GeForce MX250 vs Radeon HD 5970

CPU

GPU

GeForce MX250

2019Core: 937 MHzBoost: 1038 MHz

Similar parts

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Radeon HD 5970

2009Core: 725 MHz

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GeForce MX250 vs Radeon HD 5970 Performance Spectrum

GeForce MX250

2 GB 10

2,375

+3.4%

GeForce GTX 1650 (móvel)

GeForce RTX 2060 (Mobile)

RTX 3000 Ada Generation Laptop GPU

RTX 5000 Ada Generation Embedded GPU

Radeon HD 5970

2 GB 294

2,297

0.0%

Radeon RX 9060 XT 16 GB

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 MX250 vs Radeon HD 5970 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 MX250 vs Radeon HD 5970: 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 MX250

2019

Why buy it

✅Costs $549 less on MSRP ($150 MSRP vs $699 MSRP).
✅Delivers 381.8% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 15.8 vs 3.3 G3D/$ ($150 MSRP vs $699 MSRP).
✅Radeon HD 5970 is already obsolete for modern gaming, so GeForce MX250 is the less risky modern option long term.
✅Draws 10W instead of 294W, a 284W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Lower average FPS than Radeon HD 5970 across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
❌2019 hardware with 2 GB of VRAM already sits in legacy territory for modern games.

Radeon HD 5970

2009

Why buy it

✅75.8% more average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.

Trade-offs

❌2009 hardware with 2 GB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.
❌
366% HIGHER MSRP
$699 MSRPvs$150 MSRP
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 3.3 vs 15.8 G3D/$ ($699 MSRP vs $150 MSRP).
❌2840% higher power demand at 294W vs 10W.

Quick Answers

Which GPU is faster for gaming right now?

Radeon HD 5970 is the faster gaming card right now. In our data, it leads by 75.8% in average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data. PassMark G3D leans toward GeForce MX250 instead at 2,375 vs 2,297, 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 MX250 is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond. The case is simple: a 14nm process instead of 40nm and a newer 2019 generation instead of 2009. That makes it the less risky pick as game demands keep moving.

Which GPU is the better buy today?

GeForce MX250 makes the most sense to buy today. It is $549 cheaper on MSRP at $150 vs $699, and it leads G3D-per-dollar by 381.8% (15.8 vs 3.3), which is enough to swing the recommendation its way. Radeon HD 5970 still makes more sense if max raw gaming performance matters more than value.

GeForce MX250 vs Radeon HD 5970 Technical Specifications

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

GeForce MX250

The GeForce MX250 is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in February 20 2019. It features the Pascal architecture. The core clock ranges from 937 MHz to 1038 MHz. It has 384 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 10W. Manufactured using 14 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 2,375 points.

Radeon HD 5970

The Radeon HD 5970 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in November 18 2009. It features the TeraScale 2 architecture. The core clock speed is 725 MHz. It has 1600 ×2 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 294W. Manufactured using 40 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 2,297 points. Launch price was $699.

⚡

Graphics Performance

The GeForce MX250 scores 2,375 and the Radeon HD 5970 reaches 2,297 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 3.4% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The GeForce MX250 is built on Pascal while the Radeon HD 5970 uses TeraScale 2, both on 14 nm vs 40 nm. Shader units: 384 (GeForce MX250) vs 1,600 (Radeon HD 5970). Raw compute: 0.7972 TFLOPS (GeForce MX250) vs 2.32 TFLOPS ×2 (Radeon HD 5970).

Feature	GeForce MX250	Radeon HD 5970
G3D Mark Score	2,375+3%	2,297
Architecture	Pascal	TeraScale 2
Process Node	14 nm	40 nm
Shading Units	384	1600 ×2+317%
Compute (TFLOPS)	0.7972 TFLOPS	2.32 TFLOPS ×2+191%
ROPs	16	32 ×2+100%
TMUs	24	80 ×2+233%
L1 Cache	144 KB	320 KB+122%
L2 Cache	512 KB	512 KB

✨

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The GeForce MX250 gets NVIDIA DLSS, which still tends to look cleaner in motion. The Radeon HD 5970 leans on FSR, which is flexible and widely supported, but usually a bit rougher at the same settings.

Feature	GeForce MX250	Radeon HD 5970
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 2 GB of GDDR5. Memory bus width is 64-bit on the GeForce MX250 and 128-bit on the Radeon HD 5970.

Feature	GeForce MX250	Radeon HD 5970
VRAM Capacity	2 GB	2 GB
Memory Type	GDDR5	GDDR5
Memory Bandwidth	48 GB/s	Unknown
Bus Width	64-bit	128-bit+100%
L2 Cache	512 KB	512 KB

🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 12 (12_1) (GeForce MX250) vs 11.2 (Radeon HD 5970). Vulkan: 1.2 vs N/A. OpenGL: 4.6 vs 4.4. Maximum simultaneous displays: 3 vs 3.

Feature	GeForce MX250	Radeon HD 5970
DirectX	12 (12_1)+7%	11.2
Vulkan	1.2	N/A
OpenGL	4.6+5%	4.4
Max Displays	3	3

🎬

Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: None (GeForce MX250) vs None (Radeon HD 5970). Decoder: NVDEC 3rd Gen vs UVD 2.2. Supported codecs: H.264,H.265,VP9 (GeForce MX250) vs H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2 (Radeon HD 5970).

Feature	GeForce MX250	Radeon HD 5970
Encoder	None	None
Decoder	NVDEC 3rd Gen	UVD 2.2
Codecs	H.264,H.265,VP9	H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2

🔌

Power & Dimensions

The GeForce MX250 draws 10W versus the Radeon HD 5970's 294W — a 186.8% difference. The GeForce MX250 is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 350W (GeForce MX250) vs 650W (Radeon HD 5970). Power connectors: Mobile vs 6-pin + 8-pin. Card length: 0mm vs 305mm, occupying 0 vs 2 slots. Typical load temperature: 75 vs 90.

Feature	GeForce MX250	Radeon HD 5970
TDP	10W-97%	294W
Recommended PSU	350W-46%	650W
Power Connector	Mobile	6-pin + 8-pin
Length	0mm	305mm
Height	0mm	111mm
Slots	0-100%	2
Temp (Load)	75-17%	90
Perf/Watt	237.5+2945%	7.8

💰

Value Analysis

At launch, the GeForce MX250 came in at $150, while the Radeon HD 5970 launched at $699. On MSRP, GeForce MX250 was 78.5% cheaper ($549 less). Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 15.8 (GeForce MX250) vs 3.3 (Radeon HD 5970) — the GeForce MX250 offers 378.8% better value. The newer card here is GeForce MX250 (2019 vs 2009).

Feature	GeForce MX250	Radeon HD 5970
MSRP	$150-79%	$699
Performance per Dollar	15.8+379%	3.3
Codename	GP108B	Hemlock
Release	February 20 2019	November 18 2009
Ranking	#643	#651

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