GeForce 8600M GS
Mobility Radeon HD 4200
GeForce 8600M GS vs Mobility Radeon HD 4200 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 8600M GS vs Mobility Radeon HD 4200 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.
Path of Exile 2
Counter-Strike 2
League of Legends
GeForce 8600M GS vs Mobility Radeon HD 4200: 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 8600M GS
2008Why buy it
- ✅Competitive enough if your priority is price, power, or specific feature preference.
Trade-offs
- ❌Less VRAM, with 256 MB vs 512 MB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
- ❌2008 hardware with 256 MB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.
- ❌104.1% HIGHER MSRP$100 MSRPvs$49 MSRP
- ❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 0.9 vs 1.9 G3D/$ ($100 MSRP vs $49 MSRP).
- ❌400% higher power demand at 150W vs 30W.
Mobility Radeon HD 4200
2009Why buy it
- ✅Costs $51 less on MSRP ($49 MSRP vs $100 MSRP).
- ✅Delivers 108.7% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 1.9 vs 0.9 G3D/$ ($49 MSRP vs $100 MSRP).
- ✅100% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (512 MB vs 256 MB).
- ✅Draws 30W instead of 150W, a 120W reduction.
Trade-offs
- ❌2009 hardware with 512 MB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.
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GeForce 8600M GS vs Mobility Radeon HD 4200 Technical Specifications
Side-by-side specs, architecture details, clocks, memory, power, and platform differences.
GeForce 8600M GS
The GeForce 8600M GS is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in July 15 2008. It features the G9x architecture. The core clock speed is 500 MHz. It has 224 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 150W. Manufactured using 65 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 89 points.
Mobility Radeon HD 4200
The Mobility Radeon HD 4200 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in January 9 2009. It features the TeraScale architecture. The core clock speed is 550 MHz. It has 800 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 30W. Manufactured using 55 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 91 points.
Graphics Performance
The GeForce 8600M GS scores 89 and the Mobility Radeon HD 4200 reaches 91 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 2.2% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The GeForce 8600M GS is built on G9x while the Mobility Radeon HD 4200 uses TeraScale, both on 65 nm vs 55 nm. Shader units: 224 (GeForce 8600M GS) vs 800 (Mobility Radeon HD 4200).
| Feature | GeForce 8600M GS | Mobility Radeon HD 4200 |
|---|---|---|
| G3D Mark Score | 89 | 91+2% |
| Architecture | G9x | TeraScale |
| Process Node | 65 nm | 55 nm |
| Shading Units | 224 | 800+257% |
Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)
The GeForce 8600M GS gets NVIDIA DLSS, which still tends to look cleaner in motion. The Mobility Radeon HD 4200 leans on FSR, which is flexible and widely supported, but usually a bit rougher at the same settings.
| Feature | GeForce 8600M GS | Mobility Radeon HD 4200 |
|---|---|---|
| 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)
The GeForce 8600M GS has 256 MB of VRAM, while the Mobility Radeon HD 4200 carries 512 MB. Mobility Radeon HD 4200 gives you 100% more memory capacity, which matters more once you move into heavier textures, mods, or higher resolutions. Memory bus width is 64-bit on the GeForce 8600M GS and 64-bit on the Mobility Radeon HD 4200.
| Feature | GeForce 8600M GS | Mobility Radeon HD 4200 |
|---|---|---|
| VRAM Capacity | 0.25 GB | 0.5 GB+100% |
| Memory Type | GDDR5 | GDDR5 |
| Memory Bandwidth | Unknown | Unknown |
| Bus Width | 64-bit | 64-bit |
Display & API Support
DirectX support: 11.1 (10_0) (GeForce 8600M GS) vs 10.1 (Mobility Radeon HD 4200). OpenGL: 3.3 vs 3.3. Maximum simultaneous displays: 0 vs 2.
| Feature | GeForce 8600M GS | Mobility Radeon HD 4200 |
|---|---|---|
| DirectX | 11.1 (10_0)+10% | 10.1 |
| OpenGL | 3.3 | 3.3 |
| Max Displays | 0 | 2 |
Media & Encoding
Hardware encoder: None (GeForce 8600M GS) vs Avivo HD (Mobility Radeon HD 4200). Decoder: PureVideo HD (VP2) vs UVD 2. Supported codecs: H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2 (GeForce 8600M GS) vs H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2,DivX (Mobility Radeon HD 4200).
| Feature | GeForce 8600M GS | Mobility Radeon HD 4200 |
|---|---|---|
| Encoder | None | Avivo HD |
| Decoder | PureVideo HD (VP2) | UVD 2 |
| Codecs | H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2 | H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2,DivX |
Power & Dimensions
The GeForce 8600M GS draws 150W versus the Mobility Radeon HD 4200's 30W — a 133.3% difference. The Mobility Radeon HD 4200 is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 350W (GeForce 8600M GS) vs 350W (Mobility Radeon HD 4200). Power connectors: Legacy vs PCIe-powered. Typical load temperature: 80 vs 80°C.
| Feature | GeForce 8600M GS | Mobility Radeon HD 4200 |
|---|---|---|
| TDP | 150W | 30W-80% |
| Recommended PSU | 350W | 350W |
| Power Connector | Legacy | PCIe-powered |
| Length | 0mm | — |
| Height | 0mm | — |
| Slots | 0 | 0 |
| Temp (Load) | 80 | 80°C |
| Perf/Watt | 0.6 | 3.0+400% |
Value Analysis
At launch, the GeForce 8600M GS came in at $100, while the Mobility Radeon HD 4200 launched at $49. On MSRP, Mobility Radeon HD 4200 was 51% cheaper ($51 less). Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 0.9 (GeForce 8600M GS) vs 1.9 (Mobility Radeon HD 4200) — the Mobility Radeon HD 4200 offers 111.1% better value. The newer card here is Mobility Radeon HD 4200 (2009 vs 2008).
| Feature | GeForce 8600M GS | Mobility Radeon HD 4200 |
|---|---|---|
| MSRP | $100 | $49-51% |
| Performance per Dollar | 0.9 | 1.9+111% |
| Codename | NB9E-GTX | M98 |
| Release | July 15 2008 | January 9 2009 |
| Ranking | #825 | #927 |
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