Agreed, BF3 eats up VRAM in all tests i've seen. 1GB is what I would consider a decent GPU for BF3.
He could give it a go, but he'd be looking at a low res with low details and no AA. His card won't even support MLAA, should be though on par with 360 as it runs at just under 1280 x 720 on a 360. They say on the PC 1280 x 720 with MLAA enabled or FXAA etc with low detail is what you'd be looking at on the 360 or PS3.
Me, I played the game on my laptop of all things with a ATI 5650 1GB at 1366 x 768 for online with meduim and no AA and for the single player I upped to 1600 x 900 MLAA no in game AA high details for most and SSAO (I think) and no MSAA and it coped really well..
Its a good game if you've got the kit, single player was a little lacking mind.
