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ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4870 X2

ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4870 X2

Because of the high amount of shaders (2x800) the gaming performance of the Mobility Radeon HD 4870 X2 is very good and allows the gaming of all DirectX 9 games in high resolutions and details. Even demanding DirectX 10 games of 2008 (i.e., Crysis Warhead and Far Cry 2) can be played with high details. The GPU supports fast GDDR5 graphics RAM, but all laptops as of this writing are built with slower GDDR3 graphics memory (Alienware M17x, Asus).

The 4870 X2 also suffers from micro stuttering most noticeable around 30 fps, similar to all SLI and Crossfire setups. This occurs if both cards are in Alternate Frame Rendering (AFR) Mode since the time delay to display each sequential frame becomes irregular. See our dedicated micro stuttering article here for more information.

The Mobility HD 4870 x2 is based on two RV770 chips and features 2x800 stream processors (2x160 5-dimensional shader cores). These cores do the graphics work of the shader and pixel pipelines of older GPUs. The stream processors are also called ALUs and are grouped in five-way VLIW units. Each of the five instructions of a VLIW bundle has to be independent from the others and the performance therefore depends on the optimization of the driver.

The Mobility Radeon HD 4870 X2 includes Avivo HD, an onboard soundchip for 7.1 sound output over HDMI or DisplayPort and the 2nd generation UVD (Unified Video Decoder). UVD 2 supports full bitstream decoding of H.264/MPEG-4 AVC and VC-1 streams, dual video stream decoding and Picture-in Picture mode which makes the UVD full BD-Live compliant. To put simply, the Avivo HD technology handles all video tasks and enables the GPU to decode HD videos.

AMD published a power consumption of about 2x65 Watt for the HD 4870 X2. Still, it is unclear if this value represents the chip alone or the whole MXM board including the memory, which we estimate would add about 2x5 Watts.

Compared to the desktop ATI Radeon HD 4870 X2, the mobile 4870 X2 features a slower core clock and should therefore perform a bit slower than even the desktop HD 4850 X2.

Mobility Radeon HD 4000 Series

Mobility Radeon HD 4870 X2 1600 @ 0.55 GHz256 Bit @ 888 MHz
Mobility Radeon HD 4870 compare 800 @ 0.55 GHz256 Bit @ 888 MHz
CodenameM98-XT
ArchitectureTerascale 1
Pipelines1600 - unified
Core Speed550 MHz
Memory Speed888 MHz
Memory Bus Width256 Bit
Memory TypeGDDR3, GDDR5
Max. Amount of Memory2048 MB
Shared Memoryno
APIDirectX 10.1, Shader 4.1
Transistor Count1.9 Billion
Man. Technology55 nm
FeaturesOpenGL 2.0, PCI-E 2.0 x16, Powerplay, DisplayPort support up to 2560x1600, HDMI support up to 1920x1080 (both with 7.1 AC3 Audio), 1x Dual-Link/Single-Link DVI, 1x Single-Link DVI Support (all display ports have to be supported by the laptop manufacturer)
Notebook Sizelarge
Date of Announcement09.01.2009
Link to Manufacturer Pageati.amd.com

Benchmarks

3DMark Vantage
3DM Vant. Perf. total +
3DMark Vantage - 3DM Vant. Perf. total
min: 8140     avg: 8991     median: 8396 (2%)     max: 10436 Points
+ 3 benchmarks and specifications   + Show comparison chart
3DM Vant. Perf. GPU no PhysX +
3DMark Vantage - 3DM Vant. Perf. GPU no PhysX
min: 8691     avg: 9844     median: 9735 (5%)     max: 11105 Points
+ 3 benchmarks and specifications   - Hide comparison chart
Restrict / Search: Model: Max. age: years
3DMark 05 - 3DMark 05 - Standard
min: 14329     avg: 18522     median: 19550 (21%)     max: 21688 Points
+ 3 benchmarks and specifications   - Hide comparison chart
Restrict / Search: Model: Max. age: years
3DMark 06 3DMark 06 - Standard 1280x1024 +
3DMark 06
min: 12328     avg: 14496     median: 14120 (18%)     max: 17380 Points
+ 5 benchmarks and specifications   + Show comparison chart
Windows 7 Experience Index - Win7 Gaming graphics
7.2 Points (91%)
+ 1 benchmarks and specifications   + Show comparison chart
Windows 7 Experience Index - Win7 Graphics
7.2 Points (91%)
+ 1 benchmarks and specifications   + Show comparison chart
Cinebench R10 Cinebench R10 Shading (32bit) +
Cinebench R10 - Cinebench R10 Shading (32bit)
min: 1919     avg: 3546     median: 3546 (3%)     max: 5173 points
+ 2 benchmarks and specifications   + Show comparison chart
- Range of benchmark values
red legend - Average benchmark values
* Smaller numbers mean a higher performance

Game Benchmarks

The following benchmarks stem from our benchmarks of review laptops. The performance depends on the used graphics memory, clock rate, processor, system settings, drivers, and operating systems. So the results don't have to be representative for all laptops with this GPU. For detailed information on the benchmark results, click on the fps number.

CoD Modern Warfare 2

CoD Modern Warfare 2

2009
med. 1024x768
84.2  fps    + Compare
ultra 1920x1080
59.6  fps    + Compare
» With all tested laptops playable in detail settings ultra.
Risen

Risen

2009
med. 1024x768
60.2  fps    + Compare
ultra 1920x1080
31.6  fps    + Compare
» With all tested laptops playable in detail settings med..
Need for Speed Shift

Need for Speed Shift

2009
med. 1024x768
52  fps    + Compare
ultra 1920x1080
25  fps    + Compare
» With all tested laptops playable in detail settings med..
Colin McRae: DIRT 2

Colin McRae: DIRT 2

2009
med. 1024x768
69.7  fps    + Compare
ultra 1920x1080
50.4  fps    + Compare
» With all tested laptops playable in detail settings ultra.
Anno 1404

Anno 1404

2009
ultra 1280x1024
89.8  fps    + Compare
» With all tested laptops playable in detail settings ultra.
Sims 3

Sims 3

2009
low 800x600
251.7  fps    + Compare
med. 1024x768
118.6  fps    + Compare
high 1280x1024
77.4  fps    + Compare
» With all tested laptops playable in detail settings high.
F.E.A.R. 2

F.E.A.R. 2

2009
high 1280x1024
105.3  fps    + Compare
ultra 1920x1080
92.5  fps    + Compare
» With all tested laptops playable in detail settings ultra.
GTA IV - Grand Theft Auto

GTA IV - Grand Theft Auto

2008
low 800x600
48.6  fps    + Compare
med. 1024x768
32.3  fps    + Compare
» With all tested laptops playable in detail settings low.
Far Cry 2

Far Cry 2

2008
low 640x480
88.7  fps    + Compare
high 1024x768
40.5  fps    + Compare
» With all tested laptops playable in detail settings high.
Racedriver: GRID

Racedriver: GRID

2008
low 800x600
84.6  fps    + Compare
med. 1024x768
56.3  fps    + Compare
high 1280x1024
51.3  fps    + Compare
» With all tested laptops playable in detail settings high.
Call of Duty 4 - Modern Warfare

Call of Duty 4 - Modern Warfare

2007
low 800x600
156.5  fps    + Compare
med. 1024x768
106.2  fps    + Compare
high 1280x1024
99.8  fps    + Compare
» With all tested laptops playable in detail settings high.
Supreme Commander - FA Bench

Supreme Commander - FA Bench

2007
med. 1024x768
52.5  fps    + Compare
high 1024x768
51.4  fps    + Compare
» With all tested laptops playable in detail settings high.
Crysis - GPU Benchmark

Crysis - GPU Benchmark

2007
high 1024x768
52.4  fps    + Compare
ultra 1920x1080
26.7  fps    + Compare
» With all tested laptops playable in detail settings high.
Crysis - CPU Benchmark

Crysis - CPU Benchmark

2007
high 1024x768
52.2  fps    + Compare
ultra 1920x1080
25.5  fps    + Compare
» With all tested laptops playable in detail settings high.
lowmed.highultraQHD4K
CoD Modern Warfare 284.259.6
Risen60.231.6
Need for Speed Shift5225
Colin McRae: DIRT 269.750.4
Anno 140489.8
Sims 3251.7118.677.4
F.E.A.R. 2105.392.5
GTA IV - Grand Theft Auto48.5732.27
Far Cry 288.740.5
Racedriver: GRID84.656.351.3
Call of Duty 4 - Modern Warfare156.5106.299.8
Supreme Commander - FA Bench52.551.4
Crysis - GPU Benchmark52.426.7
Crysis - CPU Benchmark52.225.5
lowmed.highultraQHD4K
< 30 fps
< 60 fps
< 120 fps
≥ 120 fps
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2
2
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5

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3
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3
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For more games that might be playable and a list of all games and graphics cards visit our Gaming List

Amazon Logo
  • SAPLOS Radeon HD 6570 Graphics Card, Dual HDMI, 1G GDDR3 64-bit, Video Cards PC, Low Profile, Computer GPU, PCI Express x 16, 60W Low Power, Plug & Play, DirectX 11
  • QTHREE Radeon HD 6570 Low Profile Graphics Card,Dual HDMI,1GB,GDDR3,64-Bits,Desktop Video Card for PC Gaming,PCI-Express X16,Computer GPU
  • VisionTek Radeon 5450 2GB DDR3 (DVI-I, HDMI, VGA) Graphics Card - 900356
  • ATI Radeon HD 3870 X2 1GB DDR3 PCI Express (PCI-E) Dual DVI Video Card w/TV-Out & HDCP Support
  • ATI Radeon ATI-102-B62902(B) HD 3450 Video Card | PCIe x16 | T 5603 Low Profile

Add one or more devices and compare

In the following list you can select (and also search for) devices that should be added to the comparison. You can select more than one device.

search for model:
v1.35
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Gaming Benchmarks

The Czech website pctuning.cz have already published an extensive review of the  Asus W90 with a Intel C2D T9600 and 6 GB RAM. The following gaming benchmarks stem from their review.

Test Drive Unlimited: 1920x1080, high: 47-72 fps -> fluently playable
Bioshock: 1920x1080, high: 67-207 (avg. 131) fps -> fluently playable
Call of Duty 5: 1920x1080, extra: 29-92 (avg. 53) fps -> fluently playable
Crysis Warhead: 1920x1080, Mainstream: 13-45 (avg. 32) fps -> fluently playable (single stutters)
Far Cry 2: 1920x1080, ultra: 21-55 (avg. 33) fps -> fluently playable
Flatout Ultimate Carnage: 1920x1080, high: 36-48 (avg. 43) fps -> fluently playable
Race Driver Grid: 1920x1080, high: 34-56 (avg. 43) fps -> fluently playable
Stalker Clear Sky: 1920x1080, Maximum: 16-39 (avg. 28) fps -> playable
Unreal Tournament 3: 1920x1080, max: 32-63 (avg. 51) fps -> fluently playable
World in Conflict: 1920x1080, high: 19-103 (avg 30) -> playable

Notebook reviews with ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4870 X2 graphics card

 

Review Alienware M17x (i7/HD 4870 X2) Notebook

King of Performance? In the meantime, Alienware offers its 17.0 inch luxury notebook, M17x, with a wickedly expensive combination of two ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4870s, also called HD 4870 X2. The HD 4870 doesn't support DirectX 11, but is still one of the fastest mobile graphic cards. The HD 4870 X2 is supported by a Core i7-620M, which is clocked up to 2.66 GHz, so to prevent the performance from slowing down. Read in our review if the Alienware M17x is worth its expensive price and how the not exactly power saving components effect temperature, system noise and, battery life.
Intel Core i7-620M, ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4870 X2, 17", 5.5 kg
 

Review Asus W90VP Gaming Notebook

Heroes die young. At Cebit this year the W90 from Asus was still the big eye-catcher, where it promised gaming performance, which you would otherwise more likely find from the Alienware camp. Although Asus rightly worked flat out on the design of the case, the deployed hardware was first and foremost the reason for the overall interest in the notebook. Two Mobility Radeon HD4870 graphics cards connected via Crossfire should have put the fear of God into the competition. – yeah, should have…
Intel Core 2 Quad Q9000, ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4870 X2, 18.4", 6.1 kg

Alienware M17x (HD 4870x2): Intel Core i7-620M, 17.00", 5.5 kg
  External Review » Alienware M17x (HD 4870x2)

Asus W90Vp: Intel Core 2 Quad Q9000, 18.40", 6.1 kg
  External Review » Asus W90Vp

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» Comparison of GPUs
Detailed list of all laptop GPUs sorted by class and performance.

» Benchmark List
Sort and restrict laptop GPUs based on performance in synthetic benchmarks.

» Notebook Gaming List
Playable games for each graphics card and their average FPS results.

Class 1

Class 2

RTX 3000 Ada Generation Laptop
RTX A5500 Laptop GPU
GeForce RTX 3080 Laptop GPU
GeForce RTX 5060 Laptop
Radeon RX 6850M XT
GeForce RTX 3070 Ti Laptop GPU
RTX A4500 Laptop GPU
RTX A5000 Laptop GPU
GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU
RTX 2000 Ada Generation Laptop
Quadro RTX 6000 (Laptop)
Radeon RX 6800M
GeForce RTX 2080 Super Mobile
GeForce RTX 3070 Laptop GPU
Radeon 8060S
RTX PRO 2000 Blackwell Generation Laptop
GeForce RTX 5050 Laptop
RTX A4000 Laptop GPU *
Radeon RX 7600M XT
Radeon RX 6800S
Radeon RX 7700S
M3 Max 40-Core GPU *
M2 Max 38-Core GPU *
GeForce RTX 2080 Mobile
Radeon RX 6700M
M3 Max 30-Core GPU *
Quadro RTX 5000 (Laptop)
Radeon RX 7600M *
M4 Max 32-Core GPU *
M2 Max 30-Core GPU *
GeForce RTX 3060 Laptop GPU
M1 Max 32-Core GPU *
Radeon RX 7600S
GeForce RTX 2070 Super Mobile
GeForce RTX 2080 Super Max-Q
RTX A3000 Laptop GPU
M1 Max 24-Core GPU *
A770M
M3 Pro 18-Core GPU *
M2 Pro 19-Core GPU *
Radeon RX 6650M
Radeon RX 6600M
Radeon RX 6700S
GeForce RTX 2070 Mobile
Radeon 8050S
Quadro RTX 5000 Max-Q
GeForce RTX 2080 Max-Q
Radeon RX 5700M *
Quadro RTX 4000 (Laptop)
GeForce GTX 1080 Mobile
M3 Pro 14-Core GPU *
M2 Pro 16-Core GPU *
M1 Pro 16-Core GPU *
Radeon PRO W6600M *
GeForce RTX 4050 Laptop GPU
GeForce RTX 2070 Super Max-Q
Arc B390 Panther Lake iGPU
Radeon RX 6600S
RTX PRO 1000 Blackwell Generation Laptop *
M1 Pro 14-Core GPU *
Quadro RTX 4000 Max-Q
GeForce RTX 2070 Max-Q
Quadro P5200
RTX PRO 500 Blackwell Generation Laptop
Quadro RTX 3000 (Laptop)
GeForce RTX 2060 Mobile
GeForce GTX 1080 Max-Q
GeForce GTX 1070 Mobile
GeForce RTX 2060 Max-Q
Quadro RTX 3000 Max-Q
Quadro P4200
RTX 1000 Ada Generation Laptop
RTX A2000 Laptop GPU
A730M
Radeon 8040S *
Radeon Pro 5600M
Radeon RX 5600M
Quadro P5000
GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Mobile
GeForce RTX 3050 Ti Laptop GPU
GeForce RTX 3050 6GB Laptop GPU
A570M *
Pro A60M *

Class 3

RTX A1000 Laptop GPU
GeForce GTX 1070 Max-Q
A550M *
Quadro P5000 Max-Q *
GeForce RTX 3050 A Laptop GPU
GeForce RTX 3050 4GB Laptop GPU
A530M *
GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Max-Q
Radeon RX 6550M
Radeon RX 6500M
Radeon RX 6550S
Quadro P4000
GeForce GTX 1060 Mobile
Quadro T2000 (Laptop)
RTX A500 Laptop GPU
RTX 500 Ada Generation Laptop
Arc B370 Panther Lake iGPU
A370M
GeForce GTX 1650 Ti Mobile
Radeon Pro 5500M
Radeon RX 5500M
Radeon 890M
Arc 140T
Quadro P4000 Max-Q
Quadro P3200
Radeon RX 580X (Laptop) *
Radeon RX 580 (Laptop)
Radeon RX 6450M *
GeForce RTX 2050 Mobile
Arc 8-Core
X2-90 *
X2-85 *
Arc 140V
Radeon RX 6300M *
GeForce GTX 1650 Mobile
Radeon 880M
GeForce MX570
Pro A30M
Radeon Pro 5300M
Radeon RX 5300M
Quadro P3000
GeForce GTX 1060 Max-Q
T1200 Laptop GPU
Quadro P3000 Max-Q *
GeForce GTX 1650 Ti Max-Q
Quadro T2000 Max-Q
Quadro T1000 (Laptop)
Adreno 840 *
Radeon RX 570X (Laptop) *
M4 8-Core GPU *
Radeon RX 570 (Laptop) *
GeForce GTX 1650 Max-Q
Quadro T1000 Max-Q *
Vega M GH
T600 Laptop GPU
Radeon Pro Vega 20
Adreno 830 *
Adreno 829 *
Adreno X1-85 4.6 TFLOPS *
A310
Radeon 780M
GeForce MX550
Arc 7-Core
A350M
Arc 130V
GeForce GTX 1050 Ti Mobile
GeForce GTX 1050 Ti Max-Q
Radeon 860M
Radeon 680M
Quadro P2000
Quadro P2000 Max-Q
T550 Laptop GPU
T500 Laptop GPU
GeForce MX450
Arc 130T
Radeon Pro Vega 16
Vega M GL / 870
WX Vega M GL
GeForce GTX 1050 Mobile
GeForce GTX 1050 Max-Q
Radeon 760M *
Intel Graphics 4 Xe3
Adreno X1-85 3.8 TFLOPS *
Radeon 840M
Radeon Radeon Steam Deck 8CU
Radeon 740M
Radeon 660M
Radeon Pro WX 4150 *
Radeon RX 560X (Laptop)
Radeon RX 560 (Laptop)
Quadro P1000
Xe MAX
Radeon Pro 560X
Radeon Pro 560
Graphics 4-Core iGPU (Arrow Lake)
Iris Xe G7 96EUs
GeForce MX350
Quadro P620
Radeon RX 550X (Laptop)
Radeon RX 550 (Laptop)
Radeon RX 640
Radeon Pro WX 3200 *
Radeon Pro 555X
Radeon Pro 555
Quadro P600
GeForce MX250
GeForce MX330
GeForce MX150
Iris Xe G7 80EUs
Graphics 3-Core iGPU (Arrow Lake) *
Radeon Pro WX 2100 *
Radeon Pro WX 3100 *
Graphics 2-Core iGPU (Arrow Lake) *
Adreno X1-45 2.1 TFLOPS *
Radeon 630
Quadro P520
Radeon RX 540X *
Radeon RX 540 *
Radeon 540X *
Intel Graphics 2 Xe3
Quadro P500 *
UHD Graphics 64EUs
Vega 10
Adreno X1-45 1.7 TFLOPS *
Vega 9
Vega 8 *
Iris Plus Graphics G7 (Ice Lake 64 EU) *
UHD Graphics 32EUs
UHD Graphics 750
GeForce MX230
Radeon 820M
Vega 7
UHD Graphics Xe 32EUs (Tiger Lake-H)
UHD Graphics Xe G4 48EUs
Mobility Radeon HD 4870 X2
GeForce MX130
Vega 8
UHD Graphics 730
Iris Plus Graphics G4 (Ice Lake 48 EU)
Iris Plus Graphics 655
Iris Plus Graphics 650
Radeon 530
Radeon 625
Vega 6 *
GeForce MX110
Iris Plus Graphics 645
Iris Plus Graphics 640
UHD Graphics 24EUs (Alder Lake-N) *
GeForce 920M
Radeon 620
Radeon 520
Radeon 610
Radeon Graphics (Ryzen 7000)
Radeon 610M *
Vega 6 *
Vega 5 *
UHD Graphics Xe 16EUs (Tiger Lake-H) *
UHD Graphics G1 (Ice Lake 32 EU)
Vega 3
UHD Graphics 620
HD Graphics 620
Adreno 690 *
Adreno 685 *
Adreno 680 *
GeForce 910M

Class 4

* Approximate position of the graphics adapter

Klaus Hinum (Update: 2026-02-18)