Radeon HD 4870 vs Radeon R9 M290X

In this comparison between Radeon HD 4870 and Radeon R9 M290X 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 4870 will be the best choice, for others Radeon R9 M290X will be their preference. Study the comparison tables below and make your choice.

Radeon HD 4870 Check Price

Radeon R9 M290X Check Price

Radeon R9 M290X is a Laptop Graphics Card

Note: Radeon R9 M290X 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 R9 M290X here:

Radeon R9 M290X Laptops

Main Specs

	Radeon HD 4870	Radeon R9 M290X
Power consumption (TDP)	150 Watt	100 Watt
Interface	PCIe 2.0 x16	PCIe 3.0 x16
Supplementary power connectors	2x 6-pin	None
Memory type	GDDR5	GDDR5
Maximum RAM amount	1 GB	4 GB
Display Connectors	2x DVI, 1x S-Video	No outputs
	Check Price	Check Price

Radeon HD 4870 has 50% more power consumption, than Radeon R9 M290X.
Radeon HD 4870 is connected by PCIe 2.0 x16, and Radeon R9 M290X uses PCIe 3.0 x16 interface.
Radeon R9 M290X has 3 GB more memory, than Radeon HD 4870.
Radeon HD 4870 is used in Desktops, and Radeon R9 M290X - in Laptops.
Radeon HD 4870 is build with TeraScale architecture, and Radeon R9 M290X - with GCN.
Core clock speed of Radeon R9 M290X is 100 MHz higher, than Radeon HD 4870.
Radeon HD 4870 is manufactured by 55 nm process technology, and Radeon R9 M290X - by 28 nm process technology.
Memory clock speed of Radeon HD 4870 is 2400 MHz higher, than Radeon R9 M290X.

Game benchmarks


high / 1080p	3−4	16−18
ultra / 1080p	1−2	10−11
QHD / 1440p	0−1	4−5
4K / 2160p	−	4−5
low / 720p	14−16	30−35
medium / 1080p	6−7	20−22
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 M290X in Assassin's Creed Odyssey is 233% more, than Radeon HD 4870.
high / 1080p	8−9	24−27
ultra / 1080p	6−7	21−24
QHD / 1440p	0−1	9−10
4K / 2160p	−	6−7
low / 720p	21−24	55−60
medium / 1080p	9−10	27−30
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 M290X in Battlefield 5 is 200% more, than Radeon HD 4870.
low / 768p	45−50	45−50
high / 1080p	40−45	−
QHD / 1440p	0−1	0−1
Radeon HD 4870 and Radeon R9 M290X have the same average FPS in Call of Duty: Warzone.
low / 768p	120−130	210−220
medium / 768p	100−110	180−190
ultra / 1080p	45−50	100−110
QHD / 1440p	24−27	55−60
4K / 2160p	−	30−35
high / 768p	75−80	150−160
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 M290X in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive is 88% more, than Radeon HD 4870.
low / 768p	70−75	55−60
ultra / 1080p	21−24	40−45
medium / 1080p	40−45	45−50
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 M290X in Cyberpunk 2077 is 8% more, than Radeon HD 4870.
low / 768p	75−80	110−120
medium / 768p	55−60	95−100
ultra / 1080p	30−35	65−70
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 M290X in Dota 2 is 69% more, than Radeon HD 4870.
high / 1080p	4−5	18−20
ultra / 1080p	4−5	18−20
QHD / 1440p	−	16−18
4K / 2160p	1−2	6−7
low / 720p	14−16	40−45
medium / 1080p	6−7	21−24
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 M290X in Far Cry 5 is 250% more, than Radeon HD 4870.
high / 1080p	12−14	27−30
ultra / 1080p	7−8	21−24
QHD / 1440p	4−5	16−18
low / 720p	60−65	100−110
medium / 1080p	18−20	55−60
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 M290X in Fortnite is 119% more, than Radeon HD 4870.
high / 1080p	7−8	27−30
ultra / 1080p	7−8	21−24
QHD / 1440p	0−1	10−11
4K / 2160p	−	10−11
low / 720p	21−24	55−60
medium / 1080p	10−11	30−35
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 M290X in Forza Horizon 4 is 191% more, than Radeon HD 4870.
low / 768p	50−55	90−95
medium / 768p	−	80−85
high / 1080p	10−11	30−35
ultra / 1080p	4−5	12−14
QHD / 1440p	0−1	4−5
medium / 720p	40−45	−
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 M290X in Grand Theft Auto V is 109% more, than Radeon HD 4870.
high / 1080p	2−3	10−11
ultra / 1080p	0−1	8−9
4K / 2160p	0−1	3−4
low / 720p	9−10	30−35
medium / 1080p	4−5	14−16
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 M290X in Metro Exodus is 280% more, than Radeon HD 4870.
low / 768p	85−90	110−120
high / 1080p	70−75	−
medium / 1080p	−	100−110
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 M290X in Minecraft is 32% more, than Radeon HD 4870.
high / 1080p	−	24−27
ultra / 1080p	12−14	18−20
low / 720p	30−35	60−65
medium / 1080p	14−16	24−27
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 M290X in PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS is 75% more, than Radeon HD 4870.
high / 1080p	7−8	14−16
ultra / 1080p	4−5	10−11
QHD / 1440p	0−1	0−1
low / 720p	8−9	30−35
medium / 1080p	8−9	16−18
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 M290X in Red Dead Redemption 2 is 157% more, than Radeon HD 4870.
low / 768p	18−20	60−65
medium / 768p	12−14	35−40
high / 1080p	7−8	21−24
ultra / 1080p	5−6	12−14
4K / 2160p	1−2	8−9
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 M290X in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is 211% more, than Radeon HD 4870.
low / 768p	75−80	100−110
medium / 768p	40−45	60−65
ultra / 1080p	18−20	35−40
high / 768p	30−35	55−60
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 M290X in World of Tanks is 54% more, than Radeon HD 4870.

Full Specs

	Radeon HD 4870	Radeon R9 M290X
Architecture	TeraScale	GCN
Code name	RV770	Neptune
Type	Desktop	Laptop
Release date	25 June 2008	7 January 2014
Pipelines	800	1280
Core clock speed	750 MHz	850 MHz
Boost Clock		900 MHz
Transistor count	956 million	2,800 million
Manufacturing process technology	55 nm	28 nm
Texture fill rate	30.00	72.00
Floating-point performance	1,200.0 gflops	2,304 gflops
Length	250 mm
Memory bus width	256 Bit	256 Bit
Memory clock speed	3600 MHz	1200 MHz
Memory bandwidth	115.2 GB/s	153.6 GB/s
Shared memory		-
DirectX	10.1 (10_1)
Shader Model	4.1	5.1
OpenGL	3.3	4.4
OpenCL	1.1	Not Listed
Vulkan	N/A
FreeSync		+
Bus support		PCIe 3.0 x16
Bitcoin / BTC (SHA256)		300 Mh/s
Laptop size		large
Eyefinity		+
HD3D		+
PowerTune		+
DualGraphics		+
ZeroCore		+
Switchable graphics		+
Mantle		+
Compute units		20
	Check Price	Check Price

Radeon HD 4870 vs Radeon R9 M290X

Radeon R9 M290X is a Laptop Graphics Card

Main Specs

Game benchmarks

Full Specs

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