ATI Radeon HD 4870 x2
About:
Conceived out of two Radeon HD 4870 GPU cores on a single PCB, the HD 4870 x2 is a monster to be sure. It features 1600 SPs (800 from each 4870), and features an unheard 2 GB of GDDR5 memory that operates at a whopping 3600 MHz. The phrase gross overkill comes to mind. AMD has gone all out with this one, and the 4870 x2 is supposed to do what the single GPU version couldn’t – dethrone the mighty GRX 280 and restore ATI’s place at the helm of the 3D performance realm again – a position it has not gained after it’s now ancient 9800 Pro cards.
Features:
The only 4870 x2 at the moment is from ATI itself. This card is also available in different forms from similar vendors such as GeCube, ASUS, Sapphire and VisionTek. Each of two cores is clocked at a super fast 750 MHz, and the memory runs at a superlative 3,600 MHz. The card itself has no HDMI port and ATI chose not to provide an adaptor. The card itself looks very long and sleek, and is built well. The heat sink extends to the rear side of the card. This aids the dissipation of the heat.
Performance:
The 4870 x2 is very fast, but the usual issues with cross fire support throughout the applications resurfaces. It demolishes all the GTX 280s in Crysis and manages an excellent 31 FPS with all DX 10 effects set to maximum. S.T.A.L.K.E.R is another benchmark that is runaway ATI victory with this card. Company Of Heroes doesn’t scale with multi GPU solutions and the 4870 x2 gets a blemish on it’s spotless scorecard. The x2 has a LOT of potential, but there are a couple of issues. These issues can be easily solved, if AMD puts a little more revenue in it’s research and development section. Kudos to ATI for coming up with the GTX Killer.
Tags: amd, ati radeon, games
