Radeon HD 8790M vs Radeon RX 550

When choosing between Radeon HD 8790M and Radeon RX 550, it is worth examining the specifications of the models in detail. Do they meet the recommended requirements of modern games and software? Storage capacity, form factor, TDP, available ports, warranty and manufacturer support are all important. For example, the size of a PC case can limit the maximum thickness and length of the card. Often, instead of the factory overclocked card and RGB backlight, it is better to choose a reference model with a more efficient GPU. And make sure that your current power supply unit has the correct connection pins (using adapters is not recommended). This GPUs compare tool is meant to help you to choose the best graphics card for your build. Let's find out the difference between Radeon HD 8790M and Radeon RX 550.

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 RX 550
Power consumption (TDP) 50 Watt
Interface MXM-A (3.0) PCIe 3.0 x8
Supplementary power connectors None None
Memory type GDDR5 GDDR5
Maximum RAM amount 2 GB 4 GB
Display Connectors No outputs 1x DVI, 1x HDMI, 1x DisplayPort
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  • Radeon HD 8790M is connected by MXM-A (3.0), and Radeon RX 550 uses PCIe 3.0 x8 interface.
  • Radeon RX 550 has 2 GB more memory, than Radeon HD 8790M.
  • Radeon HD 8790M is used in Laptops, and Radeon RX 550 - in Desktops.
  • Radeon HD 8790M is build with GCN architecture, and Radeon RX 550 - with GCN 4.0.
  • Core clock speed of Radeon RX 550 is 250 MHz higher, than Radeon HD 8790M.
  • Radeon HD 8790M is manufactured by 28 nm process technology, and Radeon RX 550 - by 14 nm process technology.
  • Memory clock speed of Radeon RX 550 is 2500 MHz higher, than Radeon HD 8790M.

Game benchmarks

high / 1080p 3−4 14−16
ultra / 1080p 1−2 8−9
QHD / 1440p 0−1 3−4
low / 720p 14−16 30−33
medium / 1080p 6−7 18−20
The average gaming FPS of Radeon RX 550 in Assassin's Creed Odyssey is 200% more, than Radeon HD 8790M.

Full Specs

  Radeon HD 8790M Radeon RX 550
Architecture GCN GCN 4.0
Code name Mars XTX Lexa
Type Laptop Desktop
Release date 16 November 2012 20 April 2017
Pipelines 384 512
Core clock speed 850 MHz 1100 MHz
Boost Clock 900 MHz 1183 MHz
Transistor count 950 million 2,200 million
Manufacturing process technology 28 nm 14 nm
Texture fill rate 21.60 37.86
Floating-point performance 691.2 gflops 1,211 gflops
Length 145 mm
Memory bus width 128 Bit 128 Bit
Memory clock speed 4500 MHz 7000 MHz
Memory bandwidth 64 GB/s 112.0 GB/s
Shared memory -
DirectX 12 (11_1) 12 (12_0)
Shader Model 5.1 6.4
OpenGL 4.6 4.6
OpenCL 1.2 2.0
Vulkan 1.2.131 1.2.131
Bitcoin / BTC (SHA256) 80 Mh/s
Laptop size medium sized
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