Radeon HD 8970M Crossfire vs GeForce GTX 1070 Max-Q

Place in the ranking	306	297
Place by popularity	not in top-100	not in top-100
Power efficiency	10.75	6.39
Architecture	Pascal (2016−2021)	GCN (2012−2015)
GPU code name	GP104	Neptune CF
Market segment	Laptop	Laptop
Release date	27 June 2017 (7 years ago)	1 May 2012 (12 years ago)

Detailed specifications

General parameters such as number of shaders, GPU core base clock and boost clock speeds, manufacturing process, texturing and calculation speed. Note that power consumption of some graphics cards can well exceed their nominal TDP, especially when overclocked.

Pipelines / CUDA cores	2048	2560
Core clock speed	1215 MHz	850 MHz
Boost clock speed	1379 MHz	900 MHz
Number of transistors	7,200 million	no data
Manufacturing process technology	16 nm	28 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	115 Watt	200 Watt
Texture fill rate	176.5	no data
Floating-point processing power	5.648 TFLOPS	no data
ROPs	64	no data
TMUs	128	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	large	large
Interface	PCIe 3.0 x16	no data
Supplementary power connectors	None	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	8 GB	no data
Memory bus width	256 Bit	2x 256 Bit
Memory clock speed	2002 MHz	4800 MHz
Memory bandwidth	256.3 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	No outputs	no data
G-SYNC support	+	-

Supported technologies

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

VR Ready

no data

API compatibility

List of supported 3D and general-purpose computing APIs, including their specific versions.

DirectX	12 (12_1)	11.1
Shader Model	6.4	no data
OpenGL	4.6	no data
OpenCL	1.2	no data
Vulkan	1.2.131	-
CUDA	6.1	-

Synthetic benchmark performance

Non-gaming benchmark results comparison. The combined score is measured on a 0-100 point scale.

Combined synthetic benchmark score

This is our combined benchmark score. We are regularly improving our combining algorithms, but if you find some perceived inconsistencies, feel free to speak up in comments section, we usually fix problems quickly.

GTX 1070 Max-Q 18.04

HD 8970M Crossfire 18.63
+3.3%

3DMark 11 Performance GPU

3DMark 11 is an obsolete DirectX 11 benchmark by Futuremark. It used four tests based on two scenes, one being few submarines exploring the submerged wreck of a sunken ship, the other is an abandoned temple deep in the jungle. All the tests are heavy with volumetric lighting and tessellation, and despite being done in 1280x720 resolution, are relatively taxing. Discontinued in January 2020, 3DMark 11 is now superseded by Time Spy.

GTX 1070 Max-Q 18688
+50.4%

HD 8970M Crossfire 12424

3DMark Vantage Performance

3DMark Vantage is an outdated DirectX 10 benchmark using 1280x1024 screen resolution. It taxes the graphics card with two scenes, one depicting a girl escaping some militarized base located within a sea cave, the other displaying a space fleet attack on a defenseless planet. It was discontinued in April 2017, and Time Spy benchmark is now recommended to be used instead.

GTX 1070 Max-Q 44090
+28.9%

HD 8970M Crossfire 34215

3DMark Fire Strike Graphics

Fire Strike is a DirectX 11 benchmark for gaming PCs. It features two separate tests displaying a fight between a humanoid and a fiery creature made of lava. Using 1920x1080 resolution, Fire Strike shows off some realistic graphics and is quite taxing on hardware.

GTX 1070 Max-Q 14679
+41.8%

HD 8970M Crossfire 10354

3DMark Cloud Gate GPU

Cloud Gate is an outdated DirectX 11 feature level 10 benchmark that was used for home PCs and basic notebooks. It displays a few scenes of some weird space teleportation device launching spaceships into unknown, using fixed resolution of 1280x720. Just like Ice Storm benchmark, it has been discontinued in January 2020 and replaced by 3DMark Night Raid.

GTX 1070 Max-Q 99552
+42%

HD 8970M Crossfire 70114

3DMark Ice Storm GPU

Ice Storm Graphics is an obsolete benchmark, part of 3DMark suite. Ice Storm was used to measure entry level laptops and Windows-based tablets performance. It utilizes DirectX 11 feature level 9 to display a battle between two space fleets near a frozen planet in 1280x720 resolution. Discontinued in January 2020, it is now superseded by 3DMark Night Raid.

GTX 1070 Max-Q 334256
+23.9%

HD 8970M Crossfire 269832

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	96 +43.3%	67 −43.3%
4K	41 +2.5%	40−45 −2.5%

FPS performance in popular games

Full HD
Low Preset

Cyberpunk 2077

27−30

−7.1%

30−33
+7.1%

Full HD
Medium Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	62 +44.2%	40−45 −44.2%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	30−33 −6.7%	30−35 +6.7%
Battlefield 5	105 +66.7%	60−65 −66.7%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	35−40 −8.3%	35−40 +8.3%
Cyberpunk 2077	27−30 −7.1%	30−33 +7.1%
Far Cry 5	40−45 −7.1%	45−50 +7.1%
Far Cry New Dawn	86 +68.6%	50−55 −68.6%
Forza Horizon 4	110−120 −4.4%	110−120 +4.4%
Hitman 3	35−40 −5.7%	35−40 +5.7%
Horizon Zero Dawn	85−90 −5.7%	90−95 +5.7%
Metro Exodus	60−65 −6.5%	65−70 +6.5%
Red Dead Redemption 2	45−50 −4.1%	50−55 +4.1%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	130 +106%	60−65 −106%
Watch Dogs: Legion	85−90 −3.5%	85−90 +3.5%

Full HD
High Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	97 +126%	40−45 −126%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	30−33 −6.7%	30−35 +6.7%
Battlefield 5	92 +46%	60−65 −46%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	35−40 −8.3%	35−40 +8.3%
Cyberpunk 2077	27−30 −7.1%	30−33 +7.1%
Far Cry 5	70 +55.6%	45−50 −55.6%
Far Cry New Dawn	77 +51%	50−55 −51%
Forza Horizon 4	199 +67.2%	110−120 −67.2%
Hitman 3	35−40 −5.7%	35−40 +5.7%
Horizon Zero Dawn	85−90 −5.7%	90−95 +5.7%
Metro Exodus	60−65 −6.5%	65−70 +6.5%
Red Dead Redemption 2	45−50 −4.1%	50−55 +4.1%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	55−60 −6.8%	60−65 +6.8%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	40−45 −4.9%	40−45 +4.9%
Watch Dogs: Legion	85−90 −3.5%	85−90 +3.5%

Full HD
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	42 −2.4%	40−45 +2.4%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	30−33 −6.7%	30−35 +6.7%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	35−40 −8.3%	35−40 +8.3%
Cyberpunk 2077	27−30 −7.1%	30−33 +7.1%
Far Cry 5	53 +17.8%	45−50 −17.8%
Forza Horizon 4	79 −50.6%	110−120 +50.6%
Hitman 3	35−40 −5.7%	35−40 +5.7%
Horizon Zero Dawn	85−90 −5.7%	90−95 +5.7%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	55−60 −6.8%	60−65 +6.8%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	51 +18.6%	40−45 −18.6%
Watch Dogs: Legion	85−90 −3.5%	85−90 +3.5%

Full HD
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2

45−50

−4.1%

50−55
+4.1%

1440p
High Preset

Battlefield 5	35−40 −5.7%	35−40 +5.7%
Far Cry New Dawn	27−30 −7.4%	27−30 +7.4%

1440p
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	18−20 −5.6%	18−20 +5.6%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	16−18 −6.3%	16−18 +6.3%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	20−22 −5%	21−24 +5%
Cyberpunk 2077	10−11 −10%	10−12 +10%
Far Cry 5	21−24 −4.8%	21−24 +4.8%
Forza Horizon 4	95−100 −7.1%	100−110 +7.1%
Hitman 3	21−24 −4.8%	21−24 +4.8%
Horizon Zero Dawn	35−40 −5.4%	35−40 +5.4%
Metro Exodus	30−35 −6.1%	35−40 +6.1%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	35−40 −8.6%	35−40 +8.6%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	20−22 −10%	21−24 +10%
Watch Dogs: Legion	100−110 −5.6%	110−120 +5.6%

1440p
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2

30−33

−6.7%

30−35
+6.7%

4K
High Preset

Battlefield 5	18−20 −5.6%	18−20 +5.6%
Far Cry New Dawn	14−16 +0%	14−16 +0%
Hitman 3	12−14 −7.7%	14−16 +7.7%
Horizon Zero Dawn	90−95 −6.5%	95−100 +6.5%
Metro Exodus	18−20 −5.3%	20−22 +5.3%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	32 +68.4%	18−20 −68.4%

4K
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	21 +90.9%	10−12 −90.9%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	9−10 −11.1%	10−11 +11.1%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	9−10 −11.1%	10−11 +11.1%
Cyberpunk 2077	3−4 −33.3%	4−5 +33.3%
Far Cry 5	10−11 +0%	10−11 +0%
Forza Horizon 4	43 +65.4%	24−27 −65.4%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	18−20 −10.5%	21−24 +10.5%
Watch Dogs: Legion	7−8 −14.3%	8−9 +14.3%

4K
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2

16−18

−6.3%

16−18
+6.3%

This is how GTX 1070 Max-Q and HD 8970M Crossfire compete in popular games:

GTX 1070 Max-Q is 43% faster in 1080p
GTX 1070 Max-Q is 3% faster in 4K

Here's the range of performance differences observed across popular games:

in Assassin's Creed Odyssey, with 1080p resolution and the High Preset, the GTX 1070 Max-Q is 126% faster.
in Forza Horizon 4, with 1080p resolution and the Ultra Preset, the HD 8970M Crossfire is 51% faster.

All in all, in popular games: