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 R9 290 vs Radeon RX 580 (móvel) 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 R9 290 vs Radeon RX 580 (móvel): 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 R9 290

2013

Why buy it

✅8.8% more average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.

Trade-offs

❌No equivalent frame-generation stack like FSR Frame Generation (2023).
❌2013 hardware with 4 GB of VRAM already sits in legacy territory for modern games.
❌
74.2% HIGHER MSRP
$399 MSRPvs$229 MSRP
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 20.5 vs 34.9 G3D/$ ($399 MSRP vs $229 MSRP).
❌175% higher power demand at 275W vs 100W.

Radeon RX 580 (móvel)

2017

Why buy it

✅Costs $170 less on MSRP ($229 MSRP vs $399 MSRP).
✅Delivers 70.3% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 34.9 vs 20.5 G3D/$ ($229 MSRP vs $399 MSRP).
✅Access to a newer frame-generation stack with FSR Frame Generation (2023).
✅Radeon R9 290 is already legacy-tier future-proofing, so Radeon RX 580 (móvel) is the less risky modern option long term.
✅Draws 100W instead of 275W, a 175W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Lower average FPS than Radeon R9 290 across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
❌2017 hardware with 4 GB of VRAM already sits in legacy territory for modern games.

Quick Answers

Which GPU is faster for gaming right now?

Radeon R9 290 is the faster gaming card right now. In our data, it leads by 8.8% in average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data and by 2.3% in PassMark G3D (8,184 vs 8,000), so the answer here is pretty clean.

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

Radeon RX 580 (móvel) is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond. The case is simple: native frame generation with FSR Frame Generation (2023), while Radeon R9 290 has no comparable frame-generation support, a 14nm process instead of 28nm, and a newer 2017 generation instead of 2013. That makes it the less risky pick as game demands keep moving.

Which GPU is the better buy today?

Radeon RX 580 (móvel) makes the most sense to buy today. It is $170 cheaper on MSRP at $229 vs $399, and it leads G3D-per-dollar by 70.3% (34.9 vs 20.5), which is enough to swing the recommendation its way. Radeon R9 290 still makes more sense if max raw gaming performance matters more than value.

Radeon R9 290 vs Radeon RX 580 (móvel) Technical Specifications

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

Radeon R9 290

The Radeon R9 290 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in November 5 2013. It features the GCN 2.0 architecture. The core clock speed is 947 MHz. It has 2560 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 275W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 8,184 points. Launch price was $399.

Radeon RX 580 (móvel)

The Radeon RX 580 (móvel) is manufactured by AMD. It was released in April 18 2017. It features the GCN 4.0 architecture. The core clock ranges from 1000 MHz to 1077 MHz. It has 2304 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 100W. Manufactured using 14 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 8,000 points. Launch price was $301.69.

⚡

Graphics Performance

The Radeon R9 290 scores 8,184 and the Radeon RX 580 (móvel) reaches 8,000 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 2.3% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The Radeon R9 290 is built on GCN 2.0 while the Radeon RX 580 (móvel) uses GCN 4.0, both on 28 nm vs 14 nm. Shader units: 2,560 (Radeon R9 290) vs 2,304 (Radeon RX 580 (móvel)). Raw compute: 4.849 TFLOPS (Radeon R9 290) vs 4.963 TFLOPS (Radeon RX 580 (móvel)).

Feature	Radeon R9 290	Radeon RX 580 (móvel)
G3D Mark Score	8,184+2%	8,000
Architecture	GCN 2.0	GCN 4.0
Process Node	28 nm	14 nm
Shading Units	2560+11%	2304
Compute (TFLOPS)	4.849 TFLOPS	4.963 TFLOPS+2%
ROPs	64+100%	32
TMUs	160+11%	144
L1 Cache	640 KB+11%	576 KB
L2 Cache	1 MB	2 MB+100%
Frame Generation	FSR upscaling	FSR upscaling + limited Frame Generation

✨

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The clearest feature edge for the Radeon RX 580 (móvel) is support for FSR Frame Generation. In games that support it, that can smooth out motion and lift perceived FPS. The Radeon R9 290 does not have comparable native support in the same tier.

Feature	Radeon R9 290	Radeon RX 580 (móvel)
Upscaling Tech	FSR Upscaling / FSR 4	FSR Upscaling / FSR 4
Frame Generation	Not Supported	FSR Frame Generation
Ray Reconstruction	No	No
Low Latency	AMD Anti-Lag	AMD Anti-Lag

💾

Video Memory (VRAM)

Both cards ship with 4 GB of GDDR5. Memory bandwidth: 320 GB/s (Radeon R9 290) vs 256 GB/s (Radeon RX 580 (móvel)) — a 25% advantage for the Radeon R9 290. Memory bus width is 512-bit on the Radeon R9 290 and 256-bit on the Radeon RX 580 (móvel). L2 Cache: 1 MB (Radeon R9 290) vs 2 MB (Radeon RX 580 (móvel)) — the Radeon RX 580 (móvel) has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

Feature	Radeon R9 290	Radeon RX 580 (móvel)
VRAM Capacity	4 GB	4 GB
Memory Type	GDDR5	GDDR5
Memory Bandwidth	320 GB/s+25%	256 GB/s
Bus Width	512-bit+100%	256-bit
L2 Cache	1 MB	2 MB+100%

🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 12.0 (Radeon R9 290) vs 12 (12_0) (Radeon RX 580 (móvel)). Vulkan: 1.2 vs 1.3. OpenGL: 4.6 vs 4.6. Maximum simultaneous displays: 6 vs 4.

Feature	Radeon R9 290	Radeon RX 580 (móvel)
DirectX	12.0	12 (12_0)
Vulkan	1.2	1.3+8%
OpenGL	4.6	4.6
Max Displays	6+50%	4

🎬

Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: VCE 2.0 (Radeon R9 290) vs VCE 3.4 (Radeon RX 580 (móvel)). Decoder: UVD 4.2 vs UVD 6.3. Supported codecs: MPEG-2,H.264,VC-1 (Radeon R9 290) vs H.264,H.265 (Radeon RX 580 (móvel)).

Feature	Radeon R9 290	Radeon RX 580 (móvel)
Encoder	VCE 2.0	VCE 3.4
Decoder	UVD 4.2	UVD 6.3
Codecs	MPEG-2,H.264,VC-1	H.264,H.265

🔌

Power & Dimensions

The Radeon R9 290 draws 275W versus the Radeon RX 580 (móvel)'s 100W — a 93.3% difference. The Radeon RX 580 (móvel) is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 750W (Radeon R9 290) vs 350W (Radeon RX 580 (móvel)). Power connectors: 6-pin + 8-pin vs PCIe-powered. Card length: 275mm vs 0mm, occupying 2 vs 0 slots. Typical load temperature: 95°C vs 80.

Feature	Radeon R9 290	Radeon RX 580 (móvel)
TDP	275W	100W-64%
Recommended PSU	750W	350W-53%
Power Connector	6-pin + 8-pin	PCIe-powered
Length	275mm	0mm
Height	109mm	0mm
Slots	2	0-100%
Temp (Load)	95°C	80-16%
Perf/Watt	29.8	80.0+168%

💰

Value Analysis

At launch, the Radeon R9 290 came in at $399, while the Radeon RX 580 (móvel) launched at $229. On MSRP, Radeon RX 580 (móvel) was 42.6% cheaper ($170 less). Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 20.5 (Radeon R9 290) vs 34.9 (Radeon RX 580 (móvel)) — the Radeon RX 580 (móvel) offers 70.2% better value. The newer card here is Radeon RX 580 (móvel) (2017 vs 2013).

Feature	Radeon R9 290	Radeon RX 580 (móvel)
MSRP	$399	$229-43%
Performance per Dollar	20.5	34.9+70%
Codename	Hawaii	Polaris 20
Release	November 5 2013	April 18 2017
Ranking	#316	#338

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