Radeon HD 6870 vs Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U

AMD

Radeon HD 6870

2010Boost: 900 MHz
Similar parts
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VS
AMD

Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U

2019Core: 1465 MHzBoost: 1725 MHz
Similar parts
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Radeon HD 6870 vs Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U 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.

Radeon HD 6870 vs Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U 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 6870 vs Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U: 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 6870

2010

Why buy it

  • Costs $211 less on MSRP ($239 MSRP vs $450 MSRP).
  • Delivers 87.2% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 9.2 vs 4.9 G3D/$ ($239 MSRP vs $450 MSRP).
  • Draws 151W instead of 180W, a 29W reduction.

Trade-offs

  • Lower average FPS than Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
  • 2010 hardware with 2 GB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.

Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U

2019

Why buy it

  • 28.8% more average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
  • Radeon HD 6870 is already obsolete for modern gaming, so Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U is the less risky modern option long term.
  • More future proof: RDNA 1.0 (2019−2020) on 7nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.

Trade-offs

  • Older hardware, 2 GB of VRAM, and weaker feature support mean it will age faster in newer AAA releases.
  • 88.3% HIGHER MSRP
    $450 MSRPvs$239 MSRP
  • Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 4.9 vs 9.2 G3D/$ ($450 MSRP vs $239 MSRP).
  • 19.2% higher power demand at 180W vs 151W.

Quick Answers

Which GPU is faster for gaming right now?
Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U is the faster gaming card right now. In our data, it leads by 28.8% in average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data and by 0.6% in PassMark G3D (2,219 vs 2,206), so the answer here is pretty clean.
Which GPU is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond?
Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U 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 2010. That makes it the less risky pick as game demands keep moving.
Which GPU is the better buy today?
Radeon HD 6870 makes the most sense to buy today. It is $211 cheaper on MSRP at $239 vs $450, and it leads G3D-per-dollar by 87.2% (9.2 vs 4.9), which is enough to swing the recommendation its way. If you are mainly targeting 1080p and some 1440p, Radeon HD 6870 is the easier value choice. If you care more about 1080p and some 1440p headroom, Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U has the stronger long-term case.

Radeon HD 6870 vs Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U Technical Specifications

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

AMD

Radeon HD 6870

The Radeon HD 6870 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in October 21 2010. It features the TeraScale 2 architecture. The boost clock speed is 900 MHz. It has 1120 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 151W. Manufactured using 40 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 2,206 points. Launch price was $239.

AMD

Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U

The Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U is manufactured by AMD. It was released in July 7 2019. It features the RDNA 1.0 architecture. The core clock ranges from 1465 MHz to 1725 MHz. It has 2304 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 180W. Manufactured using 7 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 2,219 points. Launch price was $349.

Graphics Performance

The Radeon HD 6870 scores 2,206 and the Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U reaches 2,219 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 0.6% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The Radeon HD 6870 is built on TeraScale 2 while the Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U uses RDNA 1.0, both on 40 nm vs 7 nm. Shader units: 1,120 (Radeon HD 6870) vs 2,304 (Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U). Raw compute: 2.016 TFLOPS (Radeon HD 6870) vs 7.949 TFLOPS (Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U). Boost clocks: 900 MHz vs 1725 MHz.

FeatureRadeon HD 6870Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U
G3D Mark Score
2,206
2,219
Architecture
TeraScale 2
RDNA 1.0
Process Node
40 nm
7 nm
Shading Units
1120
2304+106%
Compute (TFLOPS)
2.016 TFLOPS
7.949 TFLOPS+294%
Boost Clock
900 MHz
1725 MHz+92%
ROPs
32
64+100%
TMUs
56
144+157%
L2 Cache
0.5 MB
4 MB+700%
Frame Generation
FSR upscaling
FSR upscaling + RSR

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

FeatureRadeon HD 6870Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U
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 6870 and System on the Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U. L2 Cache: 0.5 MB (Radeon HD 6870) vs 4 MB (Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U) — the Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

FeatureRadeon HD 6870Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U
VRAM Capacity
2 GB
2 GB
Memory Type
GDDR5
Shared
Memory Bandwidth
Unknown
System
Bus Width
128-bit
System
L2 Cache
0.5 MB
4 MB+700%
🔌

Power & Dimensions

The Radeon HD 6870 draws 151W versus the Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U's 180W — a 17.5% difference. The Radeon HD 6870 is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 500W (Radeon HD 6870) vs 350W (Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U). Power connectors: 2x 6-pin vs None.

FeatureRadeon HD 6870Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U
TDP
151W-16%
180W
Recommended PSU
500W
350W-30%
Power Connector
2x 6-pin
None
Length
247mm
Height
111mm
Slots
2
Temp (Load)
85
Perf/Watt
14.6+19%
12.3
💰

Value Analysis

At launch, the Radeon HD 6870 came in at $239, while the Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U launched at $450. On MSRP, Radeon HD 6870 was 46.9% cheaper ($211 less). Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 9.2 (Radeon HD 6870) vs 4.9 (Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U) — the Radeon HD 6870 offers 87.8% better value. The newer card here is Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U (2019 vs 2010).

FeatureRadeon HD 6870Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U
MSRP
$239-47%
$450
Performance per Dollar
9.2+88%
4.9
Codename
Barts
Navi 10
Release
October 21 2010
July 7 2019
Ranking
#661
#167

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