GeForce 8600M GT vs Radeon HD 7970M
Aggregate performance score
We've compared Radeon HD 7970M and GeForce 8600M GT, covering specs and all relevant benchmarks.
HD 7970M outperforms 8600M GT by a whopping 3100% based on our aggregate benchmark results.
Primary details
GPU architecture, market segment, value for money and other general parameters compared.
| Place in the ranking | 476 | 1340 |
| Place by popularity | not in top-100 | not in top-100 |
| Power efficiency | 6.40 | 1.00 |
| Architecture | GCN 1.0 (2011−2020) | Tesla (2006−2010) |
| GPU code name | Wimbledon | G84 |
| Market segment | Laptop | Laptop |
| Release date | 24 April 2012 (12 years ago) | 31 December 2007 (17 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 | 1280 | 32 |
| Core clock speed | 850 MHz | 475 MHz |
| Number of transistors | 2,800 million | 289 million |
| Manufacturing process technology | 28 nm | 80 nm |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 100 Watt | 20 Watt |
| Texture fill rate | 68.00 | 7.600 |
| Floating-point processing power | 2.176 TFLOPS | 0.0608 TFLOPS |
| ROPs | 32 | 8 |
| TMUs | 80 | 16 |
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 | medium sized |
| Interface | MXM-B (3.0) | MXM-II |
| Supplementary power connectors | None | no data |
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 | DDR2 |
| Maximum RAM amount | 2 GB | 512 MB |
| Memory bus width | 256 Bit | 128 Bit |
| Memory clock speed | 1200 MHz | 400 MHz |
| Memory bandwidth | 153.6 GB/s | 12.8 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 |
API compatibility
List of supported 3D and general-purpose computing APIs, including their specific versions.
| DirectX | 12 (11_1) | 11.1 (10_0) |
| Shader Model | 5.1 | 4.0 |
| OpenGL | 4.6 | 3.3 |
| OpenCL | 1.2 | 1.1 |
| Vulkan | 1.2.131 | N/A |
| CUDA | - | 1.1 |
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.
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.
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.
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 | 84
+4100%
| 2−3
−4100%
|
| Full HD | 61
+6000%
| 1−2
−6000%
|
FPS performance in popular games
Full HD
Low Preset
| Counter-Strike 2 | 16−18
+167%
|
6−7
−167%
|
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 18−20
+533%
|
3−4
−533%
|
Full HD
Medium Preset
| Battlefield 5 | 30−33 | 0−1 |
| Counter-Strike 2 | 16−18
+167%
|
6−7
−167%
|
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 18−20
+533%
|
3−4
−533%
|
| Forza Horizon 4 | 35−40
+640%
|
5−6
−640%
|
| Forza Horizon 5 | 21−24 | 0−1 |
| Metro Exodus | 24−27 | 0−1 |
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | 24−27
+525%
|
4−5
−525%
|
| Valorant | 35−40
+3400%
|
1−2
−3400%
|
Full HD
High Preset
| Battlefield 5 | 30−33 | 0−1 |
| Counter-Strike 2 | 16−18
+167%
|
6−7
−167%
|
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 18−20
+533%
|
3−4
−533%
|
| Dota 2 | 30−35
+3200%
|
1−2
−3200%
|
| Far Cry 5 | 35−40
+550%
|
6−7
−550%
|
| Fortnite | 50−55
+5300%
|
1−2
−5300%
|
| Forza Horizon 4 | 35−40
+640%
|
5−6
−640%
|
| Forza Horizon 5 | 21−24 | 0−1 |
| Grand Theft Auto V | 30−35
+3200%
|
1−2
−3200%
|
| Metro Exodus | 24−27 | 0−1 |
| PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS | 70−75
+1100%
|
6−7
−1100%
|
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | 24−27
+525%
|
4−5
−525%
|
| The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt | 27−30
+460%
|
5−6
−460%
|
| Valorant | 35−40
+3400%
|
1−2
−3400%
|
| World of Tanks | 121
+908%
|
12−14
−908%
|
Full HD
Ultra Preset
| Battlefield 5 | 30−33 | 0−1 |
| Counter-Strike 2 | 16−18
+167%
|
6−7
−167%
|
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 18−20
+533%
|
3−4
−533%
|
| Dota 2 | 30−35
+3200%
|
1−2
−3200%
|
| Far Cry 5 | 35−40
+550%
|
6−7
−550%
|
| Forza Horizon 4 | 35−40
+640%
|
5−6
−640%
|
| Forza Horizon 5 | 21−24 | 0−1 |
| PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS | 70−75
+1100%
|
6−7
−1100%
|
| Valorant | 35−40
+3400%
|
1−2
−3400%
|
1440p
High Preset
| Dota 2 | 12−14 | 0−1 |
| Grand Theft Auto V | 12−14 | 0−1 |
| PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS | 45−50
+2150%
|
2−3
−2150%
|
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | 8−9 | 0−1 |
| World of Tanks | 65−70
+3250%
|
2−3
−3250%
|
1440p
Ultra Preset
| Battlefield 5 | 16−18 | 0−1 |
| Counter-Strike 2 | 30−35
+0%
|
30−35
+0%
|
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 7−8
+133%
|
3−4
−133%
|
| Far Cry 5 | 20−22
+400%
|
4−5
−400%
|
| Forza Horizon 4 | 20−22 | 0−1 |
| Forza Horizon 5 | 14−16 | 0−1 |
| Metro Exodus | 16−18 | 0−1 |
| The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt | 12−14
+200%
|
4−5
−200%
|
| Valorant | 21−24
+475%
|
4−5
−475%
|
4K
High Preset
| Counter-Strike 2 | 3−4 | 0−1 |
| Dota 2 | 20−22
+33.3%
|
14−16
−33.3%
|
| Grand Theft Auto V | 18−20
+26.7%
|
14−16
−26.7%
|
| Metro Exodus | 5−6 | 0−1 |
| PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS | 27−30
+2600%
|
1−2
−2600%
|
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | 6−7 | 0−1 |
| The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt | 18−20
+26.7%
|
14−16
−26.7%
|
4K
Ultra Preset
| Battlefield 5 | 8−9 | 0−1 |
| Counter-Strike 2 | 3−4 | 0−1 |
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 3−4
+50%
|
2−3
−50%
|
| Dota 2 | 20−22
+33.3%
|
14−16
−33.3%
|
| Far Cry 5 | 10−12 | 0−1 |
| Fortnite | 10−11 | 0−1 |
| Forza Horizon 4 | 12−14 | 0−1 |
| Forza Horizon 5 | 6−7 | 0−1 |
| Valorant | 9−10 | 0−1 |
This is how HD 7970M and 8600M GT compete in popular games:
- HD 7970M is 4100% faster in 900p
- HD 7970M is 6000% faster in 1080p
Here's the range of performance differences observed across popular games:
- in PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS, with 4K resolution and the High Preset, the HD 7970M is 2600% faster.
All in all, in popular games:
- HD 7970M is ahead in 30 tests (97%)
- there's a draw in 1 test (3%)
Pros & cons summary
| Performance score | 9.28 | 0.29 |
| Recency | 24 April 2012 | 31 December 2007 |
| Maximum RAM amount | 2 GB | 512 MB |
| Chip lithography | 28 nm | 80 nm |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 100 Watt | 20 Watt |
HD 7970M has a 3100% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 4 years, a 300% higher maximum VRAM amount, and a 185.7% more advanced lithography process.
8600M GT, on the other hand, has 400% lower power consumption.
The Radeon HD 7970M is our recommended choice as it beats the GeForce 8600M GT in performance tests.
Should you still have questions concerning choice between the reviewed GPUs, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.
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