GeForce 7950 GT vs Mobility Radeon HD 3850

NVIDIA

GeForce 7950 GT

2014Core: 1020 MHzBoost: 1085 MHz
Similar parts
·······
VS
AMD

Mobility Radeon HD 3850

2010Core: 700 MHz
Similar parts
·······

GeForce 7950 GT vs Mobility Radeon HD 3850 Performance Spectrum

About G3D Mark

G3D Mark is a standard benchmark that measures graphics performance in real-world gaming scenarios. It simplifies comparing cards from different brands, where higher scores directly correlate with better fps and smoother gaming experiences.

GeForce 7950 GT vs Mobility Radeon HD 3850: Pros, Cons & Final Verdict

See where each GPU makes more sense in practice: raw FPS, VRAM, features, power draw, pricing, and long-term headroom.

GeForce 7950 GT

2014

Why buy it

  • More future proof: Maxwell (2014−2017) on 28nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.

Trade-offs

  • 2014 hardware with 512 MB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.
  • 99.3% HIGHER MSRP
    $299 MSRPvs$150 MSRP
  • Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 1.2 vs 2.4 G3D/$ ($299 MSRP vs $150 MSRP).
  • 50% higher power demand at 75W vs 50W.

Mobility Radeon HD 3850

2010

Why buy it

  • Costs $149 less on MSRP ($150 MSRP vs $299 MSRP).
  • Delivers 110.9% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 2.4 vs 1.2 G3D/$ ($150 MSRP vs $299 MSRP).
  • Draws 50W instead of 75W, a 25W reduction.

Trade-offs

  • 2010 hardware with 512 MB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.

Quick Answers

Which GPU is faster for gaming right now?
Mobility Radeon HD 3850 is the faster gaming card right now based on the synthetic data we have. It leads by 5.8% in PassMark G3D (366 vs 346), which is the best performance signal available in this matchup.
Which GPU is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond?
GeForce 7950 GT is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond. The case is simple: a 28nm process instead of 40nm and a newer 2014 generation instead of 2010. That makes it the less risky pick as game demands keep moving.
Which GPU is the better buy today?
Mobility Radeon HD 3850 makes the most sense to buy today. It is $149 cheaper on MSRP at $150 vs $299, and it leads G3D-per-dollar by 110.9% (2.4 vs 1.2), so the value case lines up with the gaming result. If you are mainly targeting 1080p and some 1440p, Mobility Radeon HD 3850 is the easier value choice. If you care more about 1080p and some 1440p headroom, GeForce 7950 GT has the stronger long-term case.

GeForce 7950 GT vs Mobility Radeon HD 3850 Technical Specifications

Side-by-side specs, architecture details, clocks, memory, power, and platform differences.

NVIDIA

GeForce 7950 GT

The GeForce 7950 GT is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in February 18 2014. It features the Maxwell architecture. The core clock ranges from 1020 MHz to 1085 MHz. It has 640 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 75W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 346 points. Launch price was $149.

AMD

Mobility Radeon HD 3850

The Mobility Radeon HD 3850 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in January 7 2010. It features the TeraScale 2 architecture. The core clock speed is 700 MHz. It has 800 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 50W. Manufactured using 40 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 366 points.

Graphics Performance

In G3D Mark, the GeForce 7950 GT scores 346 versus the Mobility Radeon HD 3850's 366 — the Mobility Radeon HD 3850 leads by 5.8%. The GeForce 7950 GT is built on Maxwell while the Mobility Radeon HD 3850 uses TeraScale 2, both on 28 nm vs 40 nm. Shader units: 640 (GeForce 7950 GT) vs 800 (Mobility Radeon HD 3850). Raw compute: 1.389 TFLOPS (GeForce 7950 GT) vs 1.12 TFLOPS (Mobility Radeon HD 3850).

FeatureGeForce 7950 GTMobility Radeon HD 3850
G3D Mark Score
346
366+6%
Architecture
Maxwell
TeraScale 2
Process Node
28 nm
40 nm
Shading Units
640
800+25%
Compute (TFLOPS)
1.389 TFLOPS+24%
1.12 TFLOPS
ROPs
16
16
TMUs
40
40
L1 Cache
320 KB+300%
80 KB
L2 Cache
2 MB+700%
0.25 MB

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The GeForce 7950 GT gets NVIDIA DLSS, which still tends to look cleaner in motion. The Mobility Radeon HD 3850 leans on FSR, which is flexible and widely supported, but usually a bit rougher at the same settings.

FeatureGeForce 7950 GTMobility Radeon HD 3850
Upscaling Tech
Upscaling support
FSR Upscaling / FSR 4
Frame Generation
Not Supported
Not Supported
Ray Reconstruction
No
No
Low Latency
NVIDIA Reflex
AMD Anti-Lag
💾

Video Memory (VRAM)

Both cards ship with 512 MB of GDDR5. Memory bus width is 128-bit on the GeForce 7950 GT and 128-bit on the Mobility Radeon HD 3850. L2 Cache: 2 MB (GeForce 7950 GT) vs 0.25 MB (Mobility Radeon HD 3850) — the GeForce 7950 GT has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

FeatureGeForce 7950 GTMobility Radeon HD 3850
VRAM Capacity
0.5 GB
0.5 GB
Memory Type
GDDR5
GDDR5
Memory Bandwidth
Unknown
Unknown
Bus Width
128-bit
128-bit
L2 Cache
2 MB+700%
0.25 MB
🔌

Power & Dimensions

The GeForce 7950 GT draws 75W versus the Mobility Radeon HD 3850's 50W — a 40% difference. The Mobility Radeon HD 3850 is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 250W (GeForce 7950 GT) vs 350W (Mobility Radeon HD 3850). Power connectors: 1x 6-pin vs PCIe-powered.

FeatureGeForce 7950 GTMobility Radeon HD 3850
TDP
75W
50W-33%
Recommended PSU
250W-29%
350W
Power Connector
1x 6-pin
PCIe-powered
Length
198mm
Height
111mm
Slots
1
Temp (Load)
85°C
Perf/Watt
4.6
7.3+59%
💰

Value Analysis

At launch, the GeForce 7950 GT came in at $299, while the Mobility Radeon HD 3850 launched at $150. On MSRP, Mobility Radeon HD 3850 was 49.8% cheaper ($149 less). Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 1.2 (GeForce 7950 GT) vs 2.4 (Mobility Radeon HD 3850) — the Mobility Radeon HD 3850 offers 100% better value. The newer card here is GeForce 7950 GT (2014 vs 2010).

FeatureGeForce 7950 GTMobility Radeon HD 3850
MSRP
$299
$150-50%
Performance per Dollar
1.2
2.4+100%
Codename
GM107
Broadway
Release
February 18 2014
January 7 2010
Ranking
#501
#846

Affiliate Disclosure

ChipVERSUS is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. We may earn a commission on qualifying purchases made through our links. This comes at no additional cost to you and helps support our work in providing comprehensive PC building guides and tools.

Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates.