gigabyte ep35 or ep45?

yea, i think im going to save some money and get the hd4870. hopefully prices will fall a little bit after the 4870x2 releases.

 

The HD4870 is still an admirable card:

Call of Duty 4: Absolute max 4xAA 8xAF 1920x1200: 70fps
Half Life 2: Episode Two: Absolute max 4xAA 16xAF 1920x1200: 80fps
Enemy Territory: Quake Wars: Absolute max 4xAA 16xAF 2560x1600: 65fps
Crysis: All settings 'High', 1920x1200: 27fps
Assassins Creed: Absolute max 4xAA 16xAF 2560x1600: 42fps
GRiD: Absolute max 4xAA 16xAF 1920x1200: 80fps
World in Conflict: Absolute max 4xAA 16xAF 1920x1200: 50fps
Rainbow Six Vegas 2: Absolute max no AA/AF 2560x1600: 50fps
Lost Planet: Colonies: Absolute max no AA, 16xAF 1920x1200: 40fps
Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion: Absolute max 4xAA 16xAF 2560x1600: 65fps

 

wow, all those on 1920X1200? my monitor is only 1650x1050. =P looks like ill be blazing on these games. i would be satisfied with all settings high on crysis. btw, whats AF?

 

27fps in Crysis is playable. Since that's 1920x1200, at 1680x1050 it should be pretty good. The game suddenly becomes a lot more demanding towards the end though, so if you get lag during the final boss scene or the few sections leading up to it perhaps drop shaders to medium.

 

dragnandy, seems like im on the same page as you. ill be getting the 4870 after the release of the x2 one. i would have waited for the 1gb version, but i hear thats a long ways out. im going to be playing on a 1920x1200 resolution, so maybe the 1gb would have helped. but ill settle for the 512mb and get it now.

 

The 1GB HD4870 might be advantageous, but bear in mind that a 1GB HD3870 was made, and it made ZERO difference to performance, not a sausage. It might help for the 4870, but the projected price is at least 25% more, so it will scarcely be worth bothering with.

 

would a 1gb card be more 'future proof'? i mean, right now, games only use 512mb video cards so the 1gb wont really make a difference, but later on, it will once games start using more than 512mb, wont it?

 

It didn't for the HD3870 - ATI cards don't 'run out' of memory like nvidia ones do. In the same tests where 1GB nvidia cards flattened their 512MB counterparts, the ATI cards both posted the same results, even running current games at 2560x1600 with AA/AF enabled...

 

oh i forgot to ask, how is the visiontek 4870? are they as good as the HIS one?

 

VisionTek are a relatively new company, but they seem to be doing pretty well in reviews, I've no objection to anyone buying one.