GeForce GTX 1060 (móvel) vs Radeon R9 290X

CPU

GPU

GeForce GTX 1060 (móvel)

2016Core: 1506 MHzBoost: 1708 MHz

GTX family

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Radeon R9 290X

2013Boost: 947 MHz

Similar parts

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GeForce GTX 1060 (móvel) vs Radeon R9 290X Performance Spectrum

GeForce GTX 1060 (móvel)

4 GB 80

8,160

0.0%

GeForce MX550

GeForce GTX 670

GeForce GTX 1050 Ti

GeForce GTX 1650 (móvel)

GeForce RTX 3050 Laptop GPU

RTX 3000 Ada Generation Laptop GPU

GeForce RTX 5070 Laptop GPU

RTX 4000 Ada Generation

Radeon R9 290X

4 GB 350

8,426

+3.3%

Radeon R9 Nano

Radeon HD 6970M Crossfire

Radeon RX 9060 XT 8GB

Radeon RX 7800 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 GTX 1060 (móvel) vs Radeon R9 290X 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 GTX 1060 (móvel) vs Radeon R9 290X: 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 GTX 1060 (móvel)

2016

Why buy it

✅0.1% more average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
✅Draws 80W instead of 350W, a 270W reduction.
✅More future proof: Pascal (2016−2021) on 16nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.

Trade-offs

❌2016 hardware with 4 GB of VRAM already sits in legacy territory for modern games.
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 0 vs 15.3 G3D/$ (Unknown MSRP vs $549 MSRP).

Radeon R9 290X

2013

Why buy it

✅Delivers 100+% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 15.3 vs 0 G3D/$ ($549 MSRP vs Unknown MSRP).

Trade-offs

❌Lower average FPS than GeForce GTX 1060 (móvel) across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
❌2013 hardware with 4 GB of VRAM already sits in legacy territory for modern games.
❌337.5% higher power demand at 350W vs 80W.

Quick Answers

Which GPU is faster for gaming right now?

GeForce GTX 1060 (móvel) is the faster gaming card right now. In our data, it leads by 0.1% in average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data. PassMark G3D leans toward Radeon R9 290X instead at 8,426 vs 8,160, so for this question the real-game FPS result matters more than the synthetic split.

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

GeForce GTX 1060 (móvel) is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond. The case is simple: a 16nm process instead of 28nm and a newer 2016 generation instead of 2013. That makes it the less risky pick as game demands keep moving.

Which GPU is the better buy today?

Radeon R9 290X 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 R9 290X is the easier value choice. If you care more about 1080p and some 1440p headroom, GeForce GTX 1060 (móvel) has the stronger long-term case.

GeForce GTX 1060 (móvel) vs Radeon R9 290X Technical Specifications

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

GeForce GTX 1060 (móvel)

The GeForce GTX 1060 (móvel) is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in August 15 2016. It features the Pascal architecture. The core clock ranges from 1506 MHz to 1708 MHz. It has 1280 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 80W. Manufactured using 16 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 8,160 points. Launch price was $237.11.

Radeon R9 290X

The Radeon R9 290X is manufactured by AMD. It was released in October 24 2013. It features the GCN 2.0 architecture. The boost clock speed is 947 MHz. It has 2816 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 350W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 8,426 points. Launch price was $549.

⚡

Graphics Performance

The GeForce GTX 1060 (móvel) scores 8,160 and the Radeon R9 290X reaches 8,426 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 3.3% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The GeForce GTX 1060 (móvel) is built on Pascal while the Radeon R9 290X uses GCN 2.0, both on 16 nm vs 28 nm. Shader units: 1,280 (GeForce GTX 1060 (móvel)) vs 2,816 (Radeon R9 290X). Raw compute: 4.275 TFLOPS (GeForce GTX 1060 (móvel)) vs 5.632 TFLOPS (Radeon R9 290X). Boost clocks: 1708 MHz vs 947 MHz.

Feature	GeForce GTX 1060 (móvel)	Radeon R9 290X
G3D Mark Score	8,160	8,426+3%
Architecture	Pascal	GCN 2.0
Process Node	16 nm	28 nm
Shading Units	1280	2816+120%
Compute (TFLOPS)	4.275 TFLOPS	5.632 TFLOPS+32%
Boost Clock	1708 MHz+80%	947 MHz
ROPs	48	64+33%
TMUs	80	176+120%
L1 Cache	480 KB	704 KB+47%
L2 Cache	1.5 MB+50%	1 MB

✨

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The GeForce GTX 1060 (móvel) gets NVIDIA DLSS, which still tends to look cleaner in motion. The Radeon R9 290X leans on FSR, which is flexible and widely supported, but usually a bit rougher at the same settings.

Feature	GeForce GTX 1060 (móvel)	Radeon R9 290X
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 4 GB of GDDR5. Memory bandwidth: 192 GB/s (GeForce GTX 1060 (móvel)) vs 320 GB/s (Radeon R9 290X) — a 66.7% advantage for the Radeon R9 290X. Memory bus width is 192-bit on the GeForce GTX 1060 (móvel) and 512-bit on the Radeon R9 290X. L2 Cache: 1.5 MB (GeForce GTX 1060 (móvel)) vs 1 MB (Radeon R9 290X) — the GeForce GTX 1060 (móvel) has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

Feature	GeForce GTX 1060 (móvel)	Radeon R9 290X
VRAM Capacity	4 GB	4 GB
Memory Type	GDDR5	GDDR5
Memory Bandwidth	192 GB/s	320 GB/s+67%
Bus Width	192-bit	512-bit+167%
L2 Cache	1.5 MB+50%	1 MB

🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 12.1 (GeForce GTX 1060 (móvel)) vs 12.0 (Radeon R9 290X). Vulkan: 1.1 vs 1.1. OpenGL: 4.6 vs 4.6. Maximum simultaneous displays: 4 vs 6.

Feature	GeForce GTX 1060 (móvel)	Radeon R9 290X
DirectX	12.1	12.0
Vulkan	1.1	1.1
OpenGL	4.6	4.6
Max Displays	4	6+50%

🎬

Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: NVENC 6.0 (GeForce GTX 1060 (móvel)) vs VCE 2.0 (Radeon R9 290X). Decoder: PureVideo HD VP8 vs UVD 4.2. Supported codecs: MPEG-2,H.264,HEVC,VP9 (GeForce GTX 1060 (móvel)) vs MPEG-2,H.264,VC-1 (Radeon R9 290X).

Feature	GeForce GTX 1060 (móvel)	Radeon R9 290X
Encoder	NVENC 6.0	VCE 2.0
Decoder	PureVideo HD VP8	UVD 4.2
Codecs	MPEG-2,H.264,HEVC,VP9	MPEG-2,H.264,VC-1

🔌

Power & Dimensions

The GeForce GTX 1060 (móvel) draws 80W versus the Radeon R9 290X's 350W — a 125.6% difference. The GeForce GTX 1060 (móvel) is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 500W (GeForce GTX 1060 (móvel)) vs 750W (Radeon R9 290X). Power connectors: PCIe-powered vs 6-pin + 8-pin. Card length: 0mm vs 275mm, occupying 0 vs 2 slots. Typical load temperature: 85°C vs 95°C.

Feature	GeForce GTX 1060 (móvel)	Radeon R9 290X
TDP	80W-77%	350W
Recommended PSU	500W-33%	750W
Power Connector	PCIe-powered	6-pin + 8-pin
Length	0mm	275mm
Height	0mm	109mm
Slots	0-100%	2
Temp (Load)	85°C-11%	95°C
Perf/Watt	102.0+323%	24.1

💰

Value Analysis

The newer card here is GeForce GTX 1060 (móvel) (2016 vs 2013).

Feature	GeForce GTX 1060 (móvel)	Radeon R9 290X
MSRP	—	$549
Codename	GP106	Hawaii
Release	August 15 2016	October 24 2013
Ranking	#343	#342

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