ATI Radeon HD 5850 Review | 118 Data compared

The ATI Radeon HD 5850 is a significant graphical upgrade over the previous-generation Radeon HD 4870, built on a 40nm manufacturing process using 2.15 billion transistors. It features 1,440 stream processors, a 725MHz GPU clock speed, a 1000MHz memory clock speed (4Gbps data rate), and a 256-bit memory interface yielding 128GB/s of peak bandwidth. Physically, the card is 9 inches long and utilizes a dual-slot cooling shroud equipped with a barrel fan to exhaust hot air. For display connectivity, it includes two dual-link DVI ports, one HDMI output with audio, and one DisplayPort, fully supporting ATI Eyefinity multi-display technology. The review highlights several pros, including its ability to achieve over 2.09 TeraFLOPS of compute performance and a high 52.2 GTexels/s texture fillrate. Additionally, it boasts improved energy efficiency, consuming a maximum of 151 watts, which is 9 watts lower than the older HD 4870 and allows it to run on just two 6-pin PCI Express power connectors. On the downside, the card has clear performance constraints compared to AMD's flagship HD 5870, as it is clocked slower, features 8 fewer...

The ATI Radeon HD 5850 is a highly capable, cut-down version of AMD's "Cypress" architecture that offers excellent value by retaining most of its flagship sibling's core specifications. It features 1,440 stream shaders, 72 texture units, and all 32 render output units, which are only minor reductions compared to the higher-end 5870. Additionally, it boasts 1GB of GDDR5 graphics memory on a proper 256-bit memory bus, ensuring plenty of bandwidth for high-resolution gaming. It is also fully equipped with standard modern video interfaces, including two DVI ports, one HDMI port, and one DisplayPort. A major architecture highlight is its full support for Microsoft's DirectX 11 API, featuring a hardware tessellator for increased geometric detail and Compute Shader support for parallel processing power in non-graphics software. The primary pros of the card include its strong price-to-performance ratio, excellent image quality, and robust API support. Compared to the 5870, it benefits from a more compact physical size and lower power consumption, allowing it to fit easily into smaller PC builds. However, there are notable cons to consider. Its clock speeds are significantly...

The Techgage review praises the ASUS Radeon EAH5850 as an exceptional "best bang for the buck" component based on AMD's reference design, offering high gaming performance that often outpaces the more expensive NVIDIA GTX 285 in titles like World in Conflict. Pros include excellent thermal performance, low power consumption, DirectX 11 support, and strong overclocking potential supported by the included voltage utility. However, the card struggles with maximum settings in demanding games like Crysis Warhead at high resolutions, and reviewers noted unusual stuttering in Grand Theft Auto IV. Further cons include reliance on the stock reference cooler, a clunky software UI, and, at the time of review, poor market availability.

The HotHardware AMD ATI Radeon HD 5850 Performance Review introduces AMD's more affordable, pared-down version of its DirectX 11 flagship, the Radeon HD 5870. Priced competitively at $259, the card is built on a 40nm process with 2.15 billion transistors, featuring a lower clocked 725 MHz engine, 1,440 stream processors, 72 texture units, and 1 GB of GDDR5 memory delivering 128 GB/sec of bandwidth. Benchmark testing across visually demanding titles like Crysis, FarCry 2, and Tom Clancy's H.A.W.X. shows that the Radeon HD 5850 fiercely matches or occasionally outperforms NVIDIA’s pricier single-GPU competitor, the GeForce GTX 285, making it an incredibly attractive value proposition for PC enthusiasts. The primary pros highlighted in the review include its excellent price-to-performance ratio, modern future-proof feature set—including native DirectX 11 support and ATI Eyefinity multi-display technology—and outstanding efficiency, drawing only 27 Watts at idle and 151 Watts at maximum board power. This low power draw directly translates to another major pro: an impressively cool and quiet operation, where the cooling fan remains virtually inaudible during everyday tasks. Conversely, the notable cons are its reduced...

The Radeon HD 5850 review highlights the card's position as a highly capable and appealing high-end option. Priced around $310 due to limited availability, it targets Nvidia’s GeForce GTX 285—a single-GPU powerhouse AMD previously struggled to rival—while a CrossFire pairing of two 5850s aims to directly outperform Nvidia’s $500 flagship dual-GPU card, the GeForce GTX 295. Built on the same architecture as the 5870, the card is tested across multiple gaming benchmarks like Crysis and Grand Theft Auto IV to determine its true value. The review also evaluates how the card scales on different architectures, specifically testing whether moving to a x8 PCI Express 2.0 connection on Intel's Lynnfield platform causes performance bottlenecks compared to a full x16 slot. Pros and Cons Pros: The card serves as a strong, standalone DX11 graphics solution that delivers impressive benchmark scores. It successfully rivals the GTX 285 on its own and significantly bests the GTX 295 when scaled in a dual-card CrossFire configuration. Additionally, it features a shorter physical length compared to the 5870, making it easier to fit into standard PC cases....

The ATI Radeon HD 5850 is reviewed as a highly capable, cut-down version of AMD’s flagship HD 5870 graphics card, offering a compelling balance of performance and value. Priced around £225 (roughly £85 cheaper than the 5870), it aims to deliver near-flagship framerates without the premium price tag, making it an appealing option for cost-conscious PC enthusiasts. The card is packed with modern features, including DirectX 11 support, a dedicated hardware tessellator, 32 render outputs, and fast GDDR5 graphics memory, allowing it to hold its own against Nvidia’s competing Fermi-based GTX 470. The review highlights several key strengths and weaknesses of the GPU. On the positive side, the card delivers immense gaming performance and excellent image quality while running cooler and consuming less power than the step-up HD 5870. However, it is not without its drawbacks. Despite being cheaper than the flagship model, it is still considered relatively expensive, remains quite a power-hungry "gas guzzler," and suffers from weak geometric tessellation performance when compared to newer architecture.

The TechSpot review of the HIS Radeon HD 5850 highlights the card as an exceptional value, offering roughly 85-90% of the flagship HD 5870's performance for $260. Featuring a 40nm process, 1GB GDDR5, and DirectX 11 support, it outperforms competitors like the GeForce GTX 285 in key benchmarks while maintaining a compact 24cm PCB. Key pros include this high price-to-performance ratio, low power consumption (151W under load), and an effective cooler. However, cons include high operational temperatures, with the card reaching 83°C under load, and occasional performance lags in specific titles like Unreal Tournament 3.

The TechPowerUp HIS Radeon HD 5850 1 GB review highlights the card as an exceptional value, utilizing a 40 nm Cypress PRO GPU, 1,440 shading units, and 1,024 MB of GDDR5 to deliver strong performance that trails the HD 5870 by only 15%. Key advantages include superior power efficiency, top-tier acoustic levels, and massive overclocking potential via Volterra voltage control, although the review notes limited launch availability and challenging rear-mounted 6-pin power connectors. The card offers an incredible price-to-performance ratio for 1920x1200 gaming, supported by a comprehensive bundle that includes a Colin McRae: DiRT 2 coupon, making it a highly recommended choice despite slight struggles at 2560x1600 resolution.

The Legit Reviews article examines the ATI Radeon HD 5850 graphics card, evaluating both single-card performance and a dual-card CrossFire configuration against contemporary rivals. Positioned as a more affordable alternative to the flagship Radeon HD 5870, the HD 5850 launches at a highly competitive price of $259. It utilizes the same foundational GPU architecture as its larger sibling but features a cut-down configuration of 1,440 stream processors (operating at a 725MHz core clock) and 1GB of GDDR5 memory clocked at 1000MHz. Benchmark testing across demanding titles like Batman: Arkham Asylum and Need for Speed: Shift reveals that while a single HD 5850 runs roughly 15% to 25% slower than the HD 5870, it consistently outperforms NVIDIA’s single-GPU flagship, the GeForce GTX 285. When paired in a multi-GPU CrossFire layout, the setup scales exceptionally well, transforming into a performance "monster" that routinely surpasses dual-GPU solutions like the GeForce GTX 295 and GTX 275 SLI configurations in synthetic benchmarks like 3DMark Vantage.

The Radeon HD 5850 1024MB launches as a highly compelling, cost-effective alternative to its more expensive sibling, the Radeon HD 5870, balancing price and performance for high-end gaming. Priced competitively at 259 USD, it positions itself to go neck-to-neck against the 349 USD GeForce GTX 285. The review explores both standalone GPU capabilities and multi-GPU scalability via CrossfireX setups across a wide suite of tests, including DirectX 9 and DirectX 10 gaming benchmarks like Crysis Warhead, Far Cry 2, and Call of Duty 5, alongside GPU video transcoding evaluations. A major pro of the Radeon HD 5850 is its extensive, forward-looking feature set, offering full DirectX 11 compatibility, hardware tessellation, HDR texture compression, and ATI Eyefinity multi-monitor support. It delivers brutal rendering performance at a significantly lower price point than the 5870, making high-tier gaming more accessible during difficult economic times. On the downside, while it offers a better value proposition, it remains a slight step slower than the top-tier 5870 variant. Additionally, users interested in the absolute highest performance thresholds will still face hefty price tags if they scale...

The HEXUS.net evaluation of the AMD ATI Radeon HD 5850 1,024MB details a highly favourable, scaled-down alternative to the range-topping HD 5870 flagship. Measuring 243mm long, 111mm high, and 35mm deep, this more cost-efficient graphics card matches the size of the older HD 4890 board but is a telling 30mm shorter and roughly 100g lighter (at 860g) than its larger sibling. Architecturally, it achieves these tighter physical parameters through a smaller PCB and reduced clock speeds that require less regulation circuitry. Key specifications include dual CrossFireX fingers supporting up to four-board setups, dual six-pin PCIe power connectors positioned at the front, and an exposed rear design that drops the all-around frame found on the HD 5870. For connectivity, the rear is identically equipped with four digital outputs spanning DVI, sound-carrying DisplayPort, and HDMI. HEXUS.net The review highlights several prominent pros and cons of the £200 design. On the positive side, its compact dimensions allow it to comfortably fit into the majority of standard chassis without interfering with other hardware components. Acoustically, it stands out as the most preferable high-end GPU...

The WSGF review of the ATI Radeon HD 5850 and 5830 highlights the 5850 as an excellent value, providing linear, high-end performance near the 5870 for multi-monitor Eyefinity setups. Conversely, the 5830 is criticized for its reduced 1,120 shader count and 175-watt TDP, which, despite a higher core clock, often results in inferior performance compared to the 5850 and sometimes the 5770. While both cards successfully deliver over 60 fps in DirectX 9 titles across large display arrays, they struggle significantly with demanding DirectX 10/11 titles under Eyefinity. Ultimately, the review strongly recommends the 5850 over the 5830 for multi-panel gaming, as the latter faces severe bottlenecks in high-resolution, modern scenarios.