GeForce 8300 GS vs Radeon HD 7290M

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 8300 GS vs Radeon HD 7290M 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 8300 GS vs Radeon HD 7290M: 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 8300 GS

2014

Why buy it

✅Delivers 100+% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 2.3 vs 0 G3D/$ ($50 MSRP vs Unknown MSRP).
✅Draws 33W instead of 100W, a 67W reduction.
✅More future proof: Maxwell (2014−2017) on 28nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.

Trade-offs

❌Lower average FPS than Radeon HD 7290M across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
❌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 7290M

2012

Why buy it

✅4.9% more average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.

Trade-offs

❌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 2.3 G3D/$ (Unknown MSRP vs $50 MSRP).
❌203% higher power demand at 100W vs 33W.

Quick Answers

Which GPU is faster for gaming right now?

Radeon HD 7290M is the faster gaming card right now. In our data, it leads by 4.9% in average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data and by 7% in PassMark G3D (123 vs 115), so the answer here is pretty clean.

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

GeForce 8300 GS 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 8300 GS makes the most sense today based on the pricing and value data we have for this matchup. Radeon HD 7290M still makes more sense if max raw gaming performance matters more than value.

GeForce 8300 GS vs Radeon HD 7290M Technical Specifications

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

GeForce 8300 GS

The GeForce 8300 GS 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: 115 points.

Radeon HD 7290M

The Radeon HD 7290M is manufactured by AMD. It was released in April 24 2012. It features the GCN 1.0 architecture. The core clock speed is 850 MHz. It has 1280 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 100W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 123 points.

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Graphics Performance

In G3D Mark, the GeForce 8300 GS scores 115 versus the Radeon HD 7290M's 123 — the Radeon HD 7290M leads by 7%. The GeForce 8300 GS is built on Maxwell while the Radeon HD 7290M uses GCN 1.0, both on a 28 nm process. Shader units: 256 (GeForce 8300 GS) vs 1,280 (Radeon HD 7290M). Raw compute: 0.5888 TFLOPS (GeForce 8300 GS) vs 2.176 TFLOPS (Radeon HD 7290M).

Feature	GeForce 8300 GS	Radeon HD 7290M
G3D Mark Score	115	123+7%
Architecture	Maxwell	GCN 1.0
Process Node	28 nm	28 nm
Shading Units	256	1280+400%
Compute (TFLOPS)	0.5888 TFLOPS	2.176 TFLOPS+270%
ROPs	8	32+300%
TMUs	16	80+400%
L1 Cache	128 KB	320 KB+150%
L2 Cache	1 MB+100%	0.5 MB

✨

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The GeForce 8300 GS gets NVIDIA DLSS, which still tends to look cleaner in motion. The Radeon HD 7290M leans on FSR, which is flexible and widely supported, but usually a bit rougher at the same settings.

Feature	GeForce 8300 GS	Radeon HD 7290M
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 8300 GS and System on the Radeon HD 7290M. L2 Cache: 1 MB (GeForce 8300 GS) vs 0.5 MB (Radeon HD 7290M) — the GeForce 8300 GS has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

Feature	GeForce 8300 GS	Radeon HD 7290M
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+100%	0.5 MB

🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 10.0 (GeForce 8300 GS) vs 11.2 (11_0) (Radeon HD 7290M). OpenGL: 3.3 vs 4.4. Maximum simultaneous displays: 2 vs 2.

Feature	GeForce 8300 GS	Radeon HD 7290M
DirectX	10.0	11.2 (11_0)+12%
OpenGL	3.3	4.4+33%
Max Displays	2	2

🎬

Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: No (GeForce 8300 GS) vs UVD 3 (Radeon HD 7290M). Decoder: PureVideo HD VP2 vs UVD 3. Supported codecs: MPEG-2,H.264 (GeForce 8300 GS) vs H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2,DivX,Xvid (Radeon HD 7290M).

Feature	GeForce 8300 GS	Radeon HD 7290M
Encoder	No	UVD 3
Decoder	PureVideo HD VP2	UVD 3
Codecs	MPEG-2,H.264	H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2,DivX,Xvid

🔌

Power & Dimensions

The GeForce 8300 GS draws 33W versus the Radeon HD 7290M's 100W — a 100.8% difference. The GeForce 8300 GS is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 350W (GeForce 8300 GS) vs 350W (Radeon HD 7290M). Power connectors: Legacy vs 1x 6-pin. Typical load temperature: 65°C vs 75°C.

Feature	GeForce 8300 GS	Radeon HD 7290M
TDP	33W-67%	100W
Recommended PSU	350W	350W
Power Connector	Legacy	1x 6-pin
Length	170mm	—
Height	106mm	—
Slots	1	0-100%
Temp (Load)	65°C-13%	75°C
Perf/Watt	3.5+192%	1.2

💰

Value Analysis

The newer card here is GeForce 8300 GS (2014 vs 2012).

Feature	GeForce 8300 GS	Radeon HD 7290M
MSRP	$50	—
Codename	GM108	Wimbledon
Release	July 22 2014	April 24 2012
Ranking	#832	#531

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