Because we want a sense of the entire sub-$100 graphics card market, we're generating two sets of benchmarks. For the first set, we're dropping detail settings and resolutions to the point where very low-cost cards can contend (down to a minimum of 1280x720). The next set is at 1920x1080 at more demanding detail settings.

We've almost completely eliminated mechanical storage in the lab, and instead lean on solid-state drives to alleviate I/O-related bottlenecks. Samsung sent all of our offices 256 GB 840 Pros, so we standardize on these exceptional SSDs.

Naturally, discrete graphics cards require a substantial amount of stable power, so XFX sent along its PRO850W 80 PLUS Bronze-certified power supply. This modular PSU employs a single +12 V rail rated for 70 A. XFX claims that this unit provides 850 W of continuous power (not peak) at 50 degrees Celsius (notably higher than the inside of most enclosures).
| Test System | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CPU | Intel Core i5-2550K (Sandy Bridge), Overclocked to 4.2 GHz @ 1.3 V | ||||
| Motherboard | Asus P8Z77-V LX LGA 1155, Chipset: Intel Z77M | ||||
| Networking | On-Board Gigabit LAN controller | ||||
| Memory | Corsair Performance Memory, 4 x 4 GB, 1866 MT/s, CL 9-9-9-24-1T | ||||
| Graphics | XFX Radeon R7 240 DDR3 730/750 MHz GPU, 2 GB DDR3 at 900 MHz (1800 MT/s) XFX Radeon R7 250 GDDR5 1000/1050 MHz GPU, 1 GB GDDR5 at 1150 MHz (4600 MT/s) Sapphire Radeon HD 7730 GDDR5 800 MHz GPU, 1 GB GDDR5 at 1125 MHz (4500 MT/s) Reference Radeon HD 6670 GDDR5 800 MHz GPU, 1 GB GDDR5 at 1000 MHz (4000 MT/s) Gigabyte Radeon HD 6670 DDR3 800 MHz GPU, 1 GB DDR3 at 900 MHz (1600 MT/s) Reference AMD Radeon HD 7750 800 MHz GPU, 1 GB GDDR5 at 1125 MHz (4500 MT/s) Gigabyte Radeon HD 7770 1000 MHz GPU, 1 GB GDDR5 at 1125 MHz (4500 MT/s) Zotac GeForce GT 630 GDDR5 810 MHz GPU, 1 GB GDDR5 at 900 MHz (3600 MT/s) Reference Nvidia GT 640 900 MHz GPU, 1 GB DDR3 at 891 MHz (1782 MT/s) | ||||
| Hard Drive | Samsung 840 Pro, 256 GB SSD, SATA 6Gb/s | ||||
| Power | XFX PRO850W, ATX12V, EPS12V | ||||
| Software and Drivers | |||||
| Operating System | Microsoft Windows 8 Pro x64 | ||||
| DirectX | DirectX 11 | ||||
| Graphics Drivers | AMD Catalyst 13.11 Beta 9.5, Nvidia GeForce 331.93 Beta | ||||
| Benchmark Configuration | |
|---|---|
| 3D Games | |
| Metro: Last Light | Version 1.0.0.0, DirectX 10, Built-in Benchmark |
| Grid 2 | Version 1.6.89.06, Version 1.5.26.05, 25-Sec. Fraps |
| Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag | Version 1.04, Custom THG Benchmark, 60-Sec. Fraps |
| Battlefield 4 | Version 1.2, Direct X 11, Built-in Benchmark, 60-Sec. Fraps |
| BioShock Infinite | Version 1.0.1441711, Built-in Benchmark, Fraps |
- The Sub-$100 Graphics Card Market
- Introducing The Radeon R7 240 And 250
- Test Setup And Benchmarks
- Results: Metro: Last Light
- Results: Grid 2
- Results: BioShock Infinite
- Results: Battlefield 4
- Results: Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag
- Power And Temperature Benchmarks
- When It Comes To Graphics, $100 Goes A Long Way
A 400W is overkill if you're running a power-efficient CPU.
Look at the results, the most this system puilled with the R7 240 is 122 Watts under load. That's the whole system, with an overclocked Core i5-2500K!
A good 250W PSU should be fine. AMD is kind of recommending overkill here, but they do that to protect people from poor quality PSUs. A 250W HP shouldn't be a problem as long as the platform isn't power hungry.
Watch the language - G
Watch the language - G
A 400W is overkill if you're running a power-efficient CPU.
Look at the results, the most this system puilled with the R7 240 is 122 Watts under load. That's the whole system, with an overclocked Core i5-2500K!
A good 250W PSU should be fine. AMD is kind of recommending overkill here, but they do that to protect people from poor quality PSUs. A 250W HP shouldn't be a problem as long as the platform isn't power hungry.
*EDIT BY EDITOR*
You're absolutely right! We fixed the charts, thanks for catching that!
A good 250W power supply will have 18-20 amps on the 12V rail, which is fine for the R7 240.
I don't know why you bring up the 7770, it clearly draws a lot more power than the R7 240.
We were talking about the R7 240, not the 7770.
Even the 7770 is only a ~86W card... just barely high enough to require a 6pin PCIe power connection.
What? What the heck are you talking about?