AMD Radeon R9 290 vs Nvidia GeForce GTX 970: What is the difference?
39points
AMD Radeon R9 290
53points
Nvidia GeForce GTX 970
PowerColor OCSapphire Tri-XVTX3D X-EditionPowerColor PCS PlusSapphire Battlefield 4
Gigabyte Mini-ITX
Comparison winner
vs
54 facts in comparison
AMD Radeon R9 290
Nvidia GeForce GTX 970
Why is AMD Radeon R9 290 better than Nvidia GeForce GTX 970?
- 1.45 TFLOPS higher floating-point performance?
4.85 TFLOPSvs3.4 TFLOPS - 43 GTexels/s higher texture rate?
152 GTexels/svs109 GTexels/s - 64GB/s more memory bandwidth?
288GB/svs224GB/s - 256bit wider memory bus width?
512bitvs256bit - 896 more shading units?
2560vs1664 - 1000million more transistors?
6200 millionvs5200 million - 56 more texture mapping units (TMUs)?
160vs104 - 3.
2dB lower idle noise level?
39.5dBvs42.7dB
Why is Nvidia GeForce GTX 970 better than AMD Radeon R9 290?
- 388MHz faster GPU clock speed?
1050MHzvs662MHz - 25.6 GPixel/s higher pixel rate?
67.3 GPixel/svs41.7 GPixel/s - 102W lower TDP?
148Wvs250W - 628MHz faster memory clock speed?
1753MHzvs1125MHz - 2512MHz higher effective memory clock speed?
7012MHzvs4500MHz - 0.8 newer version of DirectX?
12vs11.2 - 231MHz faster GPU turbo speed?
1178MHzvs947MHz - 31°C lower load GPU temperature?
63°Cvs94°C
Which are the most popular comparisons?
AMD Radeon R9 290
vs
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Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650
AMD Radeon R9 290
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AMD Radeon RX 570
Nvidia GeForce GTX 970
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AMD Radeon RX 580
AMD Radeon R9 290
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AMD Radeon Vega 8
Nvidia GeForce GTX 970
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Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060
AMD Radeon R9 290
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AMD Radeon RX 550
Nvidia GeForce GTX 970
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Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050
AMD Radeon R9 290
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Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060
Nvidia GeForce GTX 970
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Gigabyte GeForce GTX 1050 Ti
AMD Radeon R9 290
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Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050
Nvidia GeForce GTX 970
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Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060
AMD Radeon R9 290
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AMD Radeon RX Vega 8
Nvidia GeForce GTX 970
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AMD Radeon RX 570
AMD Radeon R9 290
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AMD Radeon RX 560
Nvidia GeForce GTX 970
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Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 Super
AMD Radeon R9 290
vs
MSI Radeon RX 580
Nvidia GeForce GTX 970
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Nvidia GeForce RTX 2060
Nvidia GeForce GTX 970
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Nvidia GeForce MX250
Price comparison
User reviews
Overall Rating
AMD Radeon R9 290
1 User reviews
AMD Radeon R9 290
10.
0/10
1 User reviews
Nvidia GeForce GTX 970
4 User reviews
Nvidia GeForce GTX 970
8.8/10
4 User reviews
Features
Value for money
10.0/10
1 votes
7.5/10
4 votes
Gaming
8.0/10
1 votes
8.3/10
4 votes
Performance
10.0/10
1 votes
7.8/10
4 votes
Quiet operation
10.0/10
1 votes
5.8/10
4 votes
Reliability
10.0/10
1 votes
8.8/10
4 votes
Performance
GPU clock speed
662MHz
1050MHz
The graphics processing unit (GPU) has a higher clock speed.
GPU turbo
947MHz
1178MHz
When the GPU is running below its limitations, it can boost to a higher clock speed in order to give increased performance.
pixel rate
41.
7 GPixel/s
67.3 GPixel/s
The number of pixels that can be rendered to the screen every second.
floating-point performance
4.85 TFLOPS
3.4 TFLOPS
Floating-point performance is a measurement of the raw processing power of the GPU.
texture rate
152 GTexels/s
109 GTexels/s
The number of textured pixels that can be rendered to the screen every second.
GPU memory speed
1125MHz
1753MHz
The memory clock speed is one aspect that determines the memory bandwidth.
shading units
Shading units (or stream processors) are small processors within the graphics card that are responsible for processing different aspects of the image.
texture mapping units (TMUs)
TMUs take textures and map them to the geometry of a 3D scene. More TMUs will typically mean that texture information is processed faster.
render output units (ROPs)
The ROPs are responsible for some of the final steps of the rendering process, writing the final pixel data to memory and carrying out other tasks such as anti-aliasing to improve the look of graphics.
Memory
effective memory speed
4500MHz
7012MHz
The effective memory clock speed is calculated from the size and data rate of the memory. Higher clock speeds can give increased performance in games and other apps.
maximum memory bandwidth
288GB/s
224GB/s
This is the maximum rate that data can be read from or stored into memory.
VRAM (video RAM) is the dedicated memory of a graphics card. More VRAM generally allows you to run games at higher settings, especially for things like texture resolution.
memory bus width
512bit
256bit
A wider bus width means that it can carry more data per cycle.
It is an important factor of memory performance, and therefore the general performance of the graphics card.
version of GDDR memory
Newer versions of GDDR memory offer improvements such as higher transfer rates that give increased performance.
Supports ECC memory
✖AMD Radeon R9 290
✖Nvidia GeForce GTX 970
Error-correcting code memory can detect and correct data corruption. It is used when is it essential to avoid corruption, such as scientific computing or when running a server.
Features
DirectX version
DirectX is used in games, with newer versions supporting better graphics.
OpenGL version
OpenGL is used in games, with newer versions supporting better graphics.
OpenCL version
Some apps use OpenCL to apply the power of the graphics processing unit (GPU) for non-graphical computing.
Newer versions introduce more functionality and better performance.
Supports multi-display technology
✔AMD Radeon R9 290
✔Nvidia GeForce GTX 970
The graphics card supports multi-display technology. This allows you to configure multiple monitors in order to create a more immersive gaming experience, such as having a wider field of view.
load GPU temperature
A lower load temperature means that the card produces less heat and its cooling system performs better.
supports ray tracing
✖AMD Radeon R9 290
✖Nvidia GeForce GTX 970
Ray tracing is an advanced light rendering technique that provides more realistic lighting, shadows, and reflections in games.
Supports 3D
✔AMD Radeon R9 290
✔Nvidia GeForce GTX 970
Allows you to view in 3D (if you have a 3D display and glasses).
supports DLSS
✖AMD Radeon R9 290
✖Nvidia GeForce GTX 970
DLSS (Deep Learning Super Sampling) is an upscaling technology powered by AI.
It allows the graphics card to render games at a lower resolution and upscale them to a higher resolution with near-native visual quality and increased performance. DLSS is only available on select games.
PassMark (G3D) result
This benchmark measures the graphics performance of a video card. Source: PassMark.
Ports
has an HDMI output
✔AMD Radeon R9 290
✔Nvidia GeForce GTX 970
Devices with a HDMI or mini HDMI port can transfer high definition video and audio to a display.
HDMI ports
More HDMI ports mean that you can simultaneously connect numerous devices, such as video game consoles and set-top boxes.
HDMI version
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (AMD Radeon R9 290)
HDMI 2.0
Newer versions of HDMI support higher bandwidth, which allows for higher resolutions and frame rates.
DisplayPort outputs
Allows you to connect to a display using DisplayPort.
DVI outputs
Allows you to connect to a display using DVI.
mini DisplayPort outputs
Allows you to connect to a display using mini-DisplayPort.
Price comparison
Which are the best graphics cards?
AMD Radeon R9 290X vs Nvidia GeForce GTX 970
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AMD Radeon R9 290X vs Nvidia GeForce GTX 970
Comparison of the technical characteristics between the graphics cards, with AMD Radeon R9 290X on one side and Nvidia GeForce GTX 970 on the other side. The first is dedicated to the desktop sector, it has 2816 shading units, a maximum frequency of 1,0 GHz, its lithography is 28 nm. The second is used on the desktop segment, it includes 1664 shading units, a maximum frequency of 1,2 GHz, its lithography is 28 nm.
The following table also compares the boost clock, the number of shading units (if indicated), of execution units, the amount of cache memory, the maximum memory capacity, the memory bus width, the release date, the number of PCIe lanes, the values obtained in various benchmarks.
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Specifications:
| Graphics card | AMD Radeon R9 290X | Nvidia GeForce GTX 970 | ||||||
| Market (main) | Desktop | Desktop | ||||||
| Release date | Q4 2013 | Q3 2014 | ||||||
| Model number | 215-0852000, Hawaii XT | GM204-200-A1 | ||||||
| GPU name | Hawaii | GM204 | ||||||
| Architecture | GCN 2. 0 |
Maxwell 2.0 | ||||||
| Generation | Volcanic Islands R9 200 | GeForce 900 | ||||||
| Lithography | 28 nm | 28 nm | ||||||
| Transistors | 6.200.000.000 | 5.200.000.000 | ||||||
| Bus interface | PCIe 3.0 x16 | PCIe 3.0 x16 | ||||||
| GPU base clock | 1,00 GHz | 1,05 GHz | ||||||
| GPU boost clock | 1,00 GHz | 1,18 GHz | ||||||
| Memory frequency | 1.250 MHz | 1.753 MHz | ||||||
| Effective memory speed | 5 GB/s | 7 GB/s | ||||||
| Memory size | 4 GB | 4 GB | ||||||
| Memory type | GDDR5 | GDDR5 | ||||||
| Memory bus | 512 Bit | 256 Bit | ||||||
| Memory bandwidth | 320,0 GB/s | 224,4 GB/s | ||||||
| TDP | 290 W | 148 W | ||||||
| Suggested PSU | 600W ATX Power Supply | 500W ATX Power Supply | ||||||
| Multicard technology | — | 4-way SLI | ||||||
| Outputs |
2x DVI |
1x DVI |
||||||
| Cores (compute units, SM, SMX) | 44 | 13 | ||||||
| Shading units (cuda cores) | 2. 816 |
1.664 | ||||||
| TMUs | 176 | 104 | ||||||
| ROPs | 64 | 56 | ||||||
| Cache memory | 1 MB | 2 MB | ||||||
| Pixel fillrate | 64,0 GP/s | 66,0 GP/s | ||||||
| Texture fillrate | 176,0 GT/s | 122,5 GT/s | ||||||
| Performance FP32 (float) | 5,6 TFLOPS | 3,9 TFLOPS | ||||||
| Performance FP64 (double) | 704 GFLOPS | 122,5 GFLOPS | ||||||
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We can better compare what are the technical differences between the two graphics cards.
Performances :
Performance comparison between the two processors, for this we consider the results generated on benchmark software such as Geekbench 4.
| FP32 Performance in GFLOPS | |
|---|---|
| AMD Radeon R9 290X |
5.632 |
| Nvidia GeForce GTX 970 |
3.920 |
The difference is 44%.
Note: Commissions may be earned from the links above. These scores are only an
average of the performances got with these graphics cards, you may get different results.
Single precision floating point format, also known as FP32, is a computer number format that typically occupies 32 bits in PC memory. This represents a wide dynamic range of numeric values that employs a floating point.
See also:
AMD Radeon R9 290AMD Radeon R9 290X2
Nvidia GeForce GTX 970M
Equivalence:
AMD Radeon R9 290X Nvidia equivalentNvidia GeForce GTX 970 AMD equivalent
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