed 1050 MHz 1000 MHz
Memory bandwidth 134.4 GB/s 32 GB/s
Shared memory - -
Shader Model 5.0 5.1
OpenGL 4.4 4.4
OpenCL 1.2 Not Listed
FreeSync +
Bus support PCIe 2.0 x16 PCIe 3.0
HDMI +
Bitcoin / BTC (SHA256) 213 Mh/s
Laptop size medium sized
Eyefinity + +
HD3D +
PowerTune +
DualGraphics +
ZeroCore +
Switchable graphics +
Mantle +
Design reference
CrossFire +
Compute units 10
AppAcceleration +
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