ATI's Radeon X800 256MB and Radeon X850 PRO Preview

[Steve]

When I interviewed ATI's Matt Skyner recently, we talked about availability of ATI's GPU products on both PCI Express and AGP. The general tone of his responses indicated that volume of new R480 and R430 products would be as high as possible and that ATI were also committed to bringing some of the PCI Express SKUs to AGP if the market required them. We've seen some evidence of that AGP endeavour recently with spy shots of RIALTO, and today I'm able to bring you further evidence of pervasive availability for R480 and R430 with a look at two new SKUs, one for each GPU.

http://www.hexus.net/content/reviews...lld19JRD05OTk=

[YorkieBen]

Overclockers.co.uk have a Powercolour X800 256MB with VIVO for less than £190. Plus what looks like a quieter cooler

when I get a new job and the funds to go to PCI-E this is what I want

[YorkieBen]

also Lowestonweb.com have a version but with ddr1 ram and no vivo and one dvi and one vga port.

The Ram runs at the same speed though. Will DDR1 and DDR3 running at the same speed give the same bandwidth etc?

[Rys]

Will DDR1 and DDR3 running at the same speed give the same bandwidth etc?

If they're on the same width memory bus, yep.

Rys

[Zak33]

all I can say is......

I am still a twisted ATI puppy

[exAndrzej]

I would have posted earlier - but I was too busy smiling

Around Xmas, when questions were asked on the forum about 'what card to buy around £150 - especially if you want great Doom III scores' - I was trying to encourage people to hang on a little bit

Unfortunately, I could not tell them why (remember the 'we do not comment on future products' bit ?)

Also, I only had our lab figures which - while being 100% accurate - are not the sort of thing we use to tell the world why we believe a specific product is great

To get the message across, you need an experienced, independent, knowledgable lab to get 'down and dirty' with the cards

Given that you can get both of these cards for around £145+vat (depending on version and supplier) - the score comparison is just awesome !

HEXUS LABS FPS scores at 1600x1200 with 4xAA and 8xAF
...
Half Life 2
... X800: 43.3
... 6600GT: 15.4

FarCry
... X800: 26.3
... 6600GT: 10.2

...and (biggest smile of all required) this set of comparative scores...

Doom 3
... X800: 26
... 6600GT: 19.4

Over 34% quicker in Doom 3 when testing with the resolution/quality controls set to 'stunning'

[Zak33]

its a beast.....awesome value too. When and where do we see them for sale?

[exAndrzej]

From what I have seen so far (not a recommendation - just some helpful links) :-

http://www.komplett.co.uk/k/ki.asp?sku=306373&cks=SER
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/acatal...00_Series.html
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Produ...oductID=172711
http://www.dabs.com/uk/Search2/Produ...rchphrase=X800
http://www.dabs.com/uk/Search2/Produ...rchphrase=X800

The PowerColour Bravo card on OcUK looks right - 12 pipes + GDDR3
Also, the Gigabyte card seems the same - core of 392MHz - and this one is passively cooled !

In all cases please check before buying to confirm that the card is the same spec as the one that Rys examined

Also, prices may vary according to the exact 'in-box bundle' being offered - but I have checked with Sapphire (for example) and they have confirmed that the £145+vat on Komplett (among others) is correct