GeForce RTX 2060
Radeon HD 7950 / R9 280
GeForce RTX 2060 vs Radeon HD 7950 / R9 280 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 RTX 2060 vs Radeon HD 7950 / R9 280 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
Counter-Strike 2
League of Legends
Valorant
Among Us
Apex Legends
ARC Raiders
Baldur's Gate 3
Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
GeForce RTX 2060 vs Radeon HD 7950 / R9 280: 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 RTX 2060
2019Why buy it
- ✅106.6% more average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
- ✅Delivers 136.8% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 40.4 vs 17.1 G3D/$ ($349 MSRP vs $279 MSRP).
- ✅Access to DLSS 2 Super Resolution (2020).
- ✅100% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (6 GB vs 3 GB).
- ✅Better long-term bet: Turing (2018−2022) on 12nm gives it a newer hardware base for upcoming games.
Trade-offs
- ❌Fewer clear downsides in this head-to-head, aside from the usual pricing and availability swings.
Radeon HD 7950 / R9 280
2012Why buy it
- ✅Costs $70 less on MSRP ($279 MSRP vs $349 MSRP).
Trade-offs
- ❌Lower average FPS than GeForce RTX 2060 across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
- ❌Less VRAM, with 3 GB vs 6 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
- ❌No DLSS support; it relies on FSR Upscaling / FSR 4 (2025) instead.
- ❌2012 hardware with 3 GB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.
- ❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 17.1 vs 40.4 G3D/$ ($279 MSRP vs $349 MSRP).
Quick Answers
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GeForce RTX 2060 vs Radeon HD 7950 / R9 280 Technical Specifications
Side-by-side specs, architecture details, clocks, memory, power, and platform differences.
GeForce RTX 2060
The GeForce RTX 2060 is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in January 7 2019. It features the Turing architecture. The core clock ranges from 1365 MHz to 1680 MHz. It has 1920 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 160W. Manufactured using 12 nm process technology. It features 30 dedicated ray tracing cores for enhanced lighting effects. G3D Mark benchmark score: 14,114 points. Launch price was $349.
Radeon HD 7950 / R9 280
The Radeon HD 7950 / R9 280 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in January 31 2012. It features the GCN 1.0 architecture. The boost clock speed is 1250 MHz. It has 1792 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 200W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 4,765 points. Launch price was $449.
Graphics Performance
In G3D Mark, the GeForce RTX 2060 scores 14,114 versus the Radeon HD 7950 / R9 280's 4,765 — the GeForce RTX 2060 leads by 196.2%. The GeForce RTX 2060 is built on Turing while the Radeon HD 7950 / R9 280 uses GCN 1.0, both on 12 nm vs 28 nm. Shader units: 1,920 (GeForce RTX 2060) vs 1,792 (Radeon HD 7950 / R9 280). Raw compute: 6.451 TFLOPS (GeForce RTX 2060) vs 2.867 TFLOPS (Radeon HD 7950 / R9 280). Boost clocks: 1680 MHz vs 1250 MHz.
| Feature | GeForce RTX 2060 | Radeon HD 7950 / R9 280 |
|---|---|---|
| G3D Mark Score | 14,114+196% | 4,765 |
| Architecture | Turing | GCN 1.0 |
| Process Node | 12 nm | 28 nm |
| Shading Units | 1920+7% | 1792 |
| Compute (TFLOPS) | 6.451 TFLOPS+125% | 2.867 TFLOPS |
| Boost Clock | 1680 MHz+34% | 1250 MHz |
| ROPs | 48+50% | 32 |
| TMUs | 120+7% | 112 |
| L1 Cache | 1.9 MB+332% | 0.44 MB |
| L2 Cache | 3 MB+300% | 0.75 MB |
Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)
The GeForce RTX 2060 gets NVIDIA DLSS, which still tends to look cleaner in motion. The Radeon HD 7950 / R9 280 leans on FSR, which is flexible and widely supported, but usually a bit rougher at the same settings.
| Feature | GeForce RTX 2060 | Radeon HD 7950 / R9 280 |
|---|---|---|
| Upscaling Tech | DLSS 2 Super Resolution | 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 RTX 2060 has 6 GB of VRAM, while the Radeon HD 7950 / R9 280 carries 3 GB. GeForce RTX 2060 gives you 100% more memory capacity, which matters more once you move into heavier textures, mods, or higher resolutions. Memory bandwidth: 336 GB/s (GeForce RTX 2060) vs 240 GB/s (Radeon HD 7950 / R9 280) — a 40% advantage for the GeForce RTX 2060. Memory bus width is 192-bit on the GeForce RTX 2060 and 384-bit on the Radeon HD 7950 / R9 280. L2 Cache: 3 MB (GeForce RTX 2060) vs 0.75 MB (Radeon HD 7950 / R9 280) — the GeForce RTX 2060 has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.
| Feature | GeForce RTX 2060 | Radeon HD 7950 / R9 280 |
|---|---|---|
| VRAM Capacity | 6 GB+100% | 3 GB |
| Memory Type | GDDR6 | GDDR5 |
| Memory Bandwidth | 336 GB/s+40% | 240 GB/s |
| Bus Width | 192-bit | 384-bit+100% |
| L2 Cache | 3 MB+300% | 0.75 MB |
Display & API Support
DirectX support: 12 Ultimate (12_2) (GeForce RTX 2060) vs 12 (Radeon HD 7950 / R9 280). Vulkan: 1.3 vs 1.2. OpenGL: 4.6 vs 4.6. Maximum simultaneous displays: 4 vs 4.
| Feature | GeForce RTX 2060 | Radeon HD 7950 / R9 280 |
|---|---|---|
| DirectX | 12 Ultimate (12_2) | 12 |
| Vulkan | 1.3+8% | 1.2 |
| OpenGL | 4.6 | 4.6 |
| Max Displays | 4 | 4 |
Media & Encoding
Hardware encoder: NVENC (Turing) (GeForce RTX 2060) vs VCE 1.0 (Radeon HD 7950 / R9 280). Decoder: NVDEC (Turing) vs UVD 3.2. Supported codecs: H.264,H.265,VP9,VP8,MPEG-2,VC-1 (GeForce RTX 2060) vs H.264,MPEG-2,VC-1,MVC (Radeon HD 7950 / R9 280).
| Feature | GeForce RTX 2060 | Radeon HD 7950 / R9 280 |
|---|---|---|
| Encoder | NVENC (Turing) | VCE 1.0 |
| Decoder | NVDEC (Turing) | UVD 3.2 |
| Codecs | H.264,H.265,VP9,VP8,MPEG-2,VC-1 | H.264,MPEG-2,VC-1,MVC |
Power & Dimensions
The GeForce RTX 2060 draws 160W versus the Radeon HD 7950 / R9 280's 200W — a 22.2% difference. The GeForce RTX 2060 is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 500W (GeForce RTX 2060) vs 500W (Radeon HD 7950 / R9 280). Power connectors: 8-pin vs 2x 6-pin. Card length: 229mm vs 278mm, occupying 2 vs 2 slots. Typical load temperature: 72 vs 80°C.
| Feature | GeForce RTX 2060 | Radeon HD 7950 / R9 280 |
|---|---|---|
| TDP | 160W-20% | 200W |
| Recommended PSU | 500W | 500W |
| Power Connector | 8-pin | 2x 6-pin |
| Length | 229mm | 278mm |
| Height | 113mm | 111mm |
| Slots | 2 | 2 |
| Temp (Load) | 72-10% | 80°C |
| Perf/Watt | 88.2+271% | 23.8 |
Value Analysis
At launch, the GeForce RTX 2060 came in at $349, while the Radeon HD 7950 / R9 280 launched at $279. On MSRP, Radeon HD 7950 / R9 280 was 20.1% cheaper ($70 less). Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 40.4 (GeForce RTX 2060) vs 17.1 (Radeon HD 7950 / R9 280) — the GeForce RTX 2060 offers 136.3% better value. The newer card here is GeForce RTX 2060 (2019 vs 2012).
| Feature | GeForce RTX 2060 | Radeon HD 7950 / R9 280 |
|---|---|---|
| MSRP | $349 | $279-20% |
| Performance per Dollar | 40.4+136% | 17.1 |
| Codename | TU106 | Tahiti |
| Release | January 7 2019 | January 31 2012 |
| Ranking | #168 | #454 |
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