GeForce 9500M G 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 9500M G 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 9500M G 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 9500M G

2015

Why buy it

✅Delivers 100+% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 4.1 vs 0 G3D/$ ($30 MSRP vs Unknown MSRP).
✅Draws 75W instead of 100W, a 25W 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.
❌2015 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

✅2.7% 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 4.1 G3D/$ (Unknown MSRP vs $30 MSRP).
❌33.3% higher power demand at 100W vs 75W.

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 2.7% in average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data and by 0.8% in PassMark G3D (123 vs 122), so the answer here is pretty clean.

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

GeForce 9500M G 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 9500M G 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 9500M G vs Radeon HD 7290M Technical Specifications

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

GeForce 9500M G

The GeForce 9500M G is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in October 27 2015. It features the Maxwell architecture. The core clock ranges from 928 MHz to 1020 MHz. It has 640 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 75W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 122 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 9500M G scores 122 and the Radeon HD 7290M reaches 123 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 0.8% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The GeForce 9500M G is built on Maxwell while the Radeon HD 7290M uses GCN 1.0, both on a 28 nm process. Shader units: 640 (GeForce 9500M G) vs 1,280 (Radeon HD 7290M). Raw compute: 1.306 TFLOPS (GeForce 9500M G) vs 2.176 TFLOPS (Radeon HD 7290M).

Feature	GeForce 9500M G	Radeon HD 7290M
G3D Mark Score	122	123
Architecture	Maxwell	GCN 1.0
Process Node	28 nm	28 nm
Shading Units	640	1280+100%
Compute (TFLOPS)	1.306 TFLOPS	2.176 TFLOPS+67%
ROPs	16	32+100%
TMUs	40	80+100%
L1 Cache	320 KB	320 KB
L2 Cache	2 MB+300%	0.5 MB

✨

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The GeForce 9500M G 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 9500M G	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 9500M G and System on the Radeon HD 7290M. L2 Cache: 2 MB (GeForce 9500M G) vs 0.5 MB (Radeon HD 7290M) — the GeForce 9500M G has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

Feature	GeForce 9500M G	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	2 MB+300%	0.5 MB

🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 10.0 (GeForce 9500M G) vs 11.2 (11_0) (Radeon HD 7290M). OpenGL: 3.3 vs 4.4. Maximum simultaneous displays: 1 vs 2.

Feature	GeForce 9500M G	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 9500M G) vs UVD 3 (Radeon HD 7290M). Decoder: PureVideo HD VP3 vs UVD 3. Supported codecs: MPEG-2,H.264,VC-1 (GeForce 9500M G) vs H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2,DivX,Xvid (Radeon HD 7290M).

Feature	GeForce 9500M G	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 9500M G draws 75W versus the Radeon HD 7290M's 100W — a 28.6% difference. The GeForce 9500M G is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 350W (GeForce 9500M G) vs 350W (Radeon HD 7290M). Power connectors: Legacy vs 1x 6-pin. Typical load temperature: 70°C vs 75°C.

Feature	GeForce 9500M G	Radeon HD 7290M
TDP	75W-25%	100W
Recommended PSU	350W	350W
Power Connector	Legacy	1x 6-pin
Length	0mm	—
Height	0mm	—
Slots	0	0
Temp (Load)	70°C-7%	75°C
Perf/Watt	1.6+33%	1.2

💰

Value Analysis

The newer card here is GeForce 9500M G (2015 vs 2012).

Feature	GeForce 9500M G	Radeon HD 7290M
MSRP	$30	—
Codename	GM107	Wimbledon
Release	October 27 2015	April 24 2012
Ranking	#671	#531

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