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.

Head-to-Head Verdict, Benchmarks, Value & Long-Term Outlook

This comparison brings together gaming FPS, raw graphics performance, VRAM, feature set, power efficiency, pricing context, and long-term value so you can see which GPU actually makes more sense.

Radeon R9 290

2013

Why buy it

✅Delivers 100+% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 20.5 vs 0 G3D/$ ($399 MSRP vs Unknown MSRP).

Trade-offs

❌Poor future-proofing: 2013-era hardware with 4 GB of VRAM is already a legacy-tier option for modern games.
❌243.8% higher power demand at 275W vs 80W.

RTX A4500 Embedded GPU

2022

Why buy it

✅More future proof: Ampere (2020−2025) on 8nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.
✅Draws 80W instead of 275W, a 195W reduction.
✅More future proof: Ampere (2020−2025) on 8nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.

Trade-offs

❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 0 vs 20.5 G3D/$ (Unknown MSRP vs $399 MSRP).

Radeon R9 290

2013

RTX A4500 Embedded GPU

2022

Why buy it

✅Delivers 100+% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 20.5 vs 0 G3D/$ ($399 MSRP vs Unknown MSRP).

Why buy it

✅More future proof: Ampere (2020−2025) on 8nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.
✅Draws 80W instead of 275W, a 195W reduction.
✅More future proof: Ampere (2020−2025) on 8nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.

Trade-offs

❌Poor future-proofing: 2013-era hardware with 4 GB of VRAM is already a legacy-tier option for modern games.
❌243.8% higher power demand at 275W vs 80W.

Trade-offs

❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 0 vs 20.5 G3D/$ (Unknown MSRP vs $399 MSRP).

Quick Answers

So, is RTX A4500 Embedded GPU better than Radeon R9 290?

Yes. RTX A4500 Embedded GPU is clearly the better overall GPU here. You are also looking at 8,485 vs 8,184 in G3D Mark. On top of that, RTX A4500 Embedded GPU is a 2022 card with no meaningful modern upscaling stack, while Radeon R9 290 is a 2013 model from an older generation with FSR upscaling. So this is not really a tight same-tier comparison. It is more a modern card against an older, weaker alternative.

Which one is more future-proof for 2026 and beyond?

RTX A4500 Embedded GPU is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting a newer 2022 generation instead of 2013, the stronger feature stack with no meaningful modern upscaling stack instead of FSR upscaling, and a 8nm process instead of 28nm. That broader feature stack should age better as more games lean on modern upscaling and frame-generation support.

Which one is the smarter buy today, not just the cheaper card?

RTX A4500 Embedded GPU is the smarter buy by a wide margin. RTX A4500 Embedded GPU is priced in an unclear MSRP range at an unclear MSRP versus $399 MSRP, and you are getting 3.7% higher G3D Mark. Radeon R9 290 really only makes sense now as a very cheap stopgap or a used-market placeholder.

Is Radeon R9 290 still worth buying for gaming in 2026?

No, not for a fresh gaming build. Radeon R9 290 is 2013 hardware with 4 GB of VRAM, 8,184 in G3D Mark, and FSR upscaling. That is simply too far behind to be an easy modern recommendation.

Games Benchmarks

Real-world benchmarks and performance projections based on comprehensive hardware analysis and comparative metrics. Values represent expected performance on High/Ultra settings at 1080p, 1440p, and 4K. Modeled using a Ryzen 7 9800X3D reference profile to minimize specific CPU bottlenecks.

Note: Performance behavior can vary per game. Specific architectures may perform better or worse depending on game engine optimizations and API implementation.

Radeon R9 290 Benchmark Check

RTX A4500 Embedded GPU Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	Radeon R9 290	RTX A4500 Embedded GPU
1080p
low	83 FPS	96 FPS
medium	71 FPS	85 FPS
high	59 FPS	70 FPS
ultra	39 FPS	47 FPS
1440p
low	72 FPS	80 FPS
medium	64 FPS	70 FPS
high	47 FPS	52 FPS
ultra	30 FPS	35 FPS
4K
low	26 FPS	32 FPS
medium	25 FPS	29 FPS
high	17 FPS	21 FPS
ultra	14 FPS	19 FPS

Open Radeon R9 290 Open RTX A4500 Embedded GPU

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	Radeon R9 290	RTX A4500 Embedded GPU
1080p
low	185 FPS	239 FPS
medium	156 FPS	190 FPS
high	129 FPS	156 FPS
ultra	100 FPS	132 FPS
1440p
low	132 FPS	171 FPS
medium	103 FPS	130 FPS
high	83 FPS	113 FPS
ultra	64 FPS	93 FPS
4K
low	60 FPS	86 FPS
medium	49 FPS	67 FPS
high	44 FPS	59 FPS
ultra	36 FPS	46 FPS

Open Radeon R9 290 Open RTX A4500 Embedded GPU

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	Radeon R9 290	RTX A4500 Embedded GPU
1080p
low	368 FPS	382 FPS
medium	295 FPS	305 FPS
high	246 FPS	255 FPS
ultra	184 FPS	191 FPS
1440p
low	276 FPS	286 FPS
medium	221 FPS	229 FPS
high	184 FPS	191 FPS
ultra	138 FPS	143 FPS
4K
low	184 FPS	191 FPS
medium	147 FPS	153 FPS
high	123 FPS	127 FPS
ultra	92 FPS	95 FPS

Open Radeon R9 290 Open RTX A4500 Embedded GPU

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	Radeon R9 290	RTX A4500 Embedded GPU
1080p
low	152 FPS	163 FPS
medium	123 FPS	134 FPS
high	105 FPS	116 FPS
ultra	87 FPS	98 FPS
1440p
low	110 FPS	118 FPS
medium	90 FPS	100 FPS
high	78 FPS	87 FPS
ultra	62 FPS	73 FPS
4K
low	64 FPS	72 FPS
medium	49 FPS	59 FPS
high	39 FPS	47 FPS
ultra	28 FPS	36 FPS

Open Radeon R9 290 Open RTX A4500 Embedded GPU

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of Radeon R9 290 and RTX A4500 Embedded GPU

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.

RTX A4500 Embedded GPU

The RTX A4500 Embedded GPU is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in March 30 2022. It features the Ampere architecture. The core clock ranges from 510 MHz to 1215 MHz. It has 5888 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 80W. Manufactured using 8 nm process technology. It features 46 dedicated ray tracing cores for enhanced lighting effects. G3D Mark benchmark score: 8,485 points.

⚡

Graphics Performance

The Radeon R9 290 scores 8,184 and the RTX A4500 Embedded GPU reaches 8,485 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 3.7% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The Radeon R9 290 is built on GCN 2.0 while the RTX A4500 Embedded GPU uses Ampere, both on 28 nm vs 8 nm. Shader units: 2,560 (Radeon R9 290) vs 5,888 (RTX A4500 Embedded GPU). Raw compute: 4.849 TFLOPS (Radeon R9 290) vs 14.31 TFLOPS (RTX A4500 Embedded GPU).

Feature	Radeon R9 290	RTX A4500 Embedded GPU
G3D Mark Score	8,184	8,485+4%
Architecture	GCN 2.0	Ampere
Process Node	28 nm	8 nm
Shading Units	2560	5888+130%
Compute (TFLOPS)	4.849 TFLOPS	14.31 TFLOPS+195%
ROPs	64	96+50%
TMUs	160	184+15%
L1 Cache	0.63 MB	5.8 MB+821%
L2 Cache	1 MB	4 MB+300%

✨

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The RTX A4500 Embedded GPU gives access to NVIDIA DLSS (Deep Learning Super Sampling), widely regarding as the superior upscaling method for image quality. The Radeon R9 290 relies on FSR (FidelityFX Super Resolution), which is capable but generally slightly noisier than DLSS in motion.

Feature	Radeon R9 290	RTX A4500 Embedded GPU
Upscaling Tech	FSR Upscaling / FSR 4	Upscaling support
Frame Generation	Not Supported	Not Supported
Ray Reconstruction	No	No
Low Latency	AMD Anti-Lag	NVIDIA Reflex

💾

Video Memory (VRAM)

Both cards feature 4 GB of video memory. Bus width: 512-bit vs 128-bit. L2 Cache: 1 MB (Radeon R9 290) vs 4 MB (RTX A4500 Embedded GPU) — the RTX A4500 Embedded GPU has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

Feature	Radeon R9 290	RTX A4500 Embedded GPU
VRAM Capacity	4 GB	4 GB
Memory Type	GDDR5	GDDR6
Bus Width	512-bit+300%	128-bit
L2 Cache	1 MB	4 MB+300%

🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 12.0 (Radeon R9 290) vs 12.2 (RTX A4500 Embedded GPU). Vulkan: 1.2 vs 1.3. OpenGL: 4.6 vs 4.6. Maximum simultaneous displays: 6 vs 4.

Feature	Radeon R9 290	RTX A4500 Embedded GPU
DirectX	12.0	12.2+2%
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 NVENC 8.0 (RTX A4500 Embedded GPU). Decoder: UVD 4.2 vs PureVideo HD VP11. Supported codecs: MPEG-2,H.264,VC-1 (Radeon R9 290) vs MPEG-2,H.264,HEVC,VP9,AV1 (RTX A4500 Embedded GPU).

Feature	Radeon R9 290	RTX A4500 Embedded GPU
Encoder	VCE 2.0	NVENC 8.0
Decoder	UVD 4.2	PureVideo HD VP11
Codecs	MPEG-2,H.264,VC-1	MPEG-2,H.264,HEVC,VP9,AV1

🔌

Power & Dimensions

The Radeon R9 290 draws 275W versus the RTX A4500 Embedded GPU's 80W — a 109.9% difference. The RTX A4500 Embedded GPU is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 750W (Radeon R9 290) vs 500W (RTX A4500 Embedded GPU). Power connectors: 6-pin + 8-pin vs PCIe-powered. Card length: 275mm vs 0mm, occupying 2 vs 0 slots.

Feature	Radeon R9 290	RTX A4500 Embedded GPU
TDP	275W	80W-71%
Recommended PSU	750W	500W-33%
Power Connector	6-pin + 8-pin	PCIe-powered
Length	275mm	0mm
Height	109mm	0mm
Slots	2	0-100%
Temp (Load)	95°C	—
Perf/Watt	29.8	106.1+256%