870M vs 470

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Combined performance score

GTX 470
7.99

870M outperforms 470 by 11% in our combined benchmark results.

General info

GPU architecture, market segment, value for money and other general parameters compared.

Place in performance ranking478452
Place by popularitynot in top-100not in top-100
Value for money8.132.88
ArchitectureFermi (2010−2014)Kepler (2012−2018)
GPU code nameGF100N15P-GT
Market segmentDesktopLaptop
Release date12 April 2010 (13 years old)12 March 2014 (10 years old)
Launch price (MSRP)$349 no data
Current price$9.98 (0x MSRP)$403
Value for money

Performance to price ratio. The higher, the better.

GTX 470 has 182% better value for money than GTX 870M.

Technical specs

General performance parameters such as number of shaders, GPU core base clock and boost clock speeds, manufacturing process, texturing and calculation speed. These parameters indirectly speak of performance, but for precise assessment you have to consider their benchmark and gaming test results. Note that power consumption of some graphics cards can well exceed their nominal TDP, especially when overclocked.

Pipelines / CUDA cores4481344
CUDA cores4481344
Core clock speed607 MHz941 MHz
Boost clock speedno data967 MHz
Number of transistors3,100 million3,540 million
Manufacturing process technology40 nm28 nm
Power consumption (TDP)225 Watt100 Watt
Maximum GPU temperature105 °Cno data
Texture fill rate34.0 billion/sec108.3
Floating-point performance1,088.6 gflops2,599 gflops

Size and compatibility

Information on GeForce GTX 470 and GeForce GTX 870M compatibility with other computer components. Useful when choosing a future computer configuration or upgrading an existing one. For desktop video cards it's interface and bus (motherboard compatibility), additional power connectors (power supply compatibility). For notebook video cards it's notebook size, connection slot and bus, if the video card is inserted into a slot instead of being soldered to the notebook motherboard.

Laptop sizeno datalarge
Bus support16x PCI-E 2.0PCI Express 2.0, PCI Express 3.0
InterfacePCIe 2.0 x16MXM-B (3.0)
Length9.5" (241 mm) (24.1 cm)no data
Height4.376" (111 mm) (11.1 cm)no data
Width2-slotno data
Supplementary power connectorsTwo 6-pinsNone
SLI options++

Memory

Parameters of VRAM installed: its type, size, bus, clock and resulting bandwidth. Integrated GPUs have no dedicated video RAM and use a shared part of system RAM.

Memory typeGDDR5GDDR5
Maximum RAM amount1280 MB6 GB
Standard memory configurationno dataGDDR5
Memory bus width320 Bit192 Bit
Memory clock speed1674 MHz (3348 data rate)Up to 2500 MHz
Memory bandwidth133.9 GB/s120.0 GB/s
Shared memory--

Video outputs and ports

Types and number of video connectors present on the reviewed GPUs. As a rule, data in this section is precise only for desktop reference ones (so-called Founders Edition for NVIDIA chips). OEM manufacturers may change the number and type of output ports, while for notebook cards availability of certain video outputs ports depends on the laptop model rather than on the card itself.

Display ConnectorsTwo Dual Link DVIMini HDMINo outputs
Multi monitor support+no data
eDP 1.2 signal supportno dataUp to 3840x2160
LVDS signal supportno dataUp to 1920x1200
VGA аnalog display supportno dataUp to 2048x1536
DisplayPort Multimode (DP++) supportno dataUp to 3840x2160
HDMI++
HDCP content protectionno data+
Maximum VGA resolution2048x1536no data
Audio input for HDMIInternalno data
7.1 channel HD audio on HDMIno data+
TrueHD and DTS-HD audio bitstreamingno data+

Technologies

Supported technological solutions. This information will prove useful if you need some particular technology for your purposes.

H.264, VC1, MPEG2 1080p video decoderno data+
Optimusno data+

API support

List of supported graphics and general-purpose computing APIs, including their specific versions.

DirectX12 (11_0)12 (11_0)
Shader Model5.15.1
OpenGL4.24.5
OpenCL1.11.1
VulkanN/A1.1.126
CUDA++

Synthetic benchmark performance

Non-gaming benchmark performance comparison. The combined score is measured on a 0-100 point scale.


Combined synthetic benchmark score

This is our combined benchmark performance score. We are regularly improving our combining algorithms, but if you find some perceived inconsistencies, feel free to speak up in comments section, we usually fix problems quickly.

GTX 470 7.99
GTX 870M 8.90
+11.4%

870M outperforms 470 by 11% in our combined benchmark results.


Passmark

This is the most ubiquitous GPU benchmark, part of Passmark PerformanceTest suite. It gives the graphics card a thorough evaluation under various types of load, providing four separate benchmarks for Direct3D versions 9, 10, 11 and 12 (the last being done in 4K resolution if possible), and few more tests engaging DirectCompute capabilities.

Benchmark coverage: 25%

GTX 470 3098
GTX 870M 3449
+11.3%

870M outperforms 470 by 11% in Passmark.

3DMark Vantage Performance

3DMark Vantage is an outdated DirectX 10 benchmark using 1280x1024 screen resolution. It taxes the graphics card with two scenes, one depicting a girl escaping some militarized base located within a sea cave, the other displaying a space fleet attack on a defenseless planet. It was discontinued in April 2017, and Time Spy benchmark is now recommended to be used instead.

Benchmark coverage: 17%

GTX 470 16753
GTX 870M 24035
+43.5%

870M outperforms 470 by 43% in 3DMark Vantage Performance.

3DMark 11 Performance GPU

3DMark 11 is an obsolete DirectX 11 benchmark by Futuremark. It used four tests based on two scenes, one being few submarines exploring the submerged wreck of a sunken ship, the other is an abandoned temple deep in the jungle. All the tests are heavy with volumetric lighting and tessellation, and despite being done in 1280x720 resolution, are relatively taxing. Discontinued in January 2020, 3DMark 11 is now superseded by Time Spy.

Benchmark coverage: 17%

GTX 470 4342
GTX 870M 7156
+64.8%

870M outperforms 470 by 65% in 3DMark 11 Performance GPU.

3DMark Fire Strike Graphics

Fire Strike is a DirectX 11 benchmark for gaming PCs. It features two separate tests displaying a fight between a humanoid and a fiery creature made of lava. Using 1920x1080 resolution, Fire Strike shows off some realistic graphics and is quite taxing on hardware.

Benchmark coverage: 14%

GTX 470 2758
GTX 870M 4694
+70.2%

870M outperforms 470 by 70% in 3DMark Fire Strike Graphics.

3DMark Cloud Gate GPU

Cloud Gate is an outdated DirectX 11 feature level 10 benchmark that was used for home PCs and basic notebooks. It displays a few scenes of some weird space teleportation device launching spaceships into unknown, using fixed resolution of 1280x720. Just like Ice Storm benchmark, it has been discontinued in January 2020 and replaced by 3DMark Night Raid.

Benchmark coverage: 14%

GTX 470 25757
GTX 870M 31322
+21.6%

870M outperforms 470 by 22% in 3DMark Cloud Gate GPU.

GeekBench 5 OpenCL

Geekbench 5 is a widespread graphics card benchmark combined from 11 different test scenarios. All these scenarios rely on direct usage of GPU's processing power, no 3D rendering is involved. This variation uses OpenCL API by Khronos Group.

Benchmark coverage: 9%

GTX 470 11075
GTX 870M 12443
+12.4%

870M outperforms 470 by 12% in GeekBench 5 OpenCL.

Octane Render OctaneBench

This is a special benchmark measuring graphics card performance in OctaneRender, which is a realistic GPU rendering engine by OTOY Inc., available either as a standalone program, or as a plugin for 3DS Max, Cinema 4D and many other apps. It renders four different static scenes, then compares render times with a reference GPU which is currently GeForce GTX 980. This benchmark has nothing to do with gaming and is aimed at professional 3D graphics artists.

Benchmark coverage: 4%

GTX 470 44
+29.4%
GTX 870M 34

470 outperforms 870M by 29% in Octane Render OctaneBench.

Gaming performance

Let's see how good the compared graphics cards are for gaming. Particular gaming benchmark results are measured in FPS.

Average FPS across all PC games

Here are the average frames per second in a large set of popular games across different resolutions:

900p52
−5.8%
55−60
+5.8%
Full HD64
+39.1%
46
−39.1%
1200p53
−3.8%
55−60
+3.8%
4K16−18
−18.8%
19
+18.8%

Performance in popular games

Full HD
Low Preset

Cyberpunk 2077 12−14
−7.7%
14−16
+7.7%

Full HD
Medium Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey 16−18
−12.5%
18−20
+12.5%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla 10−12
−18.2%
12−14
+18.2%
Battlefield 5 27−30
−11.1%
30−33
+11.1%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 21−24
−9.1%
24−27
+9.1%
Cyberpunk 2077 12−14
−7.7%
14−16
+7.7%
Far Cry 5 18−20
−15.8%
21−24
+15.8%
Far Cry New Dawn 20−22
−15%
21−24
+15%
Forza Horizon 4 27−30
−10.7%
30−35
+10.7%
Hitman 3 20−22
−10%
21−24
+10%
Horizon Zero Dawn 16−18
−12.5%
18−20
+12.5%
Red Dead Redemption 2 14−16
−14.3%
16−18
+14.3%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider 18−20
−5.6%
18−20
+5.6%
Watch Dogs: Legion 12−14
−15.4%
14−16
+15.4%

Full HD
High Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey 16−18
−12.5%
18−20
+12.5%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla 10−12
−18.2%
12−14
+18.2%
Battlefield 5 27−30
−11.1%
30−33
+11.1%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 21−24
−9.1%
24−27
+9.1%
Cyberpunk 2077 12−14
−7.7%
14−16
+7.7%
Far Cry 5 18−20
−15.8%
21−24
+15.8%
Far Cry New Dawn 20−22
−15%
21−24
+15%
Forza Horizon 4 27−30
−10.7%
30−35
+10.7%
Hitman 3 20−22
−10%
21−24
+10%
Horizon Zero Dawn 16−18
−12.5%
18−20
+12.5%
Metro Exodus 12−14
−8.3%
12−14
+8.3%
Red Dead Redemption 2 14−16
−14.3%
16−18
+14.3%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider 18−20
−5.6%
18−20
+5.6%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 16−18
−75%
28
+75%
Watch Dogs: Legion 12−14
−15.4%
14−16
+15.4%

Full HD
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey 16−18
−12.5%
18−20
+12.5%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla 10−12
−18.2%
12−14
+18.2%
Battlefield 5 27−30
−11.1%
30−33
+11.1%
Cyberpunk 2077 12−14
−7.7%
14−16
+7.7%
Far Cry 5 18−20
−15.8%
21−24
+15.8%
Far Cry New Dawn 20−22
−15%
21−24
+15%
Forza Horizon 4 27−30
−10.7%
30−35
+10.7%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 16−18
+6.7%
15
−6.7%
Watch Dogs: Legion 12−14
−15.4%
14−16
+15.4%

1440p
High Preset

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 12−14
−8.3%
12−14
+8.3%
Hitman 3 12−14
−7.7%
14−16
+7.7%
Horizon Zero Dawn 14−16
−7.1%
14−16
+7.1%
Metro Exodus 6−7
−16.7%
7−8
+16.7%
Red Dead Redemption 2 5−6
−20%
6−7
+20%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider 10−12
−9.1%
12−14
+9.1%

1440p
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey 7−8
−14.3%
8−9
+14.3%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla 3−4
−33.3%
4−5
+33.3%
Battlefield 5 10−12
−18.2%
12−14
+18.2%
Cyberpunk 2077 4−5
+0%
4−5
+0%
Far Cry 5 12−14
−16.7%
14−16
+16.7%
Far Cry New Dawn 12−14
−16.7%
14−16
+16.7%
Forza Horizon 4 14−16
−14.3%
16−18
+14.3%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 7−8
−14.3%
8−9
+14.3%
Watch Dogs: Legion 3−4
−33.3%
4−5
+33.3%

4K
High Preset

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 5−6
−20%
6−7
+20%
Hitman 3 7−8
−14.3%
8−9
+14.3%
Horizon Zero Dawn 8−9
+0%
8−9
+0%
Metro Exodus 2−3
−50%
3−4
+50%
Red Dead Redemption 2 4−5
−25%
5−6
+25%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider 4−5
+0%
4−5
+0%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 5−6
−20%
6−7
+20%

4K
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey 4−5
−25%
5−6
+25%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla 3−4
−33.3%
4−5
+33.3%
Battlefield 5 5−6
−20%
6−7
+20%
Cyberpunk 2077 1−2
+0%
1−2
+0%
Far Cry 5 7−8
+0%
7−8
+0%
Far Cry New Dawn 9−10
−11.1%
10−11
+11.1%
Forza Horizon 4 9−10
−22.2%
10−12
+22.2%
Watch Dogs: Legion 2−3
+0%
2−3
+0%

This is how GTX 470 and GTX 870M compete in popular games:

900p resolution:

  • GTX 870M is 5.8% faster than GTX 470

1080p resolution:

  • GTX 470 is 39.1% faster than GTX 870M

1200p resolution:

  • GTX 870M is 3.8% faster than GTX 470

4K resolution:

  • GTX 870M is 18.8% faster than GTX 470

Here's the range of performance differences observed across popular games:

  • in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, with 1080p resolution and the Ultra Preset, the GTX 470 is 6.7% faster than the GTX 870M.
  • in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, with 1080p resolution and the High Preset, the GTX 870M is 75% faster than the GTX 470.

All in all, in popular games:

  • GTX 470 is ahead in 1 test (1%)
  • GTX 870M is ahead in 61 test (90%)
  • there's a draw in 6 tests (9%)

Advantages and disadvantages


Performance score 7.99 8.90
Recency 12 April 2010 12 March 2014
Maximum RAM amount 1280 MB 6 GB
Chip lithography 40 nm 28 nm
Power consumption (TDP) 225 Watt 100 Watt

The GeForce GTX 870M is our recommended choice as it beats the GeForce GTX 470 in performance tests.

Be aware that GeForce GTX 470 is a desktop card while GeForce GTX 870M is a notebook one.


Should you still have questions concerning choice between the reviewed GPUs, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

User ratings

Do you think we are right or mistaken in our choice? Vote by clicking "Like" button near your favorite graphics card.


NVIDIA GeForce GTX 470
GeForce GTX 470
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 870M
GeForce GTX 870M

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