HD 7850 vs HD 7950

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Combined performance score

HD 7950
12.29
+23.6%

HD 7950 outperforms HD 7850 by 24% in our combined benchmark results.

General info

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

Place in performance ranking366415
Place by popularitynot in top-100not in top-100
Value for money1.331.38
ArchitectureGCN 1.0 (2012−2020)GCN 1.0 (2012−2020)
GPU code nameTahitiPitcairn
Market segmentDesktopDesktop
Designreferencereference
Release date31 January 2012 (12 years old)5 March 2012 (12 years old)
Launch price (MSRP)$449 $249
Current price$431 (1x MSRP)$267 (1.1x MSRP)
Value for money

Performance to price ratio. The higher, the better.

HD 7850 has 4% better value for money than HD 7950.

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 cores17921024
Compute units28no data
Boost clock speed1250 MHz1000 MHz
Number of transistors4,313 million2,800 million
Manufacturing process technology28 nm28 nm
Power consumption (TDP)200 Watt130 Watt
Texture fill rate89.6055.04
Floating-point performance2,867 gflops1,761 gflops

Size and 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).

Bus supportPCIe 3.0 x16PCIe 2.1 x16
InterfacePCIe 3.0 x16PCIe 3.0 x16
Length267 mm210 mm
Width2-slot2-slot
Supplementary power connectors2x 6-pin1x 6-pin

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 amount3 GB2 GB
Memory bus width384 Bit256 Bit
Memory clock speed1250 MHz1200 MHz
Memory bandwidth240 GB/s153.6 GB/s

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 Connectors1x DVI, 1x HDMI, 2x mini-DisplayPort1x DVI, 1x HDMI, 2x mini-DisplayPort
Eyefinity11
Number of Eyefinity displays6no data
HDMI++
DisplayPort support--

Technologies

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

AppAcceleration+-
CrossFire11
Enduro--
FreeSync11
HD3D--
PowerTune+-
TrueAudio--
ZeroCore+-

API support

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

DirectXDirectX® 1112
Shader Model5.15.1
OpenGL4.64.6
OpenCL1.21.2
Vulkanno data+
Mantle--

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.

HD 7950 12.29
+23.6%
HD 7850 9.94

HD 7950 outperforms HD 7850 by 24% 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%

HD 7950 4764
+23.6%
HD 7850 3853

HD 7950 outperforms HD 7850 by 24% in Passmark.

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%

HD 7950 7500
+44%
HD 7850 5210

HD 7950 outperforms HD 7850 by 44% in 3DMark Fire Strike Graphics.

Unigine Heaven 4.0

This is an old DirectX 11 benchmark, a newer version of Unigine 3.0 with relatively small differences. It displays a fantasy medieval town sprawling over several flying islands. The benchmark is still sometimes used, despite its significant age, as it was released back in 2013.

Benchmark coverage: 1%

HD 7950 1000
+57.7%
HD 7850 634

HD 7950 outperforms HD 7850 by 58% in Unigine Heaven 4.0.

Gaming performance

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

Advantages and disadvantages


Performance score 12.29 9.94
Recency 31 January 2012 5 March 2012
Cost $449 $249
Maximum RAM amount 3 GB 2 GB
Power consumption (TDP) 200 Watt 130 Watt

The Radeon HD 7950 is our recommended choice as it beats the Radeon HD 7850 in performance tests.


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.


AMD Radeon HD 7950
Radeon HD 7950
AMD Radeon HD 7850
Radeon HD 7850

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Questions and comments

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