Radeon R9 M390 vs GeForce GTX 1060 3 GB

Place in performance ranking	217	448
Place by popularity	29	not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation	22.45	no data
Architecture	Pascal (2016−2021)	GCN (2011−2017)
GPU code name	GP106	Pitcairn
Market segment	Desktop	Laptop
Release date	18 August 2016 (8 years ago)	9 June 2015 (9 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)	$199	no data

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance to price ratio. The higher, the better.

no data

Detailed specifications

General performance parameters such as number of shaders, GPU core base clock and boost clock speeds, manufacturing process, texturing and calculation speed. These parameters indirectly speak of performance, but for precise assessment you have to consider their benchmark and gaming test results. Note that power consumption of some graphics cards can well exceed their nominal TDP, especially when overclocked.

Pipelines / CUDA cores	1152	1024
Core clock speed	1506 MHz	no data
Boost clock speed	1708 MHz	no data
Number of transistors	4,400 million	5000 Million
Manufacturing process technology	16 nm	28 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	120 Watt	no data
Texture fill rate	123.0	no data
Floating-point performance	3.935 gflops	no data

Form factor & compatibility

Information on compatibility with other computer components. Useful when choosing a future computer configuration or upgrading an existing one. For desktop graphics cards it's interface and bus (motherboard compatibility), additional power connectors (power supply compatibility).

Laptop size	no data	large
Bus support	no data	PCIe 3.0
Interface	PCIe 3.0 x16	no data
Length	250 mm	no data
Width	2-slot	no data
Supplementary power connectors	1x 6-pin	no data

VRAM capacity and type

Parameters of VRAM installed: its type, size, bus, clock and resulting bandwidth. Integrated GPUs have no dedicated video RAM and use a shared part of system RAM.

Memory type	GDDR5	GDDR5
Maximum RAM amount	3 GB	2 GB
Memory bus width	192 Bit	256 Bit
Memory clock speed	8008 MHz	no data
Memory bandwidth	192.2 GB/s	no data
Shared memory	-	-

Connectivity and outputs

Types and number of video connectors present on the reviewed GPUs. As a rule, data in this section is precise only for desktop reference ones (so-called Founders Edition for NVIDIA chips). OEM manufacturers may change the number and type of output ports, while for notebook cards availability of certain video outputs ports depends on the laptop model rather than on the card itself.

Display Connectors	1x DVI, 1x HDMI, 3x DisplayPort	no data
Eyefinity	-	+
HDMI	+	-

Supported technologies

Supported technological solutions. This information will prove useful if you need some particular technology for your purposes.

FreeSync	-	+
HD3D	-	+
PowerTune	-	+
DualGraphics	-	+
ZeroCore	-	+
Switchable graphics	-	+

API compatibility

List of supported graphics and general-purpose computing APIs, including their specific versions.

DirectX	12 (12_1)	DirectX® 12
Shader Model	6.4	no data
OpenGL	4.6	4.4
OpenCL	1.2	Not Listed
Vulkan	+	-
Mantle	-	+
CUDA	6.1	-

Gaming performance

Let's see how good the compared graphics cards are for gaming. Particular gaming benchmark results are measured in FPS.

Average FPS across all PC games

Here are the average frames per second in a large set of popular games across different resolutions:

Full HD	100−110 +138%	42 −138%
4K	45−50 +137%	19 −137%

FPS performance in popular games

Full HD
Low Preset

Cyberpunk 2077

14−16

+0%

14−16

+0%

Full HD
Medium Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	24−27 +0%	24−27 +0%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	14−16 +0%	14−16 +0%
Battlefield 5	30−35 +0%	30−35 +0%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	20−22 +0%	20−22 +0%
Cyberpunk 2077	14−16 +0%	14−16 +0%
Far Cry 5	21−24 +0%	21−24 +0%
Far Cry New Dawn	27−30 +0%	27−30 +0%
Forza Horizon 4	65−70 +0%	65−70 +0%
Hitman 3	18−20 +0%	18−20 +0%
Horizon Zero Dawn	50−55 +0%	50−55 +0%
Metro Exodus	30−35 +0%	30−35 +0%
Red Dead Redemption 2	27−30 +0%	27−30 +0%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	30−35 +0%	30−35 +0%
Watch Dogs: Legion	60−65 +0%	60−65 +0%

Full HD
High Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	24−27 +0%	24−27 +0%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	14−16 +0%	14−16 +0%
Battlefield 5	30−35 +0%	30−35 +0%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	20−22 +0%	20−22 +0%
Cyberpunk 2077	14−16 +0%	14−16 +0%
Far Cry 5	21−24 +0%	21−24 +0%
Far Cry New Dawn	27−30 +0%	27−30 +0%
Forza Horizon 4	65−70 +0%	65−70 +0%
Hitman 3	18−20 +0%	18−20 +0%
Horizon Zero Dawn	50−55 +0%	50−55 +0%
Metro Exodus	30−35 +0%	30−35 +0%
Red Dead Redemption 2	27−30 +0%	27−30 +0%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	30−35 +0%	30−35 +0%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	27−30 +0%	27−30 +0%
Watch Dogs: Legion	60−65 +0%	60−65 +0%

Full HD
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	24−27 +0%	24−27 +0%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	14−16 +0%	14−16 +0%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	20−22 +0%	20−22 +0%
Cyberpunk 2077	14−16 +0%	14−16 +0%
Far Cry 5	21−24 +0%	21−24 +0%
Forza Horizon 4	65−70 +0%	65−70 +0%
Hitman 3	18−20 +0%	18−20 +0%
Horizon Zero Dawn	50−55 +0%	50−55 +0%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	30−35 +0%	30−35 +0%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	18 +0%	18 +0%
Watch Dogs: Legion	60−65 +0%	60−65 +0%

Full HD
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2

27−30

+0%

27−30

+0%

1440p
High Preset

Battlefield 5	18−20 +0%	18−20 +0%
Far Cry New Dawn	14−16 +0%	14−16 +0%

1440p
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	10−11 +0%	10−11 +0%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	6−7 +0%	6−7 +0%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	10−11 +0%	10−11 +0%
Cyberpunk 2077	5−6 +0%	5−6 +0%
Far Cry 5	10−12 +0%	10−12 +0%
Forza Horizon 4	40−45 +0%	40−45 +0%
Hitman 3	12−14 +0%	12−14 +0%
Horizon Zero Dawn	20−22 +0%	20−22 +0%
Metro Exodus	14−16 +0%	14−16 +0%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	12−14 +0%	12−14 +0%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	9−10 +0%	9−10 +0%
Watch Dogs: Legion	60−65 +0%	60−65 +0%

1440p
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2

16−18

+0%

16−18

+0%

4K
High Preset

Battlefield 5	9−10 +0%	9−10 +0%
Far Cry New Dawn	7−8 +0%	7−8 +0%
Hitman 3	6−7 +0%	6−7 +0%
Horizon Zero Dawn	40−45 +0%	40−45 +0%
Metro Exodus	8−9 +0%	8−9 +0%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	12 +0%	12 +0%

4K
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	6−7 +0%	6−7 +0%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	4−5 +0%	4−5 +0%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	5−6 +0%	5−6 +0%
Cyberpunk 2077	1−2 +0%	1−2 +0%
Far Cry 5	5−6 +0%	5−6 +0%
Forza Horizon 4	12−14 +0%	12−14 +0%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	6−7 +0%	6−7 +0%
Watch Dogs: Legion	4−5 +0%	4−5 +0%

4K
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2

9−10

+0%

9−10

+0%

This is how GTX 1060 3 GB and R9 M390 compete in popular games:

GTX 1060 3 GB is 138% faster in 1080p
GTX 1060 3 GB is 137% faster in 4K

All in all, in popular games:

there's a draw in 72 tests (100%)

Pros & cons summary

Performance score	24.85	9.89
Recency	18 August 2016	9 June 2015
Maximum RAM amount	3 GB	2 GB
Chip lithography	16 nm	28 nm

GTX 1060 3 GB has a 151.3% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 1 year, a 50% higher maximum VRAM amount, and a 75% more advanced lithography process.

The GeForce GTX 1060 3 GB is our recommended choice as it beats the Radeon R9 M390 in performance tests.

Be aware that GeForce GTX 1060 3 GB is a desktop card while Radeon R9 M390 is a notebook one.

Should you still have questions concerning choice between the reviewed GPUs, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.