Radeon 550X vs HD 7850M

Aggregate performance score

We've compared Radeon HD 7850M with Radeon 550X, including specs and performance data.

HD 7850M
2012
2 GB GDDR5, 40 Watt
3.56

550X outperforms HD 7850M by a minimal 4% based on our aggregate benchmark results.

Primary details

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

Place in the ranking718709
Place by popularitynot in top-100not in top-100
Power efficiency6.165.11
ArchitectureGCN 1.0 (2011−2020)GCN 4.0 (2016−2020)
GPU code nameHeathrowLexa
Market segmentLaptopDesktop
Release date24 April 2012 (12 years ago)27 March 2019 (5 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 cores640512
Core clock speed675 MHz1082 MHz
Boost clock speedno data1218 MHz
Number of transistors1,500 million2,200 million
Manufacturing process technology28 nm14 nm
Power consumption (TDP)40 Watt50 Watt
Texture fill rate27.0038.98
Floating-point processing power0.864 TFLOPS1.247 TFLOPS
ROPs1616
TMUs4032

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 sizelargeno data
InterfacePCIe 3.0 x16PCIe 3.0 x8
Lengthno data145 mm
Widthno data2-slot
Supplementary power connectorsno dataNone

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 typeGDDR5GDDR5
Maximum RAM amount2 GB2 GB
Memory bus width128 Bit128 Bit
Memory clock speed1000 MHz1750 MHz
Memory bandwidth64 GB/s112.0 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 ConnectorsNo outputs1x DVI, 1x HDMI, 1x DisplayPort
HDMI-+

API compatibility

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

DirectX12 (11_1)12 (12_0)
Shader Model5.16.4
OpenGL4.64.6
OpenCL1.22.0
Vulkan1.2.1311.2.131

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.

HD 7850M 3.56
Radeon 550X 3.69
+3.7%

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.

HD 7850M 1372
Radeon 550X 1423
+3.7%

Gaming performance

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

FPS performance in popular games

Full HD
Low Preset

Cyberpunk 2077 6−7
+0%
6−7
+0%

Full HD
Medium Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey 10−11
+0%
10−11
+0%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla 2−3
+0%
2−3
+0%
Battlefield 5 7−8
+0%
7−8
+0%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 8−9
+0%
8−9
+0%
Cyberpunk 2077 6−7
+0%
6−7
+0%
Far Cry 5 7−8
+0%
7−8
+0%
Far Cry New Dawn 10−11
+0%
10−11
+0%
Forza Horizon 4 20−22
+11.1%
18−20
−11.1%
Hitman 3 9−10
+0%
9−10
+0%
Horizon Zero Dawn 24−27
+4.2%
24−27
−4.2%
Metro Exodus 6−7
+0%
6−7
+0%
Red Dead Redemption 2 9−10
+0%
9−10
+0%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider 14−16
+0%
14−16
+0%
Watch Dogs: Legion 40−45
+2.5%
40−45
−2.5%

Full HD
High Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey 10−11
+0%
10−11
+0%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla 2−3
+0%
2−3
+0%
Battlefield 5 7−8
+0%
7−8
+0%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 8−9
+0%
8−9
+0%
Cyberpunk 2077 6−7
+0%
6−7
+0%
Far Cry 5 7−8
+0%
7−8
+0%
Far Cry New Dawn 10−11
+0%
10−11
+0%
Forza Horizon 4 20−22
+11.1%
18−20
−11.1%
Hitman 3 9−10
+0%
9−10
+0%
Horizon Zero Dawn 24−27
+4.2%
24−27
−4.2%
Metro Exodus 6−7
+0%
6−7
+0%
Red Dead Redemption 2 9−10
+0%
9−10
+0%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider 14−16
+0%
14−16
+0%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 14−16
+7.1%
14−16
−7.1%
Watch Dogs: Legion 40−45
+2.5%
40−45
−2.5%

Full HD
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey 10−11
+0%
10−11
+0%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla 2−3
+0%
2−3
+0%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 8−9
+0%
8−9
+0%
Cyberpunk 2077 6−7
+0%
6−7
+0%
Far Cry 5 7−8
+0%
7−8
+0%
Forza Horizon 4 20−22
+11.1%
18−20
−11.1%
Hitman 3 9−10
+0%
9−10
+0%
Horizon Zero Dawn 24−27
+4.2%
24−27
−4.2%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider 14−16
+0%
14−16
+0%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 14−16
+7.1%
14−16
−7.1%
Watch Dogs: Legion 40−45
+2.5%
40−45
−2.5%

Full HD
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2 9−10
+0%
9−10
+0%

1440p
High Preset

Battlefield 5 6−7
+0%
6−7
+0%
Far Cry New Dawn 5−6
+0%
5−6
+0%

1440p
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey 3−4
+0%
3−4
+0%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3−4
+0%
3−4
+0%
Cyberpunk 2077 2−3
+0%
2−3
+0%
Far Cry 5 4−5
+0%
4−5
+0%
Forza Horizon 4 2−3
+0%
2−3
+0%
Hitman 3 8−9
+0%
8−9
+0%
Horizon Zero Dawn 9−10
+0%
9−10
+0%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 3−4
+0%
3−4
+0%
Watch Dogs: Legion 21−24
+4.8%
21−24
−4.8%

1440p
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2 7−8
+0%
7−8
+0%

4K
High Preset

Battlefield 5 2−3
+0%
2−3
+0%
Far Cry New Dawn 2−3
+0%
2−3
+0%

4K
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey 2−3
+0%
2−3
+0%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla 1−2
+0%
1−2
+0%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 1−2
+0%
1−2
+0%
Cyberpunk 2077 0−1 0−1
Far Cry 5 2−3
+0%
2−3
+0%
Forza Horizon 4 2−3
+0%
2−3
+0%
Watch Dogs: Legion 1−2
+0%
1−2
+0%

4K
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2 4−5
+0%
4−5
+0%

Pros & cons summary


Performance score 3.56 3.69
Recency 24 April 2012 27 March 2019
Chip lithography 28 nm 14 nm
Power consumption (TDP) 40 Watt 50 Watt

HD 7850M has 25% lower power consumption.

Radeon 550X, on the other hand, has a 3.7% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 6 years, and a 100% more advanced lithography process.

Given the minimal performance differences, no clear winner can be declared between Radeon HD 7850M and Radeon 550X.

Be aware that Radeon HD 7850M is a notebook card while Radeon 550X is a desktop one.


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

Vote for your favorite

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


AMD Radeon HD 7850M
Radeon HD 7850M
AMD Radeon 550X
Radeon 550X

Comparisons with similar GPUs

We selected several comparisons of graphics cards with performance close to those reviewed, providing you with more options to consider.

Community ratings

Here you can see the user ratings of the compared graphics cards, as well as rate them yourself.


3.2 17 votes

Rate Radeon HD 7850M on a scale of 1 to 5:

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3.2 13 votes

Rate Radeon 550X on a scale of 1 to 5:

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Questions & comments

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