Gigabyte 4850 1GB

Conclusion

Whilst the initial results for the 4850 1GB were good, it was only when we put them in our Cost Per Frame spreadsheet that the results came alive. It didn’t just beat the 4870 and GTX260, it walked all over them. Whilst it is worth bearing in mind that you do pay a premium for top end performance, the difference between the 4850 1GB and GTX260 is just phenomenal.

For gamers that aren’t too worried about running Crysis maxed out at high resolutions, this card offers an excellent deal. It was able to cope with all the other test games and resolution combo’s and produced perfectly acceptable frame rates.

Unfortunately we couldn’t find the exact model tested today available from any reputable UK retailers, but for £143.69 from Scan.co.uk you can get the passively cooled version of this card. Whilst were not sure how well the cooler will perform, it should perform identically, whilst emitting no noise. The fact the card exhibits performance that’s in GTX260 and 4870 territory, yet costs under £150, means it is a superb deal and I am extremely confident in recommending the card to others.

The Good

+ Extremely low cost per frame
+ Performance not too far behind cards at a much higher price point
+ Quiet Cooler
+ Produced playable frame rates in all our test games apart from Crysis.

The Mediocre
* Exact model tested couldn’t be sourced in the UK.
* Bundle doesn’t include any games or free applications.

The Bad
– Zilch

Overclock3D would like to thank Gigabyte for providing todays review sample. Discuss in the forums here.