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Palit HD 4850

Roydon Cerejo, Jul 04, 2008 1641 hrs IST

ATI is back with a bang, and its about time.

Expert Rating:

Superb performance, slim profile, Value for money

Heats up a lot, poor overclocker

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EXPERT REVIEW

Overclocking and Performance Analysis
Having thoroughly enjoyed the insane performance squeezed out of the Palit HD 4850 now it's on to overclocking. This card is clocked at 623MHz on the core and 1986MHz for the memory. We used ATI overdrive and let the Auto-tune do its thing. After a few minutes it showed us a max core of 690MHz and memory of 2306MHz. Unfortunately 3D Mark 06 didn't make it all the way and crashed. After a couple of trials we managed to get a stable overclock of 660MHz for the core and 2100MHz for the memory. At this speed we got a nice boost of around 5% in both 3Mark 06 and Vantage. I still think there's a lot more headroom left once you strap on a good 3rd party cooler.

Another important issue is the heat generated. This thing gets hot as hell and at one point the fan was literally pumping out the hot air in brief puffs. Please make sure you have a good ventilated cabinet.

Conclusion

Where do I start, this card simply blew me away with its performance. I was holding back my 8800GT upgrade for a while now, but after seeing this card perform I have no choice to but to switch teams. The Palit HD 4850 is priced at a sweet Rs.11,500 (plus taxes as applicable) and comes with a 3-year warranty. At this price, I don't think I need to tell you that this is an awesome deal. Currently the 8800GT sells for around 11K but expect a price cut soon. For once, there is a sanely priced ATI card in our market and on time too.

NVIDIA will soon launch a 9800GTX+ variant, which has higher clocks and will be NVIDIA's first 55nm card. From the initial previews flooding the net, this card is shaping up well and will fit into the 15K to 20K price bracket. Next we also have the ATI HD 4870 that comes with GDDR5 memory and gives the GTX 2xx a run for its money. If you thought the HD 4870 is a beast, ATI is working on a new OEM only product codenamed "Super RV770". This card will have an unlocked BIOS so you can push the core to a whopping 950MHz. And with proper water cooling even 1GHz is a possibility.

We will leave all these beasts for later. For now the bottom line is, if you need to retire that aging 7600GT or you are on a quest for a kickass midrange card, this is 'the' card to get.

USER COMMENTS

i am thinking of buying a new graphics card , and after reading this review i think i found my upgrade. Anyone who owns this card please tell me about its stability , since the review shows this card heats up pretty fast. also please tell what is the current rate of this card (5 april 09)

by Damon, patiala, on Apr 05, 2009 10:18 AM, Report abuse Reply

HEY TECHTREE CAN U TELL ME WHAT FRAMERATE IS ACHIEVEABLE WITH THIS CARD WHEN PLAYING CRYSIS AT HIGH DETAIL

by subho, calcutta, on Jan 16, 2009 08:58 PM, Report abuse Reply

what is the price of this card now (dec-08).

by samba, kochi, on Dec 24, 2008 07:06 PM, Report abuse Reply

Please tell when is it comming to India

by Pavan, Bangalore, on Jul 16, 2008 05:55 PM, Report abuse Reply

its already available in mumbai and india i purchsed it last weak for 11350/-

by Sanket Naik, Mumbai, on Aug 03, 2008 11:25 PM, Report abuse

one of the best in business full marks from my side eats up any of the damn game available good crysis performance aswell. good midrange card looking forward for farcry2 !!!!

by Sanket Naik, Mumbai, on Aug 03, 2008 11:23 PM, Report abuse Reply

Can Intex power supply support this card, because i think there is no PCI-e power connector

by Anoop, Cochin, on Jul 24, 2008 07:23 AM, Report abuse Reply

Pleazzzzzzzz tell where it ca be purchased in Delhi.

by ashish, shimla, on Jul 15, 2008 12:50 AM, Report abuse Reply

The 4850 architecture is superior because AMD raised the bar for single-card, single-GPU performance through good design, execution and timing. But then also the Value for money factor comes in. In International market 4850 by reputer manufacturers is now $ 170 i.e. 7k and at this rate an excellent value.

by vijayshimla, Shimla 171001, on Jul 06, 2008 08:13 AM, Report abuse Reply

hi vijay i want to buy this card. can u pl help. I also live in shimla. 9805012805

by bharat, shimla, on Jul 12, 2008 01:10 AM, Report abuse

Call us for Ready Stocks, SETHIA INFOTECH. Ph.32982159/42149599

by Pradeep, chennai, on Jul 10, 2008 12:18 AM, Report abuse Reply

will it work on 400w smps or do i have to upgrade my smps.if yes which one should i opt for.

by Rohit, Mumbai, on Jul 06, 2008 02:21 PM, Report abuse Reply

ATI recommends 450W or more. But even a VIP 500W should be enough. If you want to upgrade the Corsair VX450 is the best.

by Homer, Mumbai, on Jul 06, 2008 09:15 PM, Report abuse

what a waste card it has ddr5 but memory bus width is 256 (SO ANY 1 TELL WHAT THE USE OF DDR5)

by NOOB, NOOB, on Jul 05, 2008 02:01 PM, Report abuse Reply

you, sir! are an ass.. go read some shit on ways to increase mem b/w.. then read on the trade offs.. 512 bit doesn't come for free.. if u want 512 bit pay for the 280 n stikk it up yours..

by whtever, whtever, on Jul 05, 2008 10:31 PM, Report abuse

Ok! Atleast he knows he's a Noob

by YourDad, Your Home, on Jul 06, 2008 12:19 AM, Report abuse

Who said that HD4850 has DDR5 dude? Read the review carefully, HD4870 is a DDR5 card. And besides HD4850 goes head to head with 9800GTX and i don't see it in the review.

by jannat, mumbai, on Jul 06, 2008 03:31 AM, Report abuse

dude when u dont know what ddr4 or ddr5 memory can do on 256 bit bus width, dont comment, it gives it more bandwidth, which is the name of the game, how much memory can the gpu access.

by Anonymous, Gurgaon, on Jul 06, 2008 08:59 AM, Report abuse

techtree has created history, ATI card review in such a short time..the card performs awsome..i was shocked with the price.. incredible!

by muzux2, Srinagar, on Jul 05, 2008 06:44 PM, Report abuse Reply

techtree could u please post a a guide about graphics card that are used for dual monitor display and hdmi output connections from graphic cards ... i have been searching for this solution all over the internet .... another reader nishant has a similiar problem

by mohammed younus, HYDERABAD, on Jul 05, 2008 10:09 AM, Report abuse Reply

All these solutions are readily available with Aditya Infortech. You can contact Mr. Ishaq @ 98490 17024 for more details

by Ashish Gandhi, Hyderabad, on Jul 05, 2008 01:50 PM, Report abuse

Guys ...I needed your help. I am looking for a graphics card primarily to play HD movies and general requirements for Vista (like DreamScene). I was hoping for a HDMI and Component output (I am not sure how easily DVI to HDMI convertors are available). Could you help me out?

by Nishant, Hyderabad, on Jul 04, 2008 04:54 PM, Report abuse Reply

Try the Radeon 3650... It ought to be good enough for hdmi... Will cost around 5k I guess...

by Ikrana, Pune, on Jul 05, 2008 12:54 PM, Report abuse

Sweet!! =* ATI is proved its self again!! :D

by SamRock, Bangalore, on Jul 05, 2008 11:39 AM, Report abuse Reply

I like it!

by Digvijay, New Delhi, on Jul 05, 2008 11:02 AM, Report abuse Reply

THANKS A LOT TECHTREE FOR POSTING THE REVIEW OF HD 4850 I HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS CARD SINCE MAY ..... CAN U PLEASE POST A GPU COOLER GUIDE STEP BY STEP AND WATER COOLER GUIDE .... THE LATEST GPUS GTX SERIES OR ATI 4XXX SERIES HEATS UP LIKE BOILED EGGS ... PLEASE POST A GUIDE ABOUT THE COOLERS THE WHAT COOLERS WE HAVE BUY AND HOW TO INSTALL THEM ...

by mohammed younus, HYDERABAD, on Jul 05, 2008 10:04 AM, Report abuse Reply

so u dont have a 9800gtx to compare this against at ur labs?

by tjr, mumbai, on Jul 05, 2008 02:42 AM, Report abuse Reply

thank go atleast hd 4000 series

by asfhan, mumbai, on Jul 04, 2008 09:15 PM, Report abuse Reply

the best bang for buck.. just love ati

by Chintan, Mumbai, on Jul 04, 2008 07:01 PM, Report abuse Reply

excellent work.

by jigu, ahmedabad, on Jul 04, 2008 06:55 PM, Report abuse Reply

Excellent job! Great review :)

by anoop, mumbai, on Jul 04, 2008 06:05 PM, Report abuse Reply

Finally review of HD 4xxxx cards. Great Job