Mobility Radeon HD 3870 X2 vs Radeon R5 M240

AMD

Mobility Radeon HD 3870 X2

2008Core: 660 MHz
Similar parts
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VS
AMD

Radeon R5 M240

2013Boost: 780 MHz
Similar parts
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Mobility Radeon HD 3870 X2 vs Radeon R5 M240 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.

Mobility Radeon HD 3870 X2 vs Radeon R5 M240: Pros, Cons & Final Verdict

See where each GPU makes more sense in practice: raw FPS, VRAM, features, power draw, pricing, and long-term headroom.

Mobility Radeon HD 3870 X2

2008

Why buy it

  • Competitive enough if your priority is price, power, or specific feature preference.

Trade-offs

  • Less VRAM, with 2 MB vs 512 MB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
  • 2008 hardware with 2 MB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.
  • 349% HIGHER MSRP
    $449 MSRPvs$100 MSRP
  • Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 1.1 vs 4.7 G3D/$ ($449 MSRP vs $100 MSRP).
  • 266.7% higher power demand at 110W vs 30W.

Radeon R5 M240

2013

Why buy it

  • Costs $349 less on MSRP ($100 MSRP vs $449 MSRP).
  • Delivers 344.3% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 4.7 vs 1.1 G3D/$ ($100 MSRP vs $449 MSRP).
  • 24900% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (512 MB vs 2 MB).
  • Mobility Radeon HD 3870 X2 is already obsolete for modern gaming, so Radeon R5 M240 is the less risky modern option long term.
  • Draws 30W instead of 110W, a 80W reduction.

Trade-offs

  • 2013 hardware with 512 MB 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 3870 X2 is the faster gaming card right now based on the synthetic data we have. It leads by 1.1% in PassMark G3D (478 vs 473), which is the best performance signal available in this matchup.
Which GPU is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond?
Radeon R5 M240 is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond. The case is simple: 512 MB vs 2 MB of VRAM, a 28nm process instead of 55nm, and a newer 2013 generation instead of 2008. That gives it more room for heavier textures and higher settings over time.
Which GPU is the better buy today?
Radeon R5 M240 makes the most sense to buy today. It is $349 cheaper on MSRP at $100 vs $449, and it leads G3D-per-dollar by 344.3% (4.7 vs 1.1), which is enough to swing the recommendation its way. Mobility Radeon HD 3870 X2 still makes more sense if max raw gaming performance matters more than value.

Mobility Radeon HD 3870 X2 vs Radeon R5 M240 Technical Specifications

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

AMD

Mobility Radeon HD 3870 X2

The Mobility Radeon HD 3870 X2 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in September 1 2008. It features the TeraScale architecture. The core clock speed is 660 MHz. It has 320 ×2 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 110W. Manufactured using 55 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 478 points.

AMD

Radeon R5 M240

The Radeon R5 M240 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in October 8 2013. It features the GCN 1.0 architecture. The boost clock speed is 780 MHz. It has 320 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 30W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 473 points. Launch price was $69.

Graphics Performance

The Mobility Radeon HD 3870 X2 scores 478 and the Radeon R5 M240 reaches 473 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 1.1% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The Mobility Radeon HD 3870 X2 is built on TeraScale while the Radeon R5 M240 uses GCN 1.0, both on 55 nm vs 28 nm. Shader units: 320 (Mobility Radeon HD 3870 X2) vs 320 (Radeon R5 M240). Raw compute: 0.4224 TFLOPS ×2 (Mobility Radeon HD 3870 X2) vs 0.448 TFLOPS (Radeon R5 M240).

FeatureMobility Radeon HD 3870 X2Radeon R5 M240
G3D Mark Score
478+1%
473
Architecture
TeraScale
GCN 1.0
Process Node
55 nm
28 nm
Shading Units
320 ×2
320
Compute (TFLOPS)
0.4224 TFLOPS ×2
0.448 TFLOPS+6%
ROPs
16 ×2+100%
8
TMUs
16 ×2
20+25%
L2 Cache
256 KB
256 KB
Frame Generation
FSR upscaling
FSR upscaling

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

FeatureMobility Radeon HD 3870 X2Radeon R5 M240
Upscaling Tech
FSR Upscaling / FSR 4
FSR Upscaling / FSR 4
Frame Generation
Not Supported
Not Supported
Ray Reconstruction
No
No
Low Latency
AMD Anti-Lag
AMD Anti-Lag
💾

Video Memory (VRAM)

The Mobility Radeon HD 3870 X2 has 2 MB of VRAM, while the Radeon R5 M240 carries 512 MB. Radeon R5 M240 gives you 24900% more memory capacity, which matters more once you move into heavier textures, mods, or higher resolutions. Memory bus width is 64-bit on the Mobility Radeon HD 3870 X2 and 128-bit on the Radeon R5 M240.

FeatureMobility Radeon HD 3870 X2Radeon R5 M240
VRAM Capacity
0.002 GB
0.5 GB+24900%
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: 10.1 (Mobility Radeon HD 3870 X2) vs 12 (Radeon R5 M240). Maximum simultaneous displays: 0 vs 0.

FeatureMobility Radeon HD 3870 X2Radeon R5 M240
DirectX
10.1
12+19%
Max Displays
0
0
🎬

Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: UVD (Mobility Radeon HD 3870 X2) vs VCE 1.0 (Radeon R5 M240). Decoder: UVD vs UVD 4.2.

FeatureMobility Radeon HD 3870 X2Radeon R5 M240
Encoder
UVD
VCE 1.0
Decoder
UVD
UVD 4.2
🔌

Power & Dimensions

The Mobility Radeon HD 3870 X2 draws 110W versus the Radeon R5 M240's 30W — a 114.3% difference. The Radeon R5 M240 is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 350W (Mobility Radeon HD 3870 X2) vs 350W (Radeon R5 M240). Power connectors: PCIe-powered vs Mobile. Card length: 1mm vs 1mm, occupying 0 vs 0 slots.

FeatureMobility Radeon HD 3870 X2Radeon R5 M240
TDP
110W
30W-73%
Recommended PSU
350W
350W
Power Connector
PCIe-powered
Mobile
Length
1mm
1mm
Slots
0
0
Perf/Watt
4.3
15.8+267%
💰

Value Analysis

At launch, the Mobility Radeon HD 3870 X2 came in at $449, while the Radeon R5 M240 launched at $100. On MSRP, Radeon R5 M240 was 77.7% cheaper ($349 less). Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 1.1 (Mobility Radeon HD 3870 X2) vs 4.7 (Radeon R5 M240) — the Radeon R5 M240 offers 327.3% better value. The newer card here is Radeon R5 M240 (2013 vs 2008).

FeatureMobility Radeon HD 3870 X2Radeon R5 M240
MSRP
$449
$100-78%
Performance per Dollar
1.1
4.7+327%
Codename
M88
Oland
Release
September 1 2008
October 8 2013
Ranking
#919
#911

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