Chipversus Index
Jump to Section

GeForce 8400 vs Radeon HD 3850

CPUCPUGPUGPU
NVIDIA

GeForce 8400

2014Core: 1029 MHzBoost: 1124 MHz
Similar parts
·······
Buy on Amazon
VS
AMD

Radeon HD 3850

2012Boost: 1000 MHz
Similar parts
·······
Buy on Amazon

GeForce 8400 vs Radeon HD 3850 Performance Spectrum

GeForce 8400
0.5 GB 33
81
0.0%
brand logoGeForce Go 7200
brand logoGeForce Go 7300
brand logoGeForce G 103M
brand logoGeForce Go 6600
brand logoGeForce GTX 1050 Mobile 3 GB
brand logoGeForce GTX 970
brand logoGeForce RTX 4050 Mobile
brand logoGeForce RTX 3080 Ti Laptop GPU
Radeon HD 3850
1 GB 130
401
+395.1%
brand logoRadeon HD 7450
brand logoRadeon HD 5470
brand logoRadeon HD 2900 GT
brand logoMobility Radeon HD 565v
brand logoRadeon R9 M395X
brand logoRadeon 8040S
brand logoRadeon RX 7600M XT
brand logoRadeon RX 6700 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 8400 vs Radeon HD 3850 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

Path of Exile 2

1080P
GeForce 8400
low4 FPS
medium3 FPS
high2 FPS
ultra2 FPS
1080P
Radeon HD 3850
low18 FPS
medium14 FPS
high12 FPS
ultra9 FPS
Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

1080P
GeForce 8400
low4 FPS
medium3 FPS
high2 FPS
ultra2 FPS
1080P
Radeon HD 3850
low18 FPS
medium14 FPS
high12 FPS
ultra9 FPS
League of Legends

League of Legends

1080P
GeForce 8400
low4 FPS
medium3 FPS
high2 FPS
ultra2 FPS
1080P
Radeon HD 3850
low18 FPS
medium14 FPS
high12 FPS
ultra9 FPS
Valorant

Valorant

1080P
GeForce 8400
low4 FPS
medium3 FPS
high2 FPS
ultra2 FPS
1080P
Radeon HD 3850
low18 FPS
medium14 FPS
high12 FPS
ultra9 FPS
Among Us

Among Us

1080P
GeForce 8400
low4 FPS
medium3 FPS
high2 FPS
ultra2 FPS
1080P
Radeon HD 3850
low18 FPS
medium14 FPS
high12 FPS
ultra9 FPS
Apex Legends

Apex Legends

1080P
GeForce 8400
low4 FPS
medium3 FPS
high2 FPS
ultra2 FPS
1080P
Radeon HD 3850
low18 FPS
medium14 FPS
high12 FPS
ultra9 FPS
ARC Raiders

ARC Raiders

1080P
GeForce 8400
low4 FPS
medium3 FPS
high2 FPS
ultra2 FPS
1080P
Radeon HD 3850
low18 FPS
medium14 FPS
high12 FPS
ultra9 FPS
Baldur's Gate 3

Baldur's Gate 3

1080P
GeForce 8400
low4 FPS
medium3 FPS
high2 FPS
ultra2 FPS
1080P
Radeon HD 3850
low18 FPS
medium14 FPS
high12 FPS
ultra9 FPS
Call of Duty: Black Ops 6

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6

1080P
GeForce 8400
low4 FPS
medium3 FPS
high2 FPS
ultra2 FPS
1080P
Radeon HD 3850
low18 FPS
medium14 FPS
high12 FPS
ultra9 FPS
Call of Duty: Warzone

Call of Duty: Warzone

1080P
GeForce 8400
low4 FPS
medium3 FPS
high2 FPS
ultra2 FPS
1080P
Radeon HD 3850
low18 FPS
medium14 FPS
high12 FPS
ultra9 FPS
Check FPS with Custom Builds

GeForce 8400 vs Radeon HD 3850: 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 8400

2014

Why buy it

  • ✅Costs $134 less on MSRP ($45 MSRP vs $179 MSRP).
  • ✅Draws 33W instead of 130W, a 97W reduction.
  • ✅Measures 170mm instead of 208mm, a 38mm shorter card that is more SFF-friendly.

Trade-offs

  • ❌Lower average FPS than Radeon HD 3850 across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
  • ❌Less VRAM, with 512 MB vs 1 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
  • ❌2014 hardware with 512 MB 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 1.8 vs 2.2 G3D/$ ($45 MSRP vs $179 MSRP).

Radeon HD 3850

2012

Why buy it

  • ✅346.9% more average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
  • ✅Delivers 24.5% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 2.2 vs 1.8 G3D/$ ($179 MSRP vs $45 MSRP).
  • ✅100% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (1 GB vs 512 MB).

Trade-offs

  • ❌2012 hardware with 1 GB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.
  • ❌293.9% higher power demand at 130W vs 33W.
  • ❌22.4% longer card at 208mm vs 170mm.

Quick Answers

Which GPU is faster for gaming right now?
Radeon HD 3850 is the faster gaming card right now. In our data, it leads by 346.9% in average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data and by 395.1% in PassMark G3D (401 vs 81), so the answer here is pretty clean.
Which GPU is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond?
GeForce 8400 is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond. The case is simple: a newer 2014 generation instead of 2012. That makes it the less risky pick as game demands keep moving.
Which GPU is the better buy today?
Radeon HD 3850 makes the most sense to buy today. It is $134 more expensive on MSRP at $179 vs $45, and it leads G3D-per-dollar by 24.5% (2.2 vs 1.8), so the value case lines up with the gaming result. If you are mainly targeting 1080p and some 1440p, Radeon HD 3850 is the easier value choice. If you care more about 1080p and some 1440p headroom, GeForce 8400 has the stronger long-term case.

GeForce 8400 vs Radeon HD 3850 Technical Specifications

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

NVIDIA

GeForce 8400

The GeForce 8400 is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in March 17 2014. It features the Maxwell architecture. The core clock ranges from 1029 MHz to 1124 MHz. It has 384 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 33W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 81 points.

AMD

Radeon HD 3850

The Radeon HD 3850 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in March 5 2012. It features the GCN 1.0 architecture. The boost clock speed is 1000 MHz. It has 1024 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 130W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 401 points. Launch price was $249.

⚡

Graphics Performance

In G3D Mark, the GeForce 8400 scores 81 versus the Radeon HD 3850's 401 — the Radeon HD 3850 leads by 395.1%. The GeForce 8400 is built on Maxwell while the Radeon HD 3850 uses GCN 1.0, both on a 28 nm process. Shader units: 384 (GeForce 8400) vs 1,024 (Radeon HD 3850). Raw compute: 0.8632 TFLOPS (GeForce 8400) vs 1.761 TFLOPS (Radeon HD 3850). Boost clocks: 1124 MHz vs 1000 MHz.

FeatureGeForce 8400Radeon HD 3850
G3D Mark Score
81
401+395%
Architecture
Maxwell
GCN 1.0
Process Node
28 nm
28 nm
Shading Units
384
1024+167%
Compute (TFLOPS)
0.8632 TFLOPS
1.761 TFLOPS+104%
Boost Clock
1124 MHz+12%
1000 MHz
ROPs
8
32+300%
TMUs
16
64+300%
L1 Cache
192 KB
256 KB+33%
L2 Cache
1 MB+100%
0.5 MB
✨

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The GeForce 8400 gets NVIDIA DLSS, which still tends to look cleaner in motion. The Radeon HD 3850 leans on FSR, which is flexible and widely supported, but usually a bit rougher at the same settings.

FeatureGeForce 8400Radeon HD 3850
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)

The GeForce 8400 has 512 MB of VRAM, while the Radeon HD 3850 carries 1 GB. Radeon HD 3850 gives you 100% more memory capacity, which matters more once you move into heavier textures, mods, or higher resolutions. Memory bus width is 128-bit on the GeForce 8400 and 128-bit on the Radeon HD 3850. L2 Cache: 1 MB (GeForce 8400) vs 0.5 MB (Radeon HD 3850) — the GeForce 8400 has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

FeatureGeForce 8400Radeon HD 3850
VRAM Capacity
0.5 GB
1 GB+100%
Memory Type
GDDR5
GDDR5
Memory Bandwidth
Unknown
Unknown
Bus Width
128-bit
128-bit
L2 Cache
1 MB+100%
0.5 MB
🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 10.0 (GeForce 8400) vs 10.1 (Radeon HD 3850). OpenGL: 3.3 vs 3.3. Maximum simultaneous displays: 2 vs 2.

FeatureGeForce 8400Radeon HD 3850
DirectX
10.0
10.1
OpenGL
3.3
3.3
Max Displays
2
2
🎬

Media & Encoding

Decoder: PureVideo HD VP2 vs UVD+. Supported codecs: MPEG-2,H.264 (GeForce 8400) vs H.264,VC-1,DivX,MPEG-1,MPEG-2 (Radeon HD 3850).

FeatureGeForce 8400Radeon HD 3850
Encoder
No
—
Decoder
PureVideo HD VP2
UVD+
Codecs
MPEG-2,H.264
H.264,VC-1,DivX,MPEG-1,MPEG-2
🔌

Power & Dimensions

The GeForce 8400 draws 33W versus the Radeon HD 3850's 130W — a 119% difference. The GeForce 8400 is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 350W (GeForce 8400) vs 450W (Radeon HD 3850). Power connectors: Legacy vs 1x 6-pin. Card length: 170mm vs 208mm, occupying 1 vs 1 slots. Typical load temperature: 65°C vs 80°C.

FeatureGeForce 8400Radeon HD 3850
TDP
33W-75%
130W
Recommended PSU
350W-22%
450W
Power Connector
Legacy
1x 6-pin
Length
170mm
208mm
Height
106mm
—
Slots
1
1
Temp (Load)
65°C-19%
80°C
Perf/Watt
2.5
3.1+24%
💰

Value Analysis

At launch, the GeForce 8400 came in at $45, while the Radeon HD 3850 launched at $179. On MSRP, GeForce 8400 was 74.9% cheaper ($134 less). Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 1.8 (GeForce 8400) vs 2.2 (Radeon HD 3850) — the Radeon HD 3850 offers 22.2% better value. The newer card here is GeForce 8400 (2014 vs 2012).

FeatureGeForce 8400Radeon HD 3850
MSRP
$45-75%
$179
Performance per Dollar
1.8
2.2+22%
Codename
GM108
Pitcairn
Release
March 17 2014
March 5 2012
Ranking
#850
#503
Search GeForce 8400 on AmazonSearch Radeon HD 3850 on Amazon

Affiliate Disclosure

ChipVERSUS is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. We may earn a commission on qualifying purchases made through our links. This comes at no additional cost to you and helps support our work in providing comprehensive PC building guides and tools.

Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates.