GeForce GT 745M vs Mobility Radeon HD 5870

NVIDIA

GeForce GT 745M

2013Core: 549 MHz
Similar parts
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VS
AMD

Mobility Radeon HD 5870

2010Core: 700 MHz
Similar parts
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GeForce GT 745M vs Mobility Radeon HD 5870 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 GT 745M vs Mobility Radeon HD 5870: 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 745M

2013

Why buy it

  • 100% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (2 GB vs 1 GB).
  • More future proof: Kepler (2012−2018) on 28nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.

Trade-offs

  • 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 2.7 G3D/$ (Unknown MSRP vs $399 MSRP).

Mobility Radeon HD 5870

2010

Why buy it

  • Delivers 100+% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 2.7 vs 0 G3D/$ ($399 MSRP vs Unknown MSRP).

Trade-offs

  • Less VRAM, with 1 GB vs 2 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
  • 2010 hardware with 1 GB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.

Quick Answers

Which GPU is faster for gaming right now?
Mobility Radeon HD 5870 is the faster gaming card right now based on the synthetic data we have. It leads by 0.6% in PassMark G3D (1,088 vs 1,081), which is the best performance signal available in this matchup.
Which GPU is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond?
GeForce GT 745M 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 2010. That gives it more room for heavier textures and higher settings over time.
Which GPU is the better buy today?
Mobility Radeon HD 5870 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, Mobility Radeon HD 5870 is the easier value choice. If you care more about 1080p and some 1440p headroom, GeForce GT 745M has the stronger long-term case.

GeForce GT 745M vs Mobility Radeon HD 5870 Technical Specifications

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

NVIDIA

GeForce GT 745M

The GeForce GT 745M is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in April 1 2013. It features the Kepler architecture. The core clock speed is 549 MHz. It has 384 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 45W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 1,081 points.

AMD

Mobility Radeon HD 5870

The Mobility Radeon HD 5870 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in January 7 2010. It features the TeraScale 2 architecture. The core clock speed is 700 MHz. It has 800 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 50W. Manufactured using 40 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 1,088 points.

Graphics Performance

The GeForce GT 745M scores 1,081 and the Mobility Radeon HD 5870 reaches 1,088 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 0.6% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The GeForce GT 745M is built on Kepler while the Mobility Radeon HD 5870 uses TeraScale 2, both on 28 nm vs 40 nm. Shader units: 384 (GeForce GT 745M) vs 800 (Mobility Radeon HD 5870). Raw compute: 0.4216 TFLOPS (GeForce GT 745M) vs 1.12 TFLOPS (Mobility Radeon HD 5870).

FeatureGeForce GT 745MMobility Radeon HD 5870
G3D Mark Score
1,081
1,088
Architecture
Kepler
TeraScale 2
Process Node
28 nm
40 nm
Shading Units
384
800+108%
Compute (TFLOPS)
0.4216 TFLOPS
1.12 TFLOPS+166%
ROPs
16
16
TMUs
32
40+25%
L1 Cache
32 KB
80 KB+150%
L2 Cache
256 KB
256 KB

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The GeForce GT 745M gets NVIDIA DLSS, which still tends to look cleaner in motion. The Mobility Radeon HD 5870 leans on FSR, which is flexible and widely supported, but usually a bit rougher at the same settings.

FeatureGeForce GT 745MMobility Radeon HD 5870
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 745M has 2 GB of VRAM, while the Mobility Radeon HD 5870 carries 1 GB. GeForce GT 745M 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 745M and 128-bit on the Mobility Radeon HD 5870.

FeatureGeForce GT 745MMobility Radeon HD 5870
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
256 KB
🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 11.0 (GeForce GT 745M) vs 11 (5.0) (Mobility Radeon HD 5870). Vulkan: 1.2 vs N/A. OpenGL: 4.2 vs 4.4. Maximum simultaneous displays: 1 vs 0.

FeatureGeForce GT 745MMobility Radeon HD 5870
DirectX
11.0
11 (5.0)
Vulkan
1.2
N/A
OpenGL
4.2
4.4+5%
Max Displays
1
0
🎬

Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: NVENC 1.0 (GeForce GT 745M) vs None (Mobility Radeon HD 5870). Decoder: PureVideo HD VP5 vs UVD 2.2. Supported codecs: MPEG-2,H.264,VC-1,MPEG-4 ASP,H.265 (GeForce GT 745M) vs H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2 (Mobility Radeon HD 5870).

FeatureGeForce GT 745MMobility Radeon HD 5870
Encoder
NVENC 1.0
None
Decoder
PureVideo HD VP5
UVD 2.2
Codecs
MPEG-2,H.264,VC-1,MPEG-4 ASP,H.265
H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2
🔌

Power & Dimensions

The GeForce GT 745M draws 45W versus the Mobility Radeon HD 5870's 50W — a 10.5% difference. The GeForce GT 745M is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 350W (GeForce GT 745M) vs 350W (Mobility Radeon HD 5870). Power connectors: PCIe-powered vs PCIe-powered. Card length: 0mm vs 0mm, occupying 0 vs 0 slots. Typical load temperature: 75°C vs 85.

FeatureGeForce GT 745MMobility Radeon HD 5870
TDP
45W-10%
50W
Recommended PSU
350W
350W
Power Connector
PCIe-powered
PCIe-powered
Length
0mm
0mm
Height
0mm
0mm
Slots
0
0
Temp (Load)
75°C-12%
85
Perf/Watt
24.0+10%
21.8
💰

Value Analysis

The newer card here is GeForce GT 745M (2013 vs 2010).

FeatureGeForce GT 745MMobility Radeon HD 5870
MSRP
$399
Codename
GK107
Broadway
Release
April 1 2013
January 7 2010
Ranking
#857
#846

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