R9 M290X vs RTX 4060 Max-Q
Head-to-head specifications
| Metric | R9 M290X | RTX 4060 Max-Q | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3DMark Time Spy | 805 | 4,232 | -81.0% |
| Avg FPS @ 1080p | 25 | 48 | -47.9% |
| Avg FPS @ 1440p | 13 | 28 | -53.6% |
| Avg FPS @ 4K | 7 | 15 | -53.3% |
| FP32 compute (TFLOPS) | 2.3 | 10.6 | -78.3% |
| VRAM | 4 GB GDDR5 | 8 GB GDDR6 | — |
| Memory bandwidth (GB/s) | 154 | 224 | -31.3% |
| TDP (W) | 100 | 51 | — |
- RTX 4060 Max-Q averages 28 fps at 1440p versus 13 fps — about 54% faster.
- RTX 4060 Max-Q draws less power (51W vs 100W).
Verdict: R9 M290X or RTX 4060 Max-Q?
R9 M290X advantages
- No decisive advantage on the tracked metrics.
RTX 4060 Max-Q advantages
- 1440p gaming (+54%)
- 4K gaming (+53%)
- Synthetic benchmark performance (+81%)
- Video memory (+50%)
- Memory bandwidth (+31%)
- Power efficiency (+49%)
Which should you choose?
- Choose the RTX 4060 Max-Q if you game at 1440p.
R9 M290X vs RTX 4060 Max-Q: which should you choose?
R9 M290X — AMD desktop graphics card (2014, GCN 1.0) with 4 GB of GDDR5, averaging 13 fps at 1440p.
RTX 4060 Max-Q — NVIDIA laptop graphics card (2023, Ada Lovelace) with 8 GB of GDDR6, averaging 28 fps at 1440p.
R9 M290X vs RTX 4060 Max-Q: RTX 4060 Max-Q is faster for gaming. RTX 4060 Max-Q averages 28 fps at 1440p versus 13 fps — about 54% faster. RTX 4060 Max-Q draws less power (51W vs 100W).
1080p, 1440p and 4K
At 1440p — the most common enthusiast resolution — the RTX 4060 Max-Q averages 28 fps against 13. At 4K (7 vs 15 fps) VRAM (4GB vs 8GB) and memory bandwidth matter more.
Power and value
Board power is 100 W versus 51 W, which affects PSU headroom, case cooling and noise.
The verdict
Both are credible choices in the graphics card comparison space; the specification table above lays out every metric so you can weigh the trade-offs that matter to you. Pick the one whose strengths line up with how you will actually use it.
Frequently asked questions
Is the R9 M290X better than the RTX 4060 Max-Q?
RTX 4060 Max-Q is the clearly stronger overall choice, winning most of the dimensions that matter. RTX 4060 Max-Q averages 28 fps at 1440p versus 13 fps — about 54% faster.
What is the main difference between the R9 M290X and the RTX 4060 Max-Q?
RTX 4060 Max-Q averages 28 fps at 1440p versus 13 fps — about 54% faster. RTX 4060 Max-Q draws less power (51W vs 100W).
Which should I choose?
Choose the RTX 4060 Max-Q if you game at 1440p.
Methodology
Graphics cards are compared on 3DMark Time Spy scores, average gaming frame rates at 1080p/1440p/4K, FP32 compute throughput, VRAM capacity and type, memory bandwidth, board power (TDP) and launch MSRP — plus AI workload throughput (Stable Diffusion iterations/s and local LLM tokens/s) where measured. Vintage and server GPUs without modern benchmark results are compared on specifications only, clearly labelled. Frame rates are averages across a game suite at high settings; specific titles vary.