ASUS EAH5870 1GB Graphics Card Review

Posted by: Sahil Mannick (Helios1234) on: 11/10/2009 09:47 AM [ Print | 0 comment(s) ]

Conclusion
The combination of the ASUS HD 5870 and Windows 7 was a match made in heaven. There\'s no better way to compliment one than by buying the other for some downright brilliant performance. In our results, the GTX295 still kept its performance crown, but it would be unfair to penalise ATI\'s offering because it has been set at lower price point at which Nvidia can\'t compete. Granted that prices have increased, but the GTX295 is sparsely available and does not feature the key features unique to ATI\'s current line up. If Eyefinity doesn\'t impress you with its up to 3 monitor support, then surely, DX 11 is a major selling point. ATI has made all DX 10 cards above £200 obsolete and the HD 5870 plays a key role in their successful initiation. Features such as tessellations holds promise for a very exciting future and getting a HD 5870 will prepare you for those.

There were a few anomalous results with the HD 5870 on Vista in that, Enemy Territories Quake Wars and Unreal Tournament 3 failed to deliver the right performance but moving on to Windows 7 unlocks the potential that the card holds. In true ATI fashion, I expect future drivers to deliver incremental performance boosts and optimizations.

At £300, the card is at the perfect price point and not surprisingly, demand has grown. We also have to talk about how ASUS have managed to differentiate themselves from their competitors. Often, I see people recommending others to buy cards regardless of the brand. While that might be fair advise, ASUS not only delivers their cards at a lower price point than most, but they also bundle a free game and their excellent Voltage Tweak system. Why bother getting another brand, only to tweak it to use the ASUS bios when you can buy the original ASUS offering and retain your warranty at no extra expense?

Pros
[+] Excellent performance at all resolution and settings
[+] Direct X 11 compatibility and associated technological feature sets
[+] Eyefinity support
[+] Very aesthetically pleasing
[+] Reasonably priced
[+] Free game
[+] Quiet and efficient
[+] Unique software bundle for maximum overclocking

Cons
[-] Does not outperform the GTX295
[-] Some questionable Vista results
[-] Price is set to increase
[-] Very long

Despite its shortcoming, the ASUS HD5870 is still a brilliant card and I highly recommend it. It may not outperform the GTX295 but at a lower price, that\'s not its aim. Some of the results may be down to the benchmarks themselves but again, there were absolutely no issues on Windows 7, which I believe will compliment the card well.

ASUS delivers the whole package with the HD5870, so I will award them the Vortez Hardware Gold Award.

I would like to thank ASUS for their utmost patience and support in providing the sample for this review, and Jimmyt1988 in our forums for lending me his GTX295 without which this review would not have been possible.

To further discuss this product, please visit out forums.