Reviews of the ATI Radeon HD 3850
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CNET Review
The Good: Fastest 3D card under $200; solid home-theater capabilities; supports multiple card configurations with up to four cards in the same PC.
The Bad: CrossFire performance remains sketchy depending on the game; despite DirectX 10 support, actually switching those features on remains too challenging; newer, potentially faster Nvidia cards in the same price range are supposedly just around the corner.
The Bottom Line: Despite the usual caveats of an ever-fluctuating 3D market, for the moment, at least, ATI's new Radeon HD 3850 graphics card delivers the best bang-for-the buck in PC graphics hardware. Until now we haven't had an acceptable sub-$200 option for PC gaming this year. Thanks to AMD, now we do.
Manufacturer: ATI Technologies Inc.
Part number: CNETATIRadeonHD3850
General
- Device Type Graphics adapter
- Enclosure Type Plug-in card
- Vista Capability This is a modern graphics card capable of running all the new features in Windows Vista, including the upcoming DirectX 10.
- Interface Type PCI Express 2.0 x16
Processor / Memory
- Graphics Processor / Vendor ATI Radeon HD 3850
- Graphics Card Performance This card is compatible with the new rendering features of DirectX 10, which is featured in the Windows Vista operating system.
- RAMDAC Clock Speed 400 MHz
- Video Memory Installed 256 MB
- Technology GDDR3 SDRAM 256-bit
- Features Integrated HD Audio controller, ATI CrossFireX Technology, Avivo HD Technology
Video Input
- Type None
Video Output
- Max Resolution (external) 2560 x 1600
- Supported Display Graphics QXGA (2048x1536), HDTV (1920x1080), 1920x1200, 2560x1600
- API Supported DirectX 10.1, OpenGL 2.0
- Max Monitors Supported 2
- TV Interface HDTV out
- Analog Video Format Component video, Composite video, S-Video
- Digital Video Standard High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI), Digital Visual Interface (DVI)
- HDCP compatible Yes
- Video Compression Standards MPEG-1, H.264, MPEG-4, MPEG-2
Expansion / Connectivity
- Interfaces 1 x HDMI - 19 pin HDMI Type A ( With adapter ), 1 x S-video / composite / HDTV component video output, 2 x DVI-I (dual link) - 29 pin combined DVI
- Compatible Slots 1 x PCI Express 2.0 x16
Miscellaneous
- Cables Included 1 x HDMI-DVI adapter
Software / System Requirements
- Software Included Drivers & Utilities
- Windows Vista Windows Vista Ready
Product Photos
User Opinions
Buying Choices
from 3 online stores: Lowest Price: $129.99
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TigerDirect
$144.99 |
In stock: yes
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Newegg.com
$129.99 |
In stock: yes
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CompUSA
$144.99 |
In stock: yes
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