GeForce GT 820M vs Mobility Radeon HD 3870

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.

Value Upgrade Path

This is the official ChipVERSUS Value Rating, comparing raw performance (G3D Mark) per dollar. Components placed above yours deliver better value for money. The GeForce GT 820M is positioned at rank 134 and the Mobility Radeon HD 3870 is on rank 509, so the GeForce GT 820M offers better cost-efficiency for playing games.

MSRP is the manufacturer's suggested retail price.•
Avg price is the current average price collected from markets across the web.

Performance Per Dollar GeForce GT 820M

#39

Radeon RX 7700S

MSRP: $449|Avg: $350

96%

#124

Radeon RX 550X (móvel)

MSRP: $35|Avg: $35

300%

#126

GeForce GTX 1070 with Max-Q Design

MSRP: N/A|Avg: $150

272%

#127

GeForce GTX 1060 with Max-Q Design

MSRP: N/A|Avg: $100

272%

#131

GeForce GTX 1050 (Mobile)

MSRP: N/A|Avg: $50

247%

#132

Radeon RX 6300

MSRP: $60|Avg: $40

245%

#134

GeForce GT 820M

MSRP: N/A|Avg: N/A

100%

#139

Iris Xe MAX Graphics

MSRP: $55|Avg: $40

99%

#145

Radeon RX 580 (móvel)

MSRP: $229|Avg: $65

97%

#147

GeForce GT 630M

MSRP: N/A|Avg: $35

96%

Based on actual market prices and performance benchmarks.

Performance Per Dollar Mobility Radeon HD 3870

#499

Radeon RX 550X (móvel)

MSRP: $35|Avg: $35

2555%

#501

GeForce GTX 1070 with Max-Q Design

MSRP: N/A|Avg: $150

2316%

#502

GeForce GTX 1060 with Max-Q Design

MSRP: N/A|Avg: $100

2310%

#506

GeForce GTX 1050 (Mobile)

MSRP: N/A|Avg: $50

2100%

#507

Radeon RX 6300

MSRP: $60|Avg: $40

2086%

#509

Mobility Radeon HD 3870

MSRP: $129|Avg: $15

100%

#510

GeForce 9800 S

MSRP: $150|Avg: $40

100%

#511

Radeon HD 8650G + HD 7670M Dual

MSRP: $150|Avg: $40

100%

#512

Radeon HD 8650G + 8670M Dual

MSRP: $150|Avg: $30

100%

#513

Radeon HD 8510G + HD 8500M Dual

MSRP: $150|Avg: $30

99%

#514

Radeon HD 7660D

MSRP: $122|Avg: $15

99%

#515

Radeon HD 8650G + 8500M Dual

MSRP: $150|Avg: $30

98%

#516

Mobility Radeon HD 5870 Crossfire

MSRP: $800|Avg: $150

97%

#517

GeForce 8200

MSRP: $40|Avg: $5

96%

#518

Mobility Radeon HD 545v

MSRP: $49|Avg: $15

96%

#519

GeForce 9500M G

MSRP: $30|Avg: $30

96%

#520

Radeon HD 7640G + HD 8500M Dual

MSRP: $150|Avg: $50

95%

#521

Radeon HD 8650G + HD 8600M Dual

MSRP: $150|Avg: $35

95%

#522

Radeon HD 8550G + 8500M Dual

MSRP: $150|Avg: $150

95%

#523

Radeon HD 8610G + 8670M Dual

MSRP: $150|Avg: $150

94%

#524

Radeon HD 7640G + HD 8750M Dual

MSRP: $250|Avg: $40

94%

Based on actual market prices and performance benchmarks.

Performance Comparison

About G3D Mark

🏆 Chipversus Verdict

🚀 Performance Leadership

The Mobility Radeon HD 3870 is the superior choice for raw performance. It leads with a 1.1% higher G3D Mark score. This advantage makes it significantly better for higher resolutions (1440p/4K) and graphic-intensive titles compared to the GeForce GT 820M.

Insight	GeForce GT 820M	Mobility Radeon HD 3870
Performance	❌Lower raw frame rates (-1.1%)	✅Leading raw performance (+1.1%)
Longevity	🛑Obsolete Architecture (2014 / Maxwell 2.0 (2014−2019))	🛑Obsolete Architecture (2010 / TeraScale 2 (2009−2015))
Ecosystem	Supports FSR Upscaling	Supports FSR Upscaling
VRAM	❌ Less VRAM capacity	✅ More VRAM (+0%)
Efficiency	⚡ Higher Power Consumption	💡 Excellent Perf/Watt
Case Fit	—	📏 Compact / SFF Friendly

💎 Value Proposition

While current pricing data is unavailable, the Mobility Radeon HD 3870 remains the clear technical winner. Check real-time availability to determine if the performance gap justifies the market price.

Performance Check

Real-world benchmarks and performance projections based on comprehensive hardware analysis and comparative metrics. Values represent expected performance on High/Ultra settings at 1080p, 1440p, and 4K. Modeled using a Ryzen 7 7800X3D reference profile to minimize specific CPU bottlenecks.

Note: Performance behavior can vary per game. Specific architectures may perform better or worse depending on game engine optimizations and API implementation.

GeForce GT 820M Benchmark Check

Mobility Radeon HD 3870 Benchmark Check

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of GeForce GT 820M and Mobility Radeon HD 3870

GeForce GT 820M

The GeForce GT 820M is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in October 7 2014. It features the Maxwell 2.0 architecture. The core clock ranges from 1038 MHz to 1127 MHz. It has 1536 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 100W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 542 points.

Mobility Radeon HD 3870

The Mobility Radeon HD 3870 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: 548 points.

⚡

Graphics Performance

The GeForce GT 820M scores 542 and the Mobility Radeon HD 3870 reaches 548 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 1.1% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The GeForce GT 820M is built on Maxwell 2.0 while the Mobility Radeon HD 3870 uses TeraScale 2, both on 28 nm vs 40 nm. Shader units: 1,536 (GeForce GT 820M) vs 800 (Mobility Radeon HD 3870). Raw compute: 1.659 TFLOPS (GeForce GT 820M) vs 1.12 TFLOPS (Mobility Radeon HD 3870).

Feature	GeForce GT 820M	Mobility Radeon HD 3870
G3D Mark Score	542	548+1%
Architecture	Maxwell 2.0	TeraScale 2
Process Node	28 nm	40 nm
Shading Units	1536+92%	800
Compute (TFLOPS)	1.659 TFLOPS+48%	1.12 TFLOPS
ROPs	64+300%	16
TMUs	96+140%	40
L1 Cache	576 KB+620%	80 KB
L2 Cache	2 MB+700%	0.25 MB

✨

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

Feature	GeForce GT 820M	Mobility Radeon HD 3870
Upscaling Tech	FSR 1.0 (Software)	FSR 1.0 (Software)
Frame Generation	Not Supported	Not Supported
Ray Reconstruction	No	No
Low Latency	Standard	AMD Anti-Lag

💾

Video Memory (VRAM)

Both cards feature 512 MB of GDDR5. Bus width: 64-bit vs 128-bit. L2 Cache: 2 MB (GeForce GT 820M) vs 0.25 MB (Mobility Radeon HD 3870) — the GeForce GT 820M has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

Feature	GeForce GT 820M	Mobility Radeon HD 3870
VRAM Capacity	0.5 GB	0.5 GB
Memory Type	GDDR5	GDDR5
Memory Bandwidth	Unknown	Unknown
Bus Width	64-bit	128-bit+100%
L2 Cache	2 MB+700%	0.25 MB

🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 11.0 (GeForce GT 820M) vs 10.1 (Mobility Radeon HD 3870). Maximum simultaneous displays: 1 vs 0.

Feature	GeForce GT 820M	Mobility Radeon HD 3870
DirectX	11.0+9%	10.1
Max Displays	1	0

🎬

Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: No (GeForce GT 820M) vs UVD (Mobility Radeon HD 3870). Decoder: PureVideo HD VP4 vs UVD.

Feature	GeForce GT 820M	Mobility Radeon HD 3870
Encoder	No	UVD
Decoder	PureVideo HD VP4	UVD
Codecs	MPEG-2,H.264,VC-1,MPEG-4 ASP	—

🔌

Power & Dimensions

The GeForce GT 820M draws 100W versus the Mobility Radeon HD 3870's 50W — a 66.7% difference. The Mobility Radeon HD 3870 is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 350W (GeForce GT 820M) vs 350W (Mobility Radeon HD 3870). Power connectors: PCIe-powered vs PCIe-powered. Card length: 0mm vs 1mm, occupying 0 vs 0 slots.