RTX 3070 Max-Q vs R9 290X
Head-to-head specifications
| Metric | RTX 3070 Max-Q | R9 290X | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3DMark Time Spy | 6,131 | 1,970 | +211.2% |
| Avg FPS @ 1080p | 60 | 33 | +81.8% |
| Avg FPS @ 1440p | 36 | 18 | +100.0% |
| Avg FPS @ 4K | 20 | 9 | +122.2% |
| FP32 compute (TFLOPS) | 14.3 | 5.6 | +153.3% |
| VRAM | 8 GB GDDR6 | 4 GB GDDR5 | — |
| Memory bandwidth (GB/s) | 448 | 448 | — |
| TDP (W) | 99 | 290 | — |
- RTX 3070 Max-Q averages 36 fps at 1440p versus 18 fps — about 100% faster.
- RTX 3070 Max-Q draws less power (99W vs 290W).
Verdict: RTX 3070 Max-Q or R9 290X?
RTX 3070 Max-Q advantages
- 1440p gaming (+50%)
- 4K gaming (+55%)
- Synthetic benchmark performance (+68%)
- Video memory (+50%)
- Power efficiency (+66%)
R9 290X advantages
- No decisive advantage on the tracked metrics.
Which should you choose?
- Choose the RTX 3070 Max-Q if you game at 1440p.
- Choose the RTX 3070 Max-Q if you game at 4K or drive a high-resolution display.
RTX 3070 Max-Q vs R9 290X: which should you choose?
RTX 3070 Max-Q — NVIDIA laptop graphics card (2020, Ampere) with 8 GB of GDDR6, averaging 36 fps at 1440p.
R9 290X — AMD desktop graphics card (2013, GCN 2.0) with 4 GB of GDDR5, averaging 18 fps at 1440p; launched at $549.
RTX 3070 Max-Q vs R9 290X: RTX 3070 Max-Q is faster for gaming. RTX 3070 Max-Q averages 36 fps at 1440p versus 18 fps — about 100% faster. RTX 3070 Max-Q draws less power (99W vs 290W).
1080p, 1440p and 4K
At 1440p — the most common enthusiast resolution — the RTX 3070 Max-Q averages 36 fps against 18. At 4K (20 vs 9 fps) VRAM (8GB vs 4GB) and memory bandwidth matter more.
Power and value
Board power is 99 W versus 290 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 RTX 3070 Max-Q better than the R9 290X?
RTX 3070 Max-Q is the clearly stronger overall choice, winning most of the dimensions that matter. RTX 3070 Max-Q averages 36 fps at 1440p versus 18 fps — about 100% faster.
What is the main difference between the RTX 3070 Max-Q and the R9 290X?
RTX 3070 Max-Q averages 36 fps at 1440p versus 18 fps — about 100% faster. RTX 3070 Max-Q draws less power (99W vs 290W).
Which should I choose?
Choose the RTX 3070 Max-Q if you game at 1440p. Choose the RTX 3070 Max-Q if you game at 4K or drive a high-resolution display.
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.