Radeon HD 6970M vs Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U

AMD

Radeon HD 6970M

2011Core: 680 MHz
VS
AMD

Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U

2019Core: 1465 MHzBoost: 1725 MHz

Radeon HD 6970M 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 6970M 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 6970M 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 6970M

2011

Why buy it

  • Draws 75W instead of 180W, a 105W reduction.

Trade-offs

  • Lower average FPS than Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
  • 2011 hardware with 2 GB 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 0 vs 4.9 G3D/$ (Unknown MSRP vs $450 MSRP).

Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U

2019

Why buy it

  • 58.3% more average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
  • Delivers 100+% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 4.9 vs 0 G3D/$ ($450 MSRP vs Unknown MSRP).
  • Radeon HD 6970M is already obsolete for modern gaming, so Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U is the less risky modern option long term.

Trade-offs

  • Older hardware, 2 GB of VRAM, and weaker feature support mean it will age faster in newer AAA releases.
  • 140% higher power demand at 180W vs 75W.

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 58.3% in average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data. PassMark G3D leans toward Radeon HD 6970M instead at 2,270 vs 2,219, 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 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 2011. That makes it the less risky pick as game demands keep moving.
Which GPU is the better buy today?
Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U makes the most sense today based on the pricing and value data we have for this matchup.

Radeon HD 6970M vs Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U Technical Specifications

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

AMD

Radeon HD 6970M

The Radeon HD 6970M is manufactured by AMD. It was released in January 4 2011. It features the TeraScale 2 architecture. The core clock speed is 680 MHz. It has 960 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 75W. Manufactured using 40 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 2,270 points.

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 6970M scores 2,270 and the Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U reaches 2,219 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 2.3% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The Radeon HD 6970M is built on TeraScale 2 while the Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U uses RDNA 1.0, both on 40 nm vs 7 nm. Shader units: 960 (Radeon HD 6970M) vs 2,304 (Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U). Raw compute: 1.306 TFLOPS (Radeon HD 6970M) vs 7.949 TFLOPS (Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U).

FeatureRadeon HD 6970MRadeon Ryzen 7 5700U
G3D Mark Score
2,270+2%
2,219
Architecture
TeraScale 2
RDNA 1.0
Process Node
40 nm
7 nm
Shading Units
960
2304+140%
Compute (TFLOPS)
1.306 TFLOPS
7.949 TFLOPS+509%
ROPs
32
64+100%
TMUs
48
144+200%
L2 Cache
0.5 MB
4 MB+700%
Frame Generation
FSR upscaling
FSR upscaling + RSR

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

FeatureRadeon HD 6970MRadeon 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 Shared. Memory bus width is System on the Radeon HD 6970M and System on the Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U. L2 Cache: 0.5 MB (Radeon HD 6970M) vs 4 MB (Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U) — the Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

FeatureRadeon HD 6970MRadeon Ryzen 7 5700U
VRAM Capacity
2 GB
2 GB
Memory Type
Shared
Shared
Memory Bandwidth
System
System
Bus Width
System
System
L2 Cache
0.5 MB
4 MB+700%
🔌

Power & Dimensions

The Radeon HD 6970M draws 75W versus the Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U's 180W — a 82.4% difference. The Radeon HD 6970M is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 350W (Radeon HD 6970M) vs 350W (Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U). Power connectors: 1x 6-pin vs None.

FeatureRadeon HD 6970MRadeon Ryzen 7 5700U
TDP
75W-58%
180W
Recommended PSU
350W
350W
Power Connector
1x 6-pin
None
Perf/Watt
30.3+146%
12.3
💰

Value Analysis

The newer card here is Radeon Ryzen 7 5700U (2019 vs 2011).

FeatureRadeon HD 6970MRadeon Ryzen 7 5700U
MSRP
$450
Codename
Blackcomb
Navi 10
Release
January 4 2011
July 7 2019
Ranking
#654
#167

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