Budget Graphics Compared: GeForce 9400 GT vs. Radeon HD 4550

Two new budget graphics cards came into play recently. These are the GeForce 9400 GT from Nvidia, and the Radeon HD 4550 from ATI. Their specs are as follows:

GeForce 9400 GT (US$59):

• G96 Core Code
• 314 million Transistor Count
• 55nm Manufacturing Process
• 550MHz Core Clock
• 16 Stream processors
• 1400MHz Stream Processor Clock
• 16 Texture Mapping Units (TMU) or Texture Filtering (TF) units
• 8 Raster Operator units (ROP)
• 800MHz GDDR2 Memory Clock
• 128-bit DDR Memory Bus
• 12.8GB/s Memory Bandwidth
• PCIe ver 2.0 x16 interface
• no Multi GPU Technology support
• HDCP Output Support

Radeon HD 4550 ($45-55):

• RV710 Core Code
• 242 million Transistor Count
• 55nm Manufacturing Process
• 600MHz Core Clock
• 80 Stream processors
• 600MHz Stream Processor Clock
• 8 Texture Mapping Units (TMU) or Texture Filtering (TF) units
• 4 Raster Operator units (ROP)
• 1600MHz GDDR3 Memory Clock
• 64-bit DDR Memory Bus
• 12.8GB/s Memory Bandwidth
• PCIe ver 2.0 x16 interface
• CrossfireX Multi GPU Technology support
• HDCP Output Support

AnandTech compared the HD 4550 with HD 3650, GF 9500 GT, and HD 4670 cards:

"Anyway, the point is that with cards in this class, you can't expect gaming performance. And even still we have cards that absolutely blow away integrated graphics. This really does highlight just how how horrible the performance of integrated solutions really is in comparison to any modern add-in graphics part. But that doesn't mean these cards don't have some value. Not everyone needs 3D, and these cards are priced very well. And more importantly, these cards offer a real solution to a problem HTPC builders have been faced with for a long time. The Radeon 4350 and 4550 offer quiet or silent video acceleration for full resolution blu-ray playback with the option of enabling 8 channel LPCM audio playback over HDMI. If you want to build an HTPC, one of these cards would be a very good fit." [AnandTech | ATI Radeon HD 4350 and 4550: Great HTPC Solutions]

HardwareZone gave the GeForce 9400 GT a 3.5 stars rating, and gave the Radeon HD 4550 a 4 stars rating:

"... the GeForce 9400 GT needs some improvements to match the Radeon HD 4550. In terms of performance, the 4550 was always faster than the 9400 GT, though this margin varied from game to game. When it came to power consumption, the Radeon again had the advantage, albeit a rather slight one. Finally, if you're battling for the hearts and minds of HTPC enthusiasts, ATI has a rather significant advantage in being able to offer 7.1 channel HD audio through its DVI/HDMI outputs, something that NVIDIA cannot do, even with a S/PDIF cable. Then, there's the matter of VC-1 hardware acceleration, which ATI just does better (though the market does seem to be favoring H.264 in Blu-ray nowadays)." [HardwareZone | When Budget Graphics Clash: GeForce 9400 GT Meets Radeon HD 4550 ]

I agree with HardwareZone's suggestion of taking a good look at the older mainstream graphic cards such as the GeForce 8600 GT and Radeon HD 3650, before committing to buy a 9400 GT or HD 4550.

The HD 4550 seemed to perform better than the 9400 GT, despite the Radeon's 64-bit DDR Memory Bus. And if you need 7.1 channel HD audio, the HD 4550 card is the one to get, and a nice one if you are thinking of building and HTPC.

Technorati : 4550, 9400, budget, geforce, graphics, gt, hd, htpc, radeon, value

Radeon HD 4870 X2 Previewed

The Radeon HD 4870 X2 (~US$500), a graphics card code-named R700, features two (2) RV770 GPUs. The RV770 GPU is used by the Radeon HD 4870 and 4850.

Features:

• 800 x 2 Stream Processors
• 40 x 2 Texture Units
• 16 x 2 ROPs
• 750MHz Core Clock
• 900MHz (3600MHz data rate) GDDR5 Memory Clock
• 256-bit x 2 Memory Bus Width
• 1GB x 2 Frame Buffer
• 956M x 2 Transistor Count
• TSMC 55nm Manufacturing Process

AnandTech and ExtremeTech both had a hands-on preview of the Radeon HD 4870 X2.

"... We can say that, for those who want to game at the extremely high end, 4870 X2 with it's 2GB of on board RAM will be a more consistent solution than 2x 512MB 4870 cards in CrossFire , as evidenced by our Race Driver GRID test. ... The 4870 X2 will be AMD's proving ground. This preview shows what might be, what could be ... but we must wait for final hardware and final drivers before we can honestly evaluate the card for what it is. Let us hope AMD knows how important having pervasive compatibility really is for this launch. " [AnandTech | ATI Radeon HD 4870 X2 - R700 Preview: AMD's Fastest Single Card]

"Our early look at the performance of the Radeon HD 4870 X2 (code-named R700) is at once exciting and disappointing. ... our early tests only reassure us that there's good reason the R700 card isn't out yet. ATI simply has more work to do. Naturally a high-end dual-GPU card like this will scale better at the highest resolutions and with the highest AA settings, but there's little reason for it not to scale at all, or scale very poorly, at medium-grade resolution like 1680x1050 or 1440x900. ... On the other hand, some tests do indeed show tremendous scaling and overall performance at all settings. " [ExtremeTech | Radeon HD 4870 X2 Performance Preview]

It would be quite exciting to see how the Radeon HD 4870 X2 "final product" will perform. I'm sure AMD/ATI is working diligently to make the R700 fly to the production phase.

Technorati : 4870, amd, ati, graphics, hd, radeon, x2

Radeon HD 4870 512MB GDDR5 Reviewed

The Radeon HD 4870 (~US$300) is an ATI-based graphics card that features:

• RV770 GPU
• 55nm Manufacturing Process
• 750 MHz Core Clock
• 750 MHz Stream Processor Clock
• 3.6 GHz DDR Memory Clock
• 800 Stream Processors
• 40 Texture Units
• 512MB Frame Buffer
• 256 bit Memory Interface
• 115.2 GB/sec Memory Bandwidth

ExtremeTech gave it a 4.5 out of 5 rating, and the "ExtremeTech Approved" stamp:

"Most impressive is the way it matches the more expensive, more power-hungry (under load), and larger GeForce GTX 260 card, in the right games and with the right settings. ... ATI tells us that the card will be in fairly short supply right out of the gate. It's not a problem with running up the clock speeds (we're told there's lots of headroom), but rather the short supply of GDDR5, which is just ramping up to full production from three vendors. In fact, there may be some price flexibility down the line, as GDDR5 gets a bit less expensive. Even at $300, ATI has built a fantastic product that we can easily recommend. " [ExtremeTech | GDDR5 Comes to Market-Radeon HD 4870]

Tom's Hardware gives it the "Tom's Hardware Recommended Buy" award:

"With the same qualities as the Radeon HD 4850 but at a higher price point, the Radeon HD 4870 manages to compete directly with the GeForce GTX 260 - it's both a little faster and a good deal less expensive than the Nvidia card, and without the excessive noise. Despite its higher power consumption, with prices as they stand currently, there's really no doubt that it's the better choice." [ Tom's Hardware | Radeon HD 4870: Better Than GTX 260 ]

HardwareZone gives it a 4.5 out of 5 ("Excellent") rating:

"NVIDIA has led the industry with performance and price competitiveness for a couple of generations now, while ATI relied on supporting new standards and features that have generally being underused by developers (tessellation and DirectX 10.1 comes to mind on this generation) along with the excellent Avivo HD features to distinguish its products. Finally, the red team has produced a GPU worthy of competing and looks to reap the benefits of lower manufacturing costs with its smaller die. For consumers, what matters is the bottom line and with prices like these (and dropping too for the Radeon HD 4850), it is good times ahead." [ HardwareZone | ATI Radeon HD 4870 512MB GDDR5 - Inching for the Apex ]

So, if you were thinking of getting the Nvidia GTX 260 for your new PC system you're planning to build, the ATI Radeon HD 4870 might give you something to think about!

Technorati : 4870, ati, gddr5, graphics, hd, radeon, review

ATI Radeon HD 4850 Graphics Card Tested

The ATI Radeon HD 4850 (US$199) is a performance graphics card that competes with the likes of the 8800GT, 8800GTS, and 9600GT Nvidia cards. It features:

• RV770 PRO GPU
• 800 Stream Processors
• 40 Texture Units
• 625MHz Core clock
• 993MHz (1986MHz data rate) GDDR3 Memory clock
• 256-bit Memory Bus Width
• 512MB Frame Buffer
• 956M Transistor Count
• TSMC 55nm Manufacturing process

AnandTech believes that AMD successfully delivers performance for the masses:

"... the Radeon HD 4850 looks to be the best buy at $199, even better than NVIDIA's price-dropped GeForce 9800 GTX. What's also unbelievable is that compared to the 4850, our beloved GeForce 8800 GT seems downright slow in a number of benchmarks - and the 8800 GT is only 8 months old. It's also very refreshing to see this sort of competitive pressure at such a reasonable price point, while it's fun to write about 1.4 billion transistor GPUs it's a dream come true to be able to write about this type of performance at under $200." [AnandTech | HD 4850 Preview]

And to add, sees it is a real bargain at the $200 price point:

"... For now, the Radeon HD 4870 and 4850 are both solid values and cards we would absolutely recommend to readers looking for hardware at the $200 and $300 price points. The fact of the matter is that by NVIDIA's standards, the 4870 should be priced at $400 and the 4850 should be around $250. You can either look at it as AMD giving you a bargain or NVIDIA charging too much, either way it's healthy competition in the graphics industry once again..." [AnandTech | 4850 & 4870]

HardwareZone paired 2 HD 4850 cards in Crossfire configuration, and found the combo to be at par in performance with the new GeForce GTX 280 graphics card:

"... the Radeon HD 4850 newcomer looks to be a very interesting card and keeps our spirits up for the forthcoming Radeon HD 4870 model, as well as the X2 edition of it later in the pipeline." [ HardwareZone | HD 4850 Crossfire ]

Tom's Hardware gives the HD 4850 a "Recommended Buy":

"... there's no denying that the 4850 is a very good card. Its performance is only 19% below the GeForce 260 GTX' and is overall on a par with the GeForce 9800 GTX +, while beating out the 3870 X2! ... Despite its advance in presenting the GeForce 9800 GTX +, Nvidia has been bested for performance/price ratio and at this price level." [Tom's Hardware | HD 4850]

FiringSquad gave the MSI R4850 512M card a score of 94%:

"If you've been hesitant to pick up a Radeon HD 4850 card because you were concerned about GPU temps, you owe it to yourself to take a long hard look at MSI's R4850 512M. Thanks to its unique dual-slot copper cooler, the card is capable of running significantly cooler than the stock Radeon 4850 cooling at both idle and load." [FiringSquad.com | MSI R4850 512M Review]

If you are in the market for a nice graphics card within the $200 price point, look no further; the Radeon HD4850 is IT!

Technorati : 4850, ati, card, graphics, hd, radeon, review

MSI Radeon HD 3650 Graphics Card Reviewed

The MSI Radeon HD 3650 (about US$100) is a graphics card that features:

• ATI RV635 CPU
• 55nm technology
• 725 MHz Core frequency
• 725 MHz Shader frequency
• 128 bit GDDR3 memory subsystem
• 1600 MHz Memory frequency
• 256 MB memory
• PCI Express 2.0 interface
• Shader Model 4.1
• Crossfire Multi-GPU support

"Generally speaking, the ATI Radeon HD 3650 is a variation of the ATI Radeon HD 2600 XT with certain architectural improvements but it is unclear why the developer decided to lower the clock rates. The Radeon HD 2600 XT was not fast even with GDDR4 memory and the ATI Radeon HD 3650 turns out to be even slower. Yes, it costs a mere $99 (for the GDDR3 version) but we don't see a proper application for it. This card cannot interest gamers and seems to be targeted at the multimedia market where its popularity will depend on the accessories included with it by the particular graphics card vendor." [X-bit Labs | MSI Radeon HD 3650]

If you are building a non-gaming rig, the MSI Radeon HD 3650 will fit right at home with its low power consumption and silent cooler.

Technorati : 3650, ati, display, graphics, hd, msi, radeon, review