What do You Guys Think of the ATI Radeon HD 4890?

[RomDA_73]

Hi guys, I'm thinking of upgrading my video card to an HD 4890. But friends say it's overkill, and I should just spend a bit more and get two 4870s to link up. My monitor is an HP 22" 2208wh (1680 x 1050). So one 4890 or two 4870s?

 

[mamw93]

It's only about 5-10% faster than the 4870.

 

[Jaysin]

If you already have a 1GB 4870 I wouldn't see a big need to upgrade. If you are at 512mb then maybe. The 4890, while it overclocks quite well, isn't really vastly superior to a 4870. So if you have one already I'd say get another.

 

[t85us]

definitely it's a good performing card, but i won't buy it because it's HUGE power requirement (but NV's too, not just this 4890).
i believe, that these semiconductor companys (NV,ATI) just don't care about the power optimisation of their chips. a car with a very bad fuel efficiency will eat a lot of petrol, so are computers. 300W for a video card in use ? (in SLI or CF the double or tripple) come on ! 300W of power is enough to heat a smaller room

 

[JAYDEEJOHN]

Its better than 10% over the 4870, and had even more overclocking potential.

 

[randomizer]

definitely it's a good performing card, but i won't buy it because it's HUGE power requirement (but NV's too, not just this 4890).
i believe, that these semiconductor companys (NV,ATI) just don't care about the power optimisation of their chips. a car with a very bad fuel efficiency will eat a lot of petrol, so are computers. 300W for a video card in use ? (in SLI or CF the double or tripple) come on ! 300W of power is enough to heat a smaller room

Video cards serve a dual purpose, a heater can't render anything. Excessive power consumption is by design

Its better than 10% over the 4870, and had even more overclocking potential.

It's really a matter of pay more, get more. The 4870 is great if you want to save some cash, but the 4890 is better for those with more flexible budgets.

 

[JAYDEEJOHN]

Exactly. Its not a bump in perf compared to going from the 4850 to the 4870, but maybe halfway there. Just a tad more polished, a lil meaner. Its like going from a 216 to a 280, except the 280s price is much higher

 

[JAYDEEJOHN]

If it were just 1 company, I maybe could consider that company didnt really care about power consumption. But since theres 2, if 1 comes in at only 50% power usage with the same perf, whod you think would sell? And before anyone says its all about preferences, and theyd sell to those "fans" anyways, the OEMs would simply put the other company out of business, as they usually dont have decent psu's in their rigs

 

[San Pedro]

If you don't have any video card right now, I think the 4890 would be a good choice for the price. If you already have a 4870 then it wouldn't be a worthwhile upgrade IMO (at least for the money). My 4870 512mb seems to do extremely well at 1680x1050. So if you have one, is there a reason you want to upgrade, or do you just have the itch?

 

[randomizer]

I have a 9600GT and I think a 4870 would be the lowest viable upgrade. The 4890 is 100AUD more (~$400) and 15% more performance at 33% higher cost is not very justifiable to someone as stingy as me.

 

[Helloworld_98]

yeah but the 4890 oc's to a card which in the UK costs £100 more than itself, the GTX 285, and the 4890 X2, will beat the GTX 295 so amd will be on top again for a single card.

 

[randomizer]

The GTX285 also OCs.

 

[apache_lives]

the highest end product is never good value - second highest usually is much better value and close enough performance wise

 

[FHDelux]

I think you will get more bang for your buck going with a second 4870 (or saving your money for the next iteration), unless you have someone you can sell it to.

 

[JAYDEEJOHN]

Heres some good info on the 4890 http://www.guru3d.com/article/interview-with-ati-dave-baumann/

 

[RomDA_73]

Thanks for the info guys! Looks like I'm going with the 4870

What would be a good NVIDIA equivalent, btw?

 

[rewindlabs]

Thanks for the info guys! Looks like I'm going with the 4870

What would be a good NVIDIA equivalent, btw?

Do you noobs ever SEARCH!

 

[megamanx00]

The nVidia equivalent would be the GTX 260. Read the 260 reviews.

 

[r_manic]

You can also check out the latest graphics card chart on the main site (home > charts > graphic cards), especially this ranking of performance.

(someone needs to come out with an update soon btw)

 

[rkaye]

why not replace with a nice single 4870 x2 (or 4850 x2) with plans to add a second one in 6mos or so when they are ~$150-175?

 

[kokin]

Can't you just get a 4890 and cf that with a better card later? Can't you crossfire two different ATI cards together or did I get my facts wrong?

 

[daedalus685]

Can't you just get a 4890 and cf that with a better card later? Can't you crossfire two different ATI cards together or did I get my facts wrong?

There is no reason to believe crossfire will work with 4xxx to 5xxx series. You cant CF a 3xxx with a 4 and they are both dx 10.. Besides that the performance of a 5870 with a 4890 would problaby be lower than just the 5870....

And to the guy sayign get a 4870 x2 with plans to get a second later... he is using 1680*1050..... What planet are you from?

For that res, a nice 1gig 4870, or a core 216 260 would be great, and enough for any game.

Edit: DAMN you retarded newbs. Why the hell would you bump this.. making me look like an idiot replaying to sometihng I see is 2 months old... Burn in hell kokin.. He obviously has a new card already.. don't bump old useless threads, specially to ask a qustion beyond stupid.