GeForce 800A vs Radeon HD 8500M

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 800A vs Radeon HD 8500M FPS Benchmarks

Predicted gaming performance across popular games. Tested paired with Ryzen 7 9800X3D to isolate GPU performance.

Search any supported game below to compare 1080p FPS for both components.

GeForce 800A vs Radeon HD 8500M: 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 800A

2014

Why buy it

✅13.4% more average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
✅Delivers 100+% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 4.3 vs 0 G3D/$ ($100 MSRP vs Unknown MSRP).
✅Draws 33W instead of 40W, a 7W reduction.

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.

Radeon HD 8500M

2012

Why buy it

✅Competitive enough if your priority is price, power, or specific feature preference.

Trade-offs

❌Lower average FPS than GeForce 800A across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
❌2012 hardware with 512 MB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 0 vs 4.3 G3D/$ (Unknown MSRP vs $100 MSRP).
❌21.2% higher power demand at 40W vs 33W.

Quick Answers

Which GPU is faster for gaming right now?

GeForce 800A is the faster gaming card right now. In our data, it leads by 13.4% in average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data. PassMark G3D leans toward Radeon HD 8500M instead at 447 vs 435, so for this question the real-game FPS result matters more than the synthetic split.

Which GPU is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond?

GeForce 800A is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond. The case is simple: a newer 2014 generation instead of 2012. That makes it the less risky pick as game demands keep moving.

Which GPU is the better buy today?

GeForce 800A makes the most sense today based on the pricing and value data we have for this matchup.

GeForce 800A vs Radeon HD 8500M Technical Specifications

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

GeForce 800A

The GeForce 800A is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in July 22 2014. It features the Maxwell architecture. The core clock ranges from 1082 MHz to 1150 MHz. It has 256 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 33W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 435 points.

Radeon HD 8500M

The Radeon HD 8500M is manufactured by AMD. It was released in April 24 2012. It features the GCN 1.0 architecture. The core clock speed is 675 MHz. It has 640 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 40W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 447 points.

⚡

Graphics Performance

The GeForce 800A scores 435 and the Radeon HD 8500M reaches 447 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 2.8% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The GeForce 800A is built on Maxwell while the Radeon HD 8500M uses GCN 1.0, both on a 28 nm process. Shader units: 256 (GeForce 800A) vs 640 (Radeon HD 8500M). Raw compute: 0.5888 TFLOPS (GeForce 800A) vs 0.864 TFLOPS (Radeon HD 8500M).

Feature	GeForce 800A	Radeon HD 8500M
G3D Mark Score	435	447+3%
Architecture	Maxwell	GCN 1.0
Process Node	28 nm	28 nm
Shading Units	256	640+150%
Compute (TFLOPS)	0.5888 TFLOPS	0.864 TFLOPS+47%
ROPs	8	16+100%
TMUs	16	40+150%
L1 Cache	128 KB	160 KB+25%
L2 Cache	1 MB+300%	0.25 MB

✨

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The GeForce 800A gets NVIDIA DLSS, which still tends to look cleaner in motion. The Radeon HD 8500M leans on FSR, which is flexible and widely supported, but usually a bit rougher at the same settings.

Feature	GeForce 800A	Radeon HD 8500M
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 video memory. Memory bus width is 128-bit on the GeForce 800A and System on the Radeon HD 8500M. L2 Cache: 1 MB (GeForce 800A) vs 0.25 MB (Radeon HD 8500M) — the GeForce 800A has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

Feature	GeForce 800A	Radeon HD 8500M
VRAM Capacity	0.5 GB	0.5 GB
Memory Type	GDDR5	Shared
Memory Bandwidth	Unknown	System
Bus Width	128-bit	System
L2 Cache	1 MB+300%	0.25 MB

🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 12 (11_0) (GeForce 800A) vs 11.1 (11_0) (Radeon HD 8500M). Vulkan: N/A vs 1.0. OpenGL: 4.6 vs 4.6. Maximum simultaneous displays: 2 vs 2.

Feature	GeForce 800A	Radeon HD 8500M
DirectX	12 (11_0)+8%	11.1 (11_0)
Vulkan	N/A	1.0
OpenGL	4.6	4.6
Max Displays	2	2

🎬

Media & Encoding

Decoder: VP5 vs UVD 3.0. Supported codecs: H.264,MPEG-2,VC-1 (GeForce 800A) vs H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2,MPEG-4 Part 2 (Radeon HD 8500M).

Feature	GeForce 800A	Radeon HD 8500M
Encoder	NVENC	—
Decoder	VP5	UVD 3.0
Codecs	H.264,MPEG-2,VC-1	H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2,MPEG-4 Part 2

🔌

Power & Dimensions

The GeForce 800A draws 33W versus the Radeon HD 8500M's 40W — a 19.2% difference. The GeForce 800A is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 350W (GeForce 800A) vs 350W (Radeon HD 8500M). Power connectors: Legacy vs 1x 6-pin. Typical load temperature: 85 vs 75°C.

Feature	GeForce 800A	Radeon HD 8500M
TDP	33W-18%	40W
Recommended PSU	350W	350W
Power Connector	Legacy	1x 6-pin
Length	0mm	—
Height	0mm	—
Slots	0	0
Temp (Load)	85	75°C-12%
Perf/Watt	13.2+18%	11.2

💰

Value Analysis

The newer card here is GeForce 800A (2014 vs 2012).

Feature	GeForce 800A	Radeon HD 8500M
MSRP	$100	—
Codename	GM108	Heathrow
Release	July 22 2014	April 24 2012
Ranking	#832	#787

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