Radeon R9 M290X vs Radeon Sky 500

When choosing between Radeon R9 M290X and Radeon Sky 500, 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 R9 M290X and Radeon Sky 500.

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:

Main Specs

  Radeon R9 M290X Radeon Sky 500
Power consumption (TDP) 100 Watt 150 Watt
Interface PCIe 3.0 x16 PCIe 3.0 x16
Supplementary power connectors None 1x 6-pin
Memory type GDDR5 GDDR5
Maximum RAM amount 4 GB 4 GB
Display Connectors No outputs 1x DisplayPort
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  • Radeon Sky 500 has 50% more power consumption, than Radeon R9 M290X.
  • Both video cards are using PCIe 3.0 x16 interface connection to a motherboard.
  • Radeon R9 M290X and Radeon Sky 500 have maximum RAM of 4 GB.
  • Radeon R9 M290X is used in Laptops, and Radeon Sky 500 - in Desktops.
  • Radeon R9 M290X is build with GCN architecture, and Radeon Sky 500 - with GCN 1.0.
  • Core clock speed of Radeon Sky 500 is 100 MHz higher, than Radeon R9 M290X.
  • Radeon R9 M290X and Radeon Sky 500 are manufactured by 28 nm process technology.
  • Memory clock speed of Radeon Sky 500 is 3600 MHz higher, than Radeon R9 M290X.

Game benchmarks

high / 1080p 16−18 35−40
ultra / 1080p 10−11 21−24
QHD / 1440p 4−5 16−18
4K / 2160p 4−5 10−11
low / 720p 30−35 60−65
medium / 1080p 20−22 40−45
The average gaming FPS of Radeon Sky 500 in Assassin's Creed Odyssey is 113% more, than Radeon R9 M290X.

Full Specs

  Radeon R9 M290X Radeon Sky 500
Architecture GCN GCN 1.0
Code name Neptune Pitcairn
Type Laptop Desktop
Release date 7 January 2014 27 March 2013
Pipelines 1280 1280
Core clock speed 850 MHz 950 MHz
Boost Clock 900 MHz
Transistor count 2,800 million 2,800 million
Manufacturing process technology 28 nm 28 nm
Texture fill rate 72.00 76.00
Floating-point performance 2,304 gflops 2,432 gflops
Length 242 mm
Memory bus width 256 Bit 256 Bit
Memory clock speed 1200 MHz 4800 MHz
Memory bandwidth 153.6 GB/s 154 GB/s
Shared memory -
DirectX 12 (11_1)
Shader Model 5.1 5.1
OpenGL 4.4 4.6
OpenCL Not Listed 1.2
Vulkan 1.2.131
FreeSync +
Bus support PCIe 3.0 x16 PCIe 3.0
Bitcoin / BTC (SHA256) 300 Mh/s
Laptop size large
Eyefinity +
HD3D +
PowerTune +
DualGraphics +
ZeroCore +
Switchable graphics +
Mantle +
Compute units 20
Form factor full height / full length
DisplayPort count 1
Dual-link DVI support +
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