Radeon HD 4870 vs Tesla M2090

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.

Radeon HD 4870 vs Tesla M2090 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.

Radeon HD 4870 vs Tesla M2090: Pros, Cons & Final Verdict

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

Radeon HD 4870

2008

Why buy it

✅Costs $2,201 less on MSRP ($299 MSRP vs $2,500 MSRP).
✅Delivers 727.8% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 4.6 vs 0.6 G3D/$ ($299 MSRP vs $2,500 MSRP).
✅300% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (2 GB vs 512 MB).
✅Draws 150W instead of 250W, a 100W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌2008 hardware with 2 GB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.

Tesla M2090

2011

Why buy it

✅More future proof: Fermi 2.0 (2010−2014) on 40nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.

Trade-offs

❌Less VRAM, with 512 MB vs 2 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
❌2011 hardware with 512 MB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.
❌
736.1% HIGHER MSRP
$2,500 MSRPvs$299 MSRP
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 0.6 vs 4.6 G3D/$ ($2,500 MSRP vs $299 MSRP).
❌66.7% higher power demand at 250W vs 150W.

Quick Answers

Which GPU is faster for gaming right now?

Tesla M2090 is the faster gaming card right now based on the synthetic data we have. It leads by 1% in PassMark G3D (1,400 vs 1,386), which is the best performance signal available in this matchup.

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

Radeon HD 4870 is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond. The case is simple: 2 GB vs 512 MB of VRAM and the newer upscaling stack, FSR Upscaling / FSR 4 (2025) instead of no meaningful modern upscaling stack. That gives it more room for heavier textures and higher settings over time.

Which GPU is the better buy today?

Radeon HD 4870 makes the most sense to buy today. It is $2,201 cheaper on MSRP at $299 vs $2,500, and it leads G3D-per-dollar by 727.8% (4.6 vs 0.6), which is enough to swing the recommendation its way. Tesla M2090 still makes more sense if max raw gaming performance matters more than value.

Radeon HD 4870 vs Tesla M2090 Technical Specifications

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

Radeon HD 4870

The Radeon HD 4870 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in June 25 2008. It features the TeraScale architecture. The core clock speed is 750 MHz. It has 800 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 150W. Manufactured using 55 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 1,386 points. Launch price was $299.

Tesla M2090

The Tesla M2090 is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in July 25 2011. It features the Fermi 2.0 architecture. The core clock speed is 651 MHz. It has 512 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 250W. Manufactured using 40 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 1,400 points.

⚡

Graphics Performance

The Radeon HD 4870 scores 1,386 and the Tesla M2090 reaches 1,400 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 1% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The Radeon HD 4870 is built on TeraScale while the Tesla M2090 uses Fermi 2.0, both on 55 nm vs 40 nm. Shader units: 800 (Radeon HD 4870) vs 512 (Tesla M2090). Raw compute: 1.2 TFLOPS (Radeon HD 4870) vs 1.332 TFLOPS (Tesla M2090).

Feature	Radeon HD 4870	Tesla M2090
G3D Mark Score	1,386	1,400+1%
Architecture	TeraScale	Fermi 2.0
Process Node	55 nm	40 nm
Shading Units	800+56%	512
Compute (TFLOPS)	1.2 TFLOPS	1.332 TFLOPS+11%
ROPs	16	48+200%
TMUs	40	64+60%
L1 Cache	0.16 MB	1 MB+525%
L2 Cache	256 KB	768 KB+200%

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Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

Feature	Radeon HD 4870	Tesla M2090
Upscaling Tech	FSR Upscaling / FSR 4	Upscaling support
Frame Generation	Not Supported	Not Supported
Ray Reconstruction	No	No
Low Latency	AMD Anti-Lag	Standard

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Video Memory (VRAM)

The Radeon HD 4870 has 2 GB of VRAM, while the Tesla M2090 carries 512 MB. Radeon HD 4870 gives you 300% more memory capacity, which matters more once you move into heavier textures, mods, or higher resolutions. Memory bus width is 64-bit on the Radeon HD 4870 and 64-bit on the Tesla M2090. L2 Cache: 256 KB (Radeon HD 4870) vs 768 KB (Tesla M2090) — the Tesla M2090 has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

Feature	Radeon HD 4870	Tesla M2090
VRAM Capacity	2 GB+300%	0.5 GB
Memory Type	GDDR5	GDDR5
Bus Width	64-bit	64-bit
L2 Cache	256 KB	768 KB+200%

🎬

Media & Encoding

Supported codecs: H.264 (Radeon HD 4870) vs CUDA,OpenCL (Tesla M2090).

Feature	Radeon HD 4870	Tesla M2090
Codecs	H.264	CUDA,OpenCL

🔌

Power & Dimensions

The Radeon HD 4870 draws 150W versus the Tesla M2090's 250W — a 50% difference. The Radeon HD 4870 is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 500W (Radeon HD 4870) vs 350W (Tesla M2090). Power connectors: 2x 6-pin vs PCIe-powered.

Feature	Radeon HD 4870	Tesla M2090
TDP	150W-40%	250W
Recommended PSU	500W	350W-30%
Power Connector	2x 6-pin	PCIe-powered
Length	—	248mm
Height	—	111mm
Slots	—	2
Perf/Watt	9.2+64%	5.6

💰

Value Analysis

At launch, the Radeon HD 4870 came in at $299, while the Tesla M2090 launched at $2500. On MSRP, Radeon HD 4870 was 88% cheaper ($2201 less). Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 4.6 (Radeon HD 4870) vs 0.6 (Tesla M2090) — the Radeon HD 4870 offers 666.7% better value. The newer card here is Tesla M2090 (2011 vs 2008).

Feature	Radeon HD 4870	Tesla M2090
MSRP	$299-88%	$2500
Performance per Dollar	4.6+667%	0.6
Codename	RV770	GF110
Release	June 25 2008	July 25 2011
Ranking	#784	#530

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