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GeForce GT 730M vs Radeon HD 3850 X2

CPUCPUGPUGPU
NVIDIA

GeForce GT 730M

2013Core: 941 MHzBoost: 967 MHz
Similar parts
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Buy on Amazon
VS
AMD

Radeon HD 3850 X2

2011Core: 800 MHz
Similar parts
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Buy on Amazon

GeForce GT 730M vs Radeon HD 3850 X2 Performance Spectrum

GeForce GT 730M
2 GB 50
807
0.0%
brand logoGeForce GT 525M
brand logoGeForce GT 635M
brand logoGeForce GTX 280M SLI
brand logoGeForce 920M
brand logoGeForce GTX 760 Ti OEM
brand logoGeForce RTX 3050 Mobile
brand logoRTX 2000 Ada Generation Mobile
brand logoGeForce RTX 2080 SUPER
Radeon HD 3850 X2
1 GB 254
822
+1.9%
brand logoRadeon HD 7560D
brand logoRadeon R5 M335
brand logoRadeon HD 7610M
brand logoRadeon HD 7550M/7650M
brand logoRadeon HD 8970M Crossfire
brand logoRadeon RX 7600M
brand logoRadeon RX 6700S
brand logoRadeon RX 6700 XT

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 GT 730M vs Radeon HD 3850 X2 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

Path of Exile 2

1080P
GeForce GT 730M
low11 FPS
medium7 FPS
high4 FPS
ultra2 FPS
1080P
Radeon HD 3850 X2
low37 FPS
medium30 FPS
high25 FPS
ultra17 FPS
Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

1080P
GeForce GT 730M
low31 FPS
medium14 FPS
high10 FPS
ultra7 FPS
1080P
Radeon HD 3850 X2
low37 FPS
medium30 FPS
high25 FPS
ultra18 FPS
League of Legends

League of Legends

1080P
GeForce GT 730M
low36 FPS
medium29 FPS
high24 FPS
ultra18 FPS
1080P
Radeon HD 3850 X2
low37 FPS
medium30 FPS
high25 FPS
ultra18 FPS
Valorant

Valorant

1080P
GeForce GT 730M
low36 FPS
medium29 FPS
high24 FPS
ultra16 FPS
1080P
Radeon HD 3850 X2
low37 FPS
medium30 FPS
high25 FPS
ultra18 FPS
Among Us

Among Us

1080P
GeForce GT 730M
low36 FPS
medium29 FPS
high24 FPS
ultra18 FPS
1080P
Radeon HD 3850 X2
low37 FPS
medium30 FPS
high25 FPS
ultra18 FPS
Apex Legends

Apex Legends

1080P
GeForce GT 730M
low6 FPS
medium3 FPS
high2 FPS
ultra2 FPS
1080P
Radeon HD 3850 X2
low37 FPS
medium30 FPS
high22 FPS
ultra13 FPS
ARC Raiders

ARC Raiders

1080P
GeForce GT 730M
low5 FPS
medium4 FPS
high3 FPS
ultra2 FPS
1080P
Radeon HD 3850 X2
low24 FPS
medium16 FPS
high8 FPS
ultra4 FPS
Baldur's Gate 3

Baldur's Gate 3

1080P
GeForce GT 730M
low27 FPS
medium17 FPS
high12 FPS
ultra9 FPS
1080P
Radeon HD 3850 X2
low37 FPS
medium30 FPS
high24 FPS
ultra18 FPS
Call of Duty: Black Ops 6

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6

1080P
GeForce GT 730M
low36 FPS
medium29 FPS
high24 FPS
ultra17 FPS
1080P
Radeon HD 3850 X2
low37 FPS
medium30 FPS
high25 FPS
ultra18 FPS
Call of Duty: Warzone

Call of Duty: Warzone

1080P
GeForce GT 730M
low5 FPS
medium4 FPS
high3 FPS
ultra2 FPS
1080P
Radeon HD 3850 X2
low37 FPS
medium30 FPS
high15 FPS
ultra9 FPS
Check FPS with Custom Builds

GeForce GT 730M vs Radeon HD 3850 X2: 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 GT 730M

2013

Why buy it

  • ✅100% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (2 GB vs 1 GB).
  • ✅Draws 50W instead of 254W, a 204W reduction.
  • ✅More future proof: Kepler (2012−2018) on 28nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.

Trade-offs

  • ❌Lower average FPS than Radeon HD 3850 X2 across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
  • ❌2013 hardware with 2 GB 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 2.4 G3D/$ (Unknown MSRP vs $349 MSRP).

Radeon HD 3850 X2

2011

Why buy it

  • ✅78.9% more average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
  • ✅Delivers 100+% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 2.4 vs 0 G3D/$ ($349 MSRP vs Unknown MSRP).

Trade-offs

  • ❌Less VRAM, with 1 GB vs 2 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
  • ❌2011 hardware with 1 GB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.
  • ❌408% higher power demand at 254W vs 50W.

Quick Answers

Which GPU is faster for gaming right now?
Radeon HD 3850 X2 is the faster gaming card right now. In our data, it leads by 78.9% in average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data and by 1.9% in PassMark G3D (822 vs 807), so the answer here is pretty clean.
Which GPU is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond?
GeForce GT 730M is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond. The case is simple: 2 GB vs 1 GB of VRAM, a 28nm process instead of 40nm, and a newer 2013 generation instead of 2011. That gives it more room for heavier textures and higher settings over time.
Which GPU is the better buy today?
Radeon HD 3850 X2 makes the most sense today based on the pricing and value data we have for this matchup. If you are mainly targeting 1080p and some 1440p, Radeon HD 3850 X2 is the easier value choice. If you care more about 1080p and some 1440p headroom, GeForce GT 730M has the stronger long-term case.

GeForce GT 730M vs Radeon HD 3850 X2 Technical Specifications

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

NVIDIA

GeForce GT 730M

The GeForce GT 730M is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in January 9 2013. It features the Kepler architecture. The core clock ranges from 941 MHz to 967 MHz. It has 384 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 50W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 807 points.

AMD

Radeon HD 3850 X2

The Radeon HD 3850 X2 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in September 19 2011. It features the TeraScale 2 architecture. The core clock speed is 800 MHz. It has 960 ×2 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 254W. Manufactured using 40 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 822 points.

⚡

Graphics Performance

The GeForce GT 730M scores 807 and the Radeon HD 3850 X2 reaches 822 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 1.9% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The GeForce GT 730M is built on Kepler while the Radeon HD 3850 X2 uses TeraScale 2, both on 28 nm vs 40 nm. Shader units: 384 (GeForce GT 730M) vs 960 (Radeon HD 3850 X2). Raw compute: 0.7427 TFLOPS (GeForce GT 730M) vs 1.536 TFLOPS ×2 (Radeon HD 3850 X2).

FeatureGeForce GT 730MRadeon HD 3850 X2
G3D Mark Score
807
822+2%
Architecture
Kepler
TeraScale 2
Process Node
28 nm
40 nm
Shading Units
384
960 ×2+150%
Compute (TFLOPS)
0.7427 TFLOPS
1.536 TFLOPS ×2+107%
ROPs
16
32 ×2+100%
TMUs
32
48 ×2+50%
L1 Cache
32 KB
192 KB+500%
L2 Cache
256 KB
512 KB+100%
✨

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The GeForce GT 730M gets NVIDIA DLSS, which still tends to look cleaner in motion. The Radeon HD 3850 X2 leans on FSR, which is flexible and widely supported, but usually a bit rougher at the same settings.

FeatureGeForce GT 730MRadeon HD 3850 X2
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 GT 730M has 2 GB of VRAM, while the Radeon HD 3850 X2 carries 1 GB. GeForce GT 730M 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 GT 730M and 128-bit on the Radeon HD 3850 X2. L2 Cache: 256 KB (GeForce GT 730M) vs 512 KB (Radeon HD 3850 X2) — the Radeon HD 3850 X2 has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

FeatureGeForce GT 730MRadeon HD 3850 X2
VRAM Capacity
2 GB+100%
1 GB
Memory Type
GDDR5
GDDR5
Memory Bandwidth
Unknown
Unknown
Bus Width
64-bit
128-bit+100%
L2 Cache
256 KB
512 KB+100%
🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 11.0 (GeForce GT 730M) vs 10.1 (Radeon HD 3850 X2). OpenGL: 4.2 vs 3.3. Maximum simultaneous displays: 1 vs 2.

FeatureGeForce GT 730MRadeon HD 3850 X2
DirectX
11.0+9%
10.1
OpenGL
4.2+27%
3.3
Max Displays
1
2+100%
🎬

Media & Encoding

Decoder: PureVideo HD VP5 vs UVD+. Supported codecs: MPEG-2,H.264,VC-1,MPEG-4 ASP (GeForce GT 730M) vs H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2 (Radeon HD 3850 X2).

FeatureGeForce GT 730MRadeon HD 3850 X2
Encoder
NVENC 1.0
—
Decoder
PureVideo HD VP5
UVD+
Codecs
MPEG-2,H.264,VC-1,MPEG-4 ASP
H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2
🔌

Power & Dimensions

The GeForce GT 730M draws 50W versus the Radeon HD 3850 X2's 254W — a 134.2% difference. The GeForce GT 730M is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 350W (GeForce GT 730M) vs 450W (Radeon HD 3850 X2). Power connectors: PCIe-powered vs 2x 6-pin. Card length: 0mm vs 267mm, occupying 0 vs 2 slots. Typical load temperature: 75°C vs 90°C.

FeatureGeForce GT 730MRadeon HD 3850 X2
TDP
50W-80%
254W
Recommended PSU
350W-22%
450W
Power Connector
PCIe-powered
2x 6-pin
Length
0mm
267mm
Height
0mm
—
Slots
0-100%
2
Temp (Load)
75°C-17%
90°C
Perf/Watt
16.1+403%
3.2
💰

Value Analysis

The newer card here is GeForce GT 730M (2013 vs 2011).

FeatureGeForce GT 730MRadeon HD 3850 X2
MSRP
—
$349
Codename
GK107
Barts
Release
January 9 2013
September 19 2011
Ranking
#792
#630
Search GeForce GT 730M on AmazonSearch Radeon HD 3850 X2 on Amazon

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