Still a decent card?

[DanH84]

my brother is on the market for a new gfx card and he's been offered a Powercolor HD 3870 X2 1GB. is this still a decent card for 1680x1050 gaming? is it a decent upgrade on a 3850?

any advice would be appreciated

 

[jak731]

how much is it going for?

personally i say no,get the 4850, gtx260 216 core or 4780 depending on budget

 

[DanH84]

£120- he could go a tiny bit higher but he's buying other components and is on a limited budget so the lower the better.

 

[jak731]

4850 then, in games with very good CF support the 3870x2 may do better, but in almost every other situation the 4850 wins

 

[DanH84]

hmm thanks for your help. i see on power consumption the 4850 is a lot better, he'll never use crossfire so that isn't a consideration, however the ones i see are £20 to £30 more than the 3870x2 so i'll see what he says.

 

[triggerthat]

Not sure if I am talking rubbish, but how about a 8800 GTX?

 

[rjk]

no - a 4850 is the card to go for in that price range

there is a guide in my sig that explains the ins and outs of the current cards

it also gives you a breakdown of resolution benefits for each card and a nice roundup of all manufaturers and their warranties

 

[gt_junkie]

however the ones i see are £20 to £30 more than the 3870x2 so i'll see what he says.

This looks ok: 4850

If you order it for him then you'll get free postage meaning it's only £3.36 over your £120 limit.

gt

 

[EvilOne]

I would recomend a 4850, with custom cooler pre-fited. And only 512mb, not a 1GB. One of those will clock very well for the price, and be kind to your ears at the same time

 

[psychas]

i would rather have 4850 then 3870x2 now less multi gpu problems