Power, Temperature, And Noise Benchmarks
Before we review the following benchmarks we should reiterate that the Gigabyte GeForce GT 220 and GeForce GT 430 we’re using are non-reference models with aftermarket coolers. As such, the GPU temperature and noise of those solutions is different from reference boards sent out by Nvidia.
Also note that the Radeon HD 5550 and Radeon HD 5450 sport passive coolers and make no noise whatsoever—the results shown are an artifact of acoustics generated by the rest of the system.
Noise readings are taken one inch from the fan side of the cooler in order to isolate the card as the sound variable.
We reverted to FurMark for our power load reading, as our usual choice, 3DMark 11, does not work with the GeForce GT 220. As such, these values are much higher than a user would see during game play. In any case, the Radeon HD 6450 lands about where we would expect it to in the middle of the pack.
The aftermarket cooler on Gigabyte's GV-N220OC-1GI yields a fantastic result here. It’s interesting that the passively-cooled Radeon HD 5450 manages a lower load temperature than the Radeon HD 6450 with its fan.
The Radeon HD 6450 reference card looks bad here, but remember that the other Radeons are passively cooled and generate no noise whatsoever. Meanwhile, the Gigabyte and Asus cards have quiet aftermarket coolers.