HD 4850 vs HD 5670

I'm purchasing this card for an upcoming birthday, and I'm running fairly short on time, so I cant do in-depth research on both. Which of the two cards would run games like L4D2 and Borderlands better at 1280x1024?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] -_-Product

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] -_-Product

Thank you for your time.

The HD4850 is more powerful

Jaguar, good comparison, but the 4830 is weaker than the 4770.

4650 < 4670 ~ 3850 < 3870 < 4830 ~ 5670 < 4770 < 4850 ~ 5750 < 4870 ~ 5770

Correct for the 4830 = 9800GT. Close for the 4770.
Performing between a 4830 and a 4850, it performs slightly better than the 9800GT - it more equals the 8800GTS 512mb - or slightly below the 9800GTX/GTX+/GTS250.

I don't know why Tomshardware made a separate GPU hierarchy rank for it though - the difference is smaller than the difference between, say a GTX260 to GTX275 or 4870 to 4890.

Thanks for all the replies, they were very helpful in making my decision. In terms of reliability, which brand of the 4850 would you say is the best? I've purchased two Sapphire cards in the past and was beyond pleased, is there any common problems with this particular card?

On a side note, ATI's numbering system is extremely confusing to me, is there any sort of pattern to their system that would help me choose cards easier in the future? If not, is there an accurate website that catalogs all the specifications of cards and makes them easily comparable (like a side-by-side feature)?

And thanks again for your time.

MGSmaster101- The brand is really up to personal preference. Sapphire has been good to you in the past, go for it (it also has a pretty good reputation in general). XFX has a great warranty (at least in North America) and a great reputation. Diamond and Powercolor tend to be a little bit lower on the list in general, but if the price is better, they are generally just fine as well. Take a look at the particular cards that you have available in your price range and check reviews of their coolers and look at the warranties etc.

As for the naming/numbering scheme, it really is fairly straight-forward, though the performance of a 5xxx vs a 4xxx series can be a little tough to tell. basically though, the higher the number the better the card, as you can see in the chart that rolli59 linked. 4890 is faster than 4870 is faster than 4850 is faster than 4770, etc. 5970>5870>5850>5770.

Really close, so I'll just edit your post some:

Now, something that wasn't mentioned is sometimes a card comes along that fits in one family, but it's performance crosses over into the other family, rivaling or overtaking the bottom member of that family. Such was the case with the HD 4770. It would outperform a 4830, and in some cases could rival a 4850.

Also, keep in mind that ATI generally moves ahead so it's x8xx family from one generation comes back the next year in a newly revised version as the x7xx family. The same can be said of all families. The revised versions basically just move down one family notch from the previous generation.

^Lies!

5670 = $84 - $74 w/ MR

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814161319

I did not call you a liar. It was in reference to the content of your comment, which contains an incorrect price for all HD5670's. Sorry if "Lies" was offensive... Didn't realize you were simply quoting the price he gave for one specific card.

Since asked, I suppose that makes me a bargain finder since I found a cheaper one that with MR is $46 less than the one the OP originally linked.

Also, 512MB cards will perform quite well at that resolution. 1GB isn't necessary.

Slight mistake.

The 3870 = 9600 GT
The 4830 = 9800 GTX
The 4850 = 9800 GTX+ < GTS 250 <4870

But to the threaderstarter the 4850 would spank the 5670.