Radeon HD 5870 vs Radeon Ryzen 5 5600U

Radeon HD 5870 vs Radeon Ryzen 5 5600U Performance Spectrum

Radeon HD 5870

2 GB 188

2,180

+4.1%

Radeon RX 9060 XT 16 GB

Radeon Ryzen 5 5600U

2 GB 110

2,095

0.0%

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.

Radeon HD 5870 vs Radeon Ryzen 5 5600U 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 5870 vs Radeon Ryzen 5 5600U: 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 5870

2009

Why buy it

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

Trade-offs

❌Lower average FPS than Radeon Ryzen 5 5600U across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
❌2009 hardware with 2 GB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.
❌
33% HIGHER MSRP
$399 MSRPvs$300 MSRP
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 5.5 vs 7.0 G3D/$ ($399 MSRP vs $300 MSRP).
❌70.9% higher power demand at 188W vs 110W.

Radeon Ryzen 5 5600U

2019

Why buy it

✅2.4% more average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
✅Costs $99 less on MSRP ($300 MSRP vs $399 MSRP).
✅Delivers 27.8% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 7.0 vs 5.5 G3D/$ ($300 MSRP vs $399 MSRP).
✅Radeon HD 5870 is already obsolete for modern gaming, so Radeon Ryzen 5 5600U is the less risky modern option long term.
✅Draws 110W instead of 188W, a 78W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Older hardware, 2 GB of VRAM, and weaker feature support mean it will age faster in newer AAA releases.

Quick Answers

Which GPU is faster for gaming right now?

Radeon Ryzen 5 5600U is the faster gaming card right now. In our data, it leads by 2.4% in average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data. PassMark G3D leans toward Radeon HD 5870 instead at 2,180 vs 2,095, 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?

Radeon Ryzen 5 5600U is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond. The case is simple: a 7nm 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?

Radeon Ryzen 5 5600U makes the most sense to buy today. It is $99 cheaper on MSRP at $300 vs $399, and it leads G3D-per-dollar by 27.8% (7.0 vs 5.5), so the value case lines up with the gaming result.

Radeon HD 5870 vs Radeon Ryzen 5 5600U Technical Specifications

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

Radeon HD 5870

The Radeon HD 5870 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in September 23 2009. It features the TeraScale 2 architecture. The core clock speed is 850 MHz. It has 1600 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 188W. Manufactured using 40 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 2,180 points. Launch price was $399.

Radeon Ryzen 5 5600U

The Radeon Ryzen 5 5600U is manufactured by AMD. It was released in October 7 2019. It features the RDNA 1.0 architecture. The boost clock speed is 1845 MHz. It has 1408 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 110W. Manufactured using 7 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 2,095 points.

⚡

Graphics Performance

The Radeon HD 5870 scores 2,180 and the Radeon Ryzen 5 5600U reaches 2,095 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 4.1% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The Radeon HD 5870 is built on TeraScale 2 while the Radeon Ryzen 5 5600U uses RDNA 1.0, both on 40 nm vs 7 nm. Shader units: 1,600 (Radeon HD 5870) vs 1,408 (Radeon Ryzen 5 5600U). Raw compute: 2.72 TFLOPS (Radeon HD 5870) vs 5.196 TFLOPS (Radeon Ryzen 5 5600U).

Feature	Radeon HD 5870	Radeon Ryzen 5 5600U
G3D Mark Score	2,180+4%	2,095
Architecture	TeraScale 2	RDNA 1.0
Process Node	40 nm	7 nm
Shading Units	1600+14%	1408
Compute (TFLOPS)	2.72 TFLOPS	5.196 TFLOPS+91%
ROPs	32	32
TMUs	80	88+10%
Frame Generation	FSR upscaling	FSR upscaling + RSR

✨

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

Feature	Radeon HD 5870	Radeon Ryzen 5 5600U
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)

Both cards ship with 2 GB of video memory. Memory bus width is 128-bit on the Radeon HD 5870 and System on the Radeon Ryzen 5 5600U.

Feature	Radeon HD 5870	Radeon Ryzen 5 5600U
VRAM Capacity	2 GB	2 GB
Memory Type	GDDR5	Shared
Memory Bandwidth	Unknown	System
Bus Width	128-bit	System

🔌

Power & Dimensions

The Radeon HD 5870 draws 188W versus the Radeon Ryzen 5 5600U's 110W — a 52.3% difference. The Radeon Ryzen 5 5600U is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 500W (Radeon HD 5870) vs 350W (Radeon Ryzen 5 5600U). Power connectors: 2x 6-pin vs None.

Feature	Radeon HD 5870	Radeon Ryzen 5 5600U
TDP	188W	110W-41%
Recommended PSU	500W	350W-30%
Power Connector	2x 6-pin	None
Length	280mm	—
Slots	2	—
Perf/Watt	11.6	19.0+64%

💰

Value Analysis

At launch, the Radeon HD 5870 came in at $399, while the Radeon Ryzen 5 5600U launched at $300. On MSRP, Radeon Ryzen 5 5600U was 24.8% cheaper ($99 less). Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 5.5 (Radeon HD 5870) vs 7.0 (Radeon Ryzen 5 5600U) — the Radeon Ryzen 5 5600U offers 27.3% better value. The newer card here is Radeon Ryzen 5 5600U (2019 vs 2009).

Feature	Radeon HD 5870	Radeon Ryzen 5 5600U
MSRP	$399	$300-25%
Performance per Dollar	5.5	7.0+27%
Codename	Cypress	Navi 14
Release	September 23 2009	October 7 2019
Ranking	#663	#297

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