Radeon HD 8690M vs Radeon HD 8850M

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 8690M vs Radeon HD 8850M 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 8690M vs Radeon HD 8850M: 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 8690M

2013

Why buy it

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

Trade-offs

❌Lower average FPS than Radeon HD 8850M across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
❌Less VRAM, with 512 MB vs 2 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
❌2013 hardware with 512 MB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.

Radeon HD 8850M

2013

Why buy it

✅24.1% more average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
✅300% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (2 GB vs 512 MB).
✅More future proof: GCN 1.0 (2012−2020) on 28nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.

Trade-offs

❌2013 hardware with 2 GB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.

Quick Answers

Which GPU is faster for gaming right now?

Radeon HD 8850M is the faster gaming card right now. In our data, it leads by 24.1% in average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data. PassMark G3D leans toward Radeon HD 8690M instead at 984 vs 973, 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 HD 8690M is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond because it comes out ahead on the available hardware-headroom signals for this matchup.

Which GPU is the better buy today?

Radeon HD 8850M makes the most sense today based on the pricing and value data we have for this matchup. If you are mainly targeting 1080p and some 1440p, Radeon HD 8850M is the easier value choice. If you care more about 1080p and some 1440p headroom, Radeon HD 8690M has the stronger long-term case.

Radeon HD 8690M vs Radeon HD 8850M Technical Specifications

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

Radeon HD 8690M

The Radeon HD 8690M is manufactured by AMD. It was released in March 1 2013. It features the GCN 1.0 architecture. The core clock ranges from 775 MHz to 825 MHz. It has 320 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 50W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 984 points.

Radeon HD 8850M

The Radeon HD 8850M is manufactured by AMD. It was released in April 1 2013. It features the GCN 1.0 architecture. The core clock ranges from 575 MHz to 625 MHz. It has 640 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 50W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 973 points.

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Graphics Performance

The Radeon HD 8690M scores 984 and the Radeon HD 8850M reaches 973 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 1.1% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The Radeon HD 8690M is built on GCN 1.0 while the Radeon HD 8850M uses GCN 1.0, both on a 28 nm process. Shader units: 320 (Radeon HD 8690M) vs 640 (Radeon HD 8850M). Raw compute: 0.528 TFLOPS (Radeon HD 8690M) vs 0.8 TFLOPS (Radeon HD 8850M). Boost clocks: 825 MHz vs 625 MHz.

Feature	Radeon HD 8690M	Radeon HD 8850M
G3D Mark Score	984+1%	973
Architecture	GCN 1.0	GCN 1.0
Process Node	28 nm	28 nm
Shading Units	320	640+100%
Compute (TFLOPS)	0.528 TFLOPS	0.8 TFLOPS+52%
Boost Clock	825 MHz+32%	625 MHz
ROPs	8	16+100%
TMUs	20	40+100%
L1 Cache	80 KB	160 KB+100%
L2 Cache	128 KB	256 KB+100%
Frame Generation	FSR upscaling	FSR upscaling

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Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

Feature	Radeon HD 8690M	Radeon HD 8850M
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

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Video Memory (VRAM)

The Radeon HD 8690M has 512 MB of VRAM, while the Radeon HD 8850M carries 2 GB. Radeon HD 8850M gives you 300% more memory capacity, which matters more once you move into heavier textures, mods, or higher resolutions. Memory bus width is System on the Radeon HD 8690M and System on the Radeon HD 8850M. L2 Cache: 128 KB (Radeon HD 8690M) vs 256 KB (Radeon HD 8850M) — the Radeon HD 8850M has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

Feature	Radeon HD 8690M	Radeon HD 8850M
VRAM Capacity	0.5 GB	2 GB+300%
Memory Type	Shared	Shared
Memory Bandwidth	System	System
Bus Width	System	System
L2 Cache	128 KB	256 KB+100%

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Display & API Support

DirectX support: 12 (Radeon HD 8690M) vs 12 (11_1) (Radeon HD 8850M). Maximum simultaneous displays: 0 vs 6.

Feature	Radeon HD 8690M	Radeon HD 8850M
DirectX	12	12 (11_1)
Max Displays	0	6

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Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: VCE 1.0 (Radeon HD 8690M) vs UVD3 (Radeon HD 8850M). Decoder: UVD 3 vs UVD 3.0.

Feature	Radeon HD 8690M	Radeon HD 8850M
Encoder	VCE 1.0	UVD3
Decoder	UVD 3	UVD 3.0
Codecs	—	H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2,DivX

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Power & Dimensions

The Radeon HD 8690M draws 50W versus the Radeon HD 8850M's 50W — a 0% difference. The Radeon HD 8850M is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 350W (Radeon HD 8690M) vs 350W (Radeon HD 8850M). Power connectors: 1x 6-pin vs 1x 6-pin.