Radeon HD 8970M vs GeForce GTX 880M

Place in the ranking	452	448
Place by popularity	not in top-100	not in top-100
Power efficiency	5.63	6.99
Architecture	Kepler (2012−2018)	GCN 1.0 (2011−2020)
GPU code name	GK104	Neptune
Market segment	Laptop	Laptop
Release date	12 March 2014 (10 years ago)	14 May 2013 (11 years ago)

Detailed specifications

General parameters such as number of shaders, GPU core base clock and boost clock speeds, manufacturing process, texturing and calculation speed. Note that power consumption of some graphics cards can well exceed their nominal TDP, especially when overclocked.

Pipelines / CUDA cores	1536	1280
Core clock speed	954 MHz	850 MHz
Boost clock speed	993 MHz	900 MHz
Number of transistors	3,540 million	2,800 million
Manufacturing process technology	28 nm	28 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	122 Watt	100 Watt
Texture fill rate	127.1	72.00
Floating-point processing power	3.05 TFLOPS	2.304 TFLOPS
ROPs	32	32
TMUs	128	80

Form factor & compatibility

Information on compatibility with other computer components. Useful when choosing a future computer configuration or upgrading an existing one. For desktop graphics cards it's interface and bus (motherboard compatibility), additional power connectors (power supply compatibility).

Laptop size	large	large
Bus support	PCI Express 2.0, PCI Express 3.0	no data
Interface	MXM-B (3.0)	PCIe 3.0 x16
Supplementary power connectors	None	no data
SLI options	+	-

VRAM capacity and type

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 type	GDDR5	GDDR5
Maximum RAM amount	8 GB	4 GB
Standard memory configuration	GDDR5	no data
Memory bus width	256 Bit	256 Bit
Memory clock speed	Up to 2500 MHz	1200 MHz
Memory bandwidth	160.0 GB/s	153.6 GB/s
Shared memory	-	-

Connectivity and outputs

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 Connectors	No outputs	No outputs
eDP 1.2 signal support	Up to 3840x2160	no data
LVDS signal support	Up to 1920x1200	no data
VGA аnalog display support	Up to 2048x1536	no data
DisplayPort Multimode (DP++) support	Up to 3840x2160	no data
HDMI	+	-
HDCP content protection	+	-
7.1 channel HD audio on HDMI	+	-
TrueHD and DTS-HD audio bitstreaming	+	-

Supported technologies

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

H.264, VC1, MPEG2 1080p video decoder	+	-
Optimus	+	-

API compatibility

List of supported 3D and general-purpose computing APIs, including their specific versions.

DirectX	12 (11_0)	12 (11_1)
Shader Model	5.1	5.1
OpenGL	4.5	4.6
OpenCL	1.1	1.2
Vulkan	1.1.126	1.2.131
CUDA	+	-

Synthetic benchmark performance

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

Combined synthetic benchmark score

This is our combined benchmark 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 880M 9.89

HD 8970M 10.05
+1.6%

Passmark

This is the most ubiquitous GPU benchmark. 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.

GTX 880M 3817

HD 8970M 3876
+1.5%

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.

GTX 880M 8578
+25.8%

HD 8970M 6818

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.

GTX 880M 28022
+50.1%

HD 8970M 18667

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.

GTX 880M 6101
+21.1%

HD 8970M 5039

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.

GTX 880M 39891
+28.6%

HD 8970M 31027

Unigine Heaven 3.0

This is an old DirectX 11 benchmark using Unigine, a 3D game engine by eponymous Russian company. It displays a fantasy medieval town sprawling over several flying islands. Version 3.0 was released in 2012, and in 2013 it was superseded by Heaven 4.0, which introduced several slight improvements, including a newer version of Unigine.

GTX 880M 81
+45%

HD 8970M 56

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:

900p	135 +3.8%	130−140 −3.8%
Full HD	56 +9.8%	51 −9.8%
4K	24 +0%	24−27 +0%

FPS performance in popular games

Full HD
Low Preset

Cyberpunk 2077

14−16

−6.7%

16−18
+6.7%

Full HD
Medium Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	24−27 +0%	24−27 +0%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	14−16 +0%	14−16 +0%
Battlefield 5	30−35 +0%	30−35 +0%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	20−22 +0%	20−22 +0%
Cyberpunk 2077	14−16 −6.7%	16−18 +6.7%
Far Cry 5	21−24 +0%	21−24 +0%
Far Cry New Dawn	27−30 −3.7%	27−30 +3.7%
Forza Horizon 4	65−70 −1.5%	65−70 +1.5%
Hitman 3	18−20 +0%	18−20 +0%
Horizon Zero Dawn	50−55 −1.9%	55−60 +1.9%
Metro Exodus	30−35 −3.2%	30−35 +3.2%
Red Dead Redemption 2	27−30 −3.7%	27−30 +3.7%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	30−35 −3.1%	30−35 +3.1%
Watch Dogs: Legion	60−65 +0%	60−65 +0%

Full HD
High Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	24−27 +0%	24−27 +0%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	14−16 +0%	14−16 +0%
Battlefield 5	30−35 +0%	30−35 +0%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	20−22 +0%	20−22 +0%
Cyberpunk 2077	14−16 −6.7%	16−18 +6.7%
Far Cry 5	21−24 +0%	21−24 +0%
Far Cry New Dawn	27−30 −3.7%	27−30 +3.7%
Forza Horizon 4	65−70 −1.5%	65−70 +1.5%
Hitman 3	18−20 +0%	18−20 +0%
Horizon Zero Dawn	50−55 −1.9%	55−60 +1.9%
Metro Exodus	30−35 −3.2%	30−35 +3.2%
Red Dead Redemption 2	27−30 −3.7%	27−30 +3.7%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	30−35 −3.1%	30−35 +3.1%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	102 +24.4%	82 −24.4%
Watch Dogs: Legion	60−65 +0%	60−65 +0%

Full HD
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	24−27 +0%	24−27 +0%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	14−16 +0%	14−16 +0%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	20−22 +0%	20−22 +0%
Cyberpunk 2077	14−16 −6.7%	16−18 +6.7%
Far Cry 5	21−24 +0%	21−24 +0%
Forza Horizon 4	65−70 −1.5%	65−70 +1.5%
Hitman 3	18−20 +0%	18−20 +0%
Horizon Zero Dawn	50−55 −1.9%	55−60 +1.9%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	30−35 −3.1%	30−35 +3.1%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	19 +5.6%	18 −5.6%
Watch Dogs: Legion	60−65 +0%	60−65 +0%

Full HD
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2

27−30

−3.7%

27−30
+3.7%

1440p
High Preset

Battlefield 5	18−20 −5.3%	20−22 +5.3%
Far Cry New Dawn	14−16 +0%	14−16 +0%

1440p
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	10−11 +0%	10−11 +0%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	6−7 +0%	6−7 +0%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	10−11 +0%	10−11 +0%
Cyberpunk 2077	5−6 +0%	5−6 +0%
Far Cry 5	10−12 −9.1%	12−14 +9.1%
Forza Horizon 4	40−45 −2.3%	45−50 +2.3%
Hitman 3	12−14 +0%	12−14 +0%
Horizon Zero Dawn	20−22 −5%	21−24 +5%
Metro Exodus	14−16 −7.1%	14−16 +7.1%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	12−14 −8.3%	12−14 +8.3%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	9−10 −11.1%	10−11 +11.1%
Watch Dogs: Legion	60−65 −3.2%	60−65 +3.2%

1440p
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2

16−18

−6.3%

16−18
+6.3%

4K
High Preset

Battlefield 5	9−10 +0%	9−10 +0%
Far Cry New Dawn	7−8 +0%	7−8 +0%
Hitman 3	6−7 +0%	6−7 +0%
Horizon Zero Dawn	40−45 −2.4%	40−45 +2.4%
Metro Exodus	8−9 +0%	8−9 +0%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	7−8 −14.3%	8−9 +14.3%

4K
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	6−7 +0%	6−7 +0%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	4−5 +0%	4−5 +0%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	4−5 −25%	5−6 +25%
Cyberpunk 2077	1−2 +0%	1−2 +0%
Far Cry 5	5−6 +0%	5−6 +0%
Forza Horizon 4	12−14 −8.3%	12−14 +8.3%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	6−7 −16.7%	7−8 +16.7%
Watch Dogs: Legion	4−5 +0%	4−5 +0%

4K
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2

9−10

−11.1%

10−11
+11.1%

This is how GTX 880M and HD 8970M compete in popular games:

GTX 880M is 4% faster in 900p
GTX 880M is 10% faster in 1080p
A tie in 4K

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

in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, with 1080p resolution and the High Preset, the GTX 880M is 24% faster.
in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, with 4K resolution and the Ultra Preset, the HD 8970M is 25% faster.

All in all, in popular games: