Summer 2008 Graphics Performance Roundup

Author: Harry Butler & Richard Swinburne
Published: 11th July 2008
Comments (83) Stumble

HIS Radeon HD 4870

Manufacturer: HIS
UK Price (as Reviewed): £187.99 in VAT
US Price (as Reviewed): $309.99 ex Tax

Core Clock: 750 MHz
Shader Clock: 750 MHz
Memory Clock: 3,600 MHz (effective)
Warranty: Three years (parts and labour)

HIS is the first of two HD 4870s we're including in this roundup, and while both are reference designs we were keen to point out that there is always differences in price, warranty and box bundles. HIS leads the way with its version that features DVI to VGA and HDMI adapters, component break-out cable, composite adapter and CrossFire bridge.

On top of this, HIS also reignites the close relationship ATI has with Valve and includes an offer for free Half Life 2: Deathmatch and Lost Coast (which are available free anyway), as well as "incredible savings" on other Half Life 2 packages.

Summer 2008 Graphics Performance Roundup HIS Radeon HD 4870 Summer 2008 Graphics Performance Roundup HIS Radeon HD 4870[

Not so much a free game, although the deathmatch is fun to have a bash at. Instead of software, HIS throw in one of the coolest toys we've ever seen. It's a multi-tool that even includes a light and spirit level so from a case building or even modding perspective it's completely genius. Unfortunately for HIS though, we promptly lost it so it won't be going back with the box.. *cough*.

Summer 2008 Graphics Performance Roundup HIS Radeon HD 4870 Summer 2008 Graphics Performance Roundup HIS Radeon HD 4870

The card itself is the basic reference design with an HIS badge over the top. Compared to the HD 3870 it's got a larger dual slot cooler and requires two 6-pin PCI-Express power connectors to accommodate the slightly higher 160W power use. While the HD 4870 still uses a 256-bit memory bus with 512MB of on-board memory, now half that of the latest Nvidia GeForce GTX 280 cards, it is the first commercial card to feature lightning fast GDDR5 memory. Made by Qimonda, this memory runs at an eye watering 3.6GHz offering up oodles of bandwidth over standard GDDR3.

Summer 2008 Graphics Performance Roundup HIS Radeon HD 4870 Summer 2008 Graphics Performance Roundup HIS Radeon HD 4870

The fan has also changed in shape and increased in size, and while we initially developed flashbacks and cold shivers to the days of the HD 2900 XT blobby monster that could simultaneously melt lead and deafen you, thankfully the HD 4870 fan is far more restrained. HIS' replacement sticker is actually pretty funky to be honest, with the bolt-like surround to the fan giving off a more robust, industrial feel to the traditionally ATI red graphics card.

Summer 2008 Graphics Performance Roundup HIS Radeon HD 4870 Summer 2008 Graphics Performance Roundup HIS Radeon HD 4870

Warranty

HIS offers a three year limited warranty on all of its products that covers parts and labour. During the first year, this warranty is held with the retailer where you purchased the card and the remaining two years are handled by the manufacturer.

One thing that is definitely noteworthy is the fact that the warranty doesn’t start when you purchase the card, instead it starts from the day when the card was manufactured – that’s not ideal if the card is going to sit in a warehouse for six months. Despite that though, a good thing with HIS’s warranty terms is that you’re able to transfer this warranty should you choose to sell the card at a later date – this should sweeten the deal a little bit even if you’re put off by when the warranty term starts.

Shopping



Dragonage