GeForce 9300M GS vs Radeon HD 7290M

CPU

GPU

GeForce 9300M GS

2015Core: 549 MHzBoost: 549 MHz

Similar parts

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Radeon HD 7290M

2012Core: 850 MHz

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GeForce 9300M GS vs Radeon HD 7290M Performance Spectrum

GeForce 9300M GS

0.25 GB 33

118

0.0%

GeForce RTX 4050 Mobile

GeForce RTX 3080 Ti Laptop GPU

Radeon HD 7290M

0.5 GB 100

123

+4.2%

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 9300M 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 9300M 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 9300M GS

2015

Why buy it

✅Delivers 100+% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 1.2 vs 0 G3D/$ ($100 MSRP vs Unknown MSRP).
✅Draws 33W instead of 100W, a 67W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Lower average FPS than Radeon HD 7290M across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
❌Less VRAM, with 256 MB vs 512 MB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
❌2015 hardware with 256 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

✅3.4% more average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
✅100% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (512 MB vs 256 MB).

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 1.2 G3D/$ (Unknown MSRP vs $100 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 3.4% in average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data and by 4.2% in PassMark G3D (123 vs 118), so the answer here is pretty clean.

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

GeForce 9300M GS is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond. The case is simple: a newer 2015 generation instead of 2012. That makes it the less risky pick as game demands keep moving.

Which GPU is the better buy today?

GeForce 9300M 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 9300M GS vs Radeon HD 7290M Technical Specifications

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

GeForce 9300M GS

The GeForce 9300M GS is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in March 13 2015. It features the Maxwell architecture. The core clock ranges from 549 MHz to 549 MHz. It has 384 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 33W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 118 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.

⚡

Graphics Performance

The GeForce 9300M GS scores 118 and the Radeon HD 7290M reaches 123 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 4.2% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The GeForce 9300M GS is built on Maxwell while the Radeon HD 7290M uses GCN 1.0, both on a 28 nm process. Shader units: 384 (GeForce 9300M GS) vs 1,280 (Radeon HD 7290M). Raw compute: 0.4216 TFLOPS (GeForce 9300M GS) vs 2.176 TFLOPS (Radeon HD 7290M).

Feature	GeForce 9300M GS	Radeon HD 7290M
G3D Mark Score	118	123+4%
Architecture	Maxwell	GCN 1.0
Process Node	28 nm	28 nm
Shading Units	384	1280+233%
Compute (TFLOPS)	0.4216 TFLOPS	2.176 TFLOPS+416%
ROPs	8	32+300%
TMUs	24	80+233%
L1 Cache	192 KB	320 KB+67%
L2 Cache	1 MB+100%	0.5 MB

✨

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The GeForce 9300M 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 9300M 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)

The GeForce 9300M GS has 256 MB of VRAM, while the Radeon HD 7290M carries 512 MB. Radeon HD 7290M gives you 100% more memory capacity, which matters more once you move into heavier textures, mods, or higher resolutions. Memory bus width is 128-bit on the GeForce 9300M GS and System on the Radeon HD 7290M. L2 Cache: 1 MB (GeForce 9300M GS) vs 0.5 MB (Radeon HD 7290M) — the GeForce 9300M GS has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

Feature	GeForce 9300M GS	Radeon HD 7290M
VRAM Capacity	0.25 GB	0.5 GB+100%
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 9300M GS) vs 11.2 (11_0) (Radeon HD 7290M). OpenGL: 3.3 vs 4.4. Maximum simultaneous displays: 1 vs 2.

Feature	GeForce 9300M GS	Radeon HD 7290M
DirectX	10.0	11.2 (11_0)+12%
OpenGL	3.3	4.4+33%
Max Displays	1	2+100%

🎬

Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: No (GeForce 9300M GS) vs UVD 3 (Radeon HD 7290M). Decoder: PureVideo HD VP3 vs UVD 3. Supported codecs: MPEG-2,H.264,VC-1 (GeForce 9300M GS) vs H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2,DivX,Xvid (Radeon HD 7290M).

Feature	GeForce 9300M GS	Radeon HD 7290M
Encoder	No	UVD 3
Decoder	PureVideo HD VP3	UVD 3
Codecs	MPEG-2,H.264,VC-1	H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2,DivX,Xvid

🔌

Power & Dimensions

The GeForce 9300M GS draws 33W versus the Radeon HD 7290M's 100W — a 100.8% difference. The GeForce 9300M GS is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 350W (GeForce 9300M GS) vs 350W (Radeon HD 7290M). Power connectors: Legacy vs 1x 6-pin. Typical load temperature: 80°C vs 75°C.

Feature	GeForce 9300M GS	Radeon HD 7290M
TDP	33W-67%	100W
Recommended PSU	350W	350W
Power Connector	Legacy	1x 6-pin
Length	0mm	—
Height	0mm	—
Slots	0	0
Temp (Load)	80°C	75°C-6%
Perf/Watt	3.6+200%	1.2

💰

Value Analysis

The newer card here is GeForce 9300M GS (2015 vs 2012).

Feature	GeForce 9300M GS	Radeon HD 7290M
MSRP	$100	—
Codename	GM108	Wimbledon
Release	March 13 2015	April 24 2012
Ranking	#880	#531

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