4850 deal on newegg

[Asus]

Sapphire 4850 (free shipping)
Add to cart and enter promo code: VGA62620
$174.99 shipped after $25 instant savings

$154.99 after $20 rebate.

The rebate is good through 7/15.
I have no idea how long the promo code will last though.


The promo code also works on this PowerColor 4850 card. And the mail-in rebate is $25! So that brings it to $150.

 

[Krynn72]

Missed it

Still has the rebate though, so im down for it. Powercolor is a good brand right? Im thinking of getting the one with the free remote.

Also, I hear they run hot, and I need a new case, so is the Antec 300 good enough with airflow to be safe? Its got two fans with it, one in the back, one in the top. Should I get another fan for the front or side? Or both?

 

[Sedako]

The Asus 4850 has a $30 rebate. If you still want the Powercolor though, that's the one I bought, and it runs great so far. Lifetime warranty too.

Also Krynn, these cards run warm because of a bug in the BIOS that sets the fan speed at a very low percentage. There are currently both BIOS and software fixes (like the one I use). A future driver update may fix the issue. Concerning the case, I'm not a fan of PSU's installed on the bottom. Most PSU's have an internal intake fan that can help move air out of the case, and that feature will likely go to waste with it on the bottom (as hot air rises). If I were going to get a cheap mid-tower case, I would go with the Apevia X-Supra, with tooless assembly, 3 fan slots, and a neat design.

There are a few different colors to choose from as well.

 

[Asus]

Missed it

Also, I hear they run hot

They just keep the heat on the cooler and don't get rid of it very well (slow fan). So even though they may read a high temp even when idle, they don't actually produce a lot more heat than the 3850 or 8800GT.

 

[Krynn72]

Also Krynn, these cards run warm because of a bug in the BIOS that sets the fan speed at a very low percentage. There are currently both BIOS and software fixes (like the one I use). A future driver update may fax the issue.

Awesome, thats good to know. Thanks.

Concerning the case, I'm not a fan of PSU's installed on the bottom. Most PSU's have an internal intake fan that can help move air out of the case, and that feature will likely go to waste with it on the bottom (as hot air rises). If I were going to get a cheap mid-tower case, I would go with the Apevia X-Supra, with tooless assembly, 3 fan slots, and a neat design.

I kind of need the PSU on the bottom though, because my motherboard is retarded. They have the IDE connection at the bottom of the board, which means my dvd drives need to reeaaaaaallly stretch to connect. In fact, with my current, PSU-at-the-top case, I can only have my lowest dvd drive plugged in, because the IDE cable cant reach the top one without disconnecting from the mobo.

Plus, I'm not that big a fan of side windows. The case I have now is a Apevia X-Dreamer II, and it has a window. All it does it annoy me while I sleep because of the lights inside.

I was actually thinking of asking my parents for my graduation money, and stepping up to a Apevia X-Jupiter S-type

It still has lights, but it looks damn shmexy, has a massive 250mm fan over the cpu and video card, as well as top, front and rear vents, fan controls on the front with a lcd display, usb ports on the front, as well as on top along with firewire and audio.

Problem is that the psu is on top again, and I wont be able to use one of my drives (not that it really matters anymore, its a CD RW drive.

Whats the warranty on Asus brand cards?

 

[Sedako]

Whats the warranty on Asus brand cards?

3 years.

 

[Krynn72]

Wow, they have long warranties. 3 years for lcd monitors too? Dont most monitors only have like a 1 year manufacturer warranty?

I'll probably be ready to upgrade again in 2 years, so I might as well save myself a couple bucks and get the Asus card then.

 

[AiM]

I looked around but I haven't been able to find the answer to my question, what's the difference between the GDDR3 on the 4850 and the GDDR5 on the 4870? How does the difference translate to the actual games?

helplife2.net, I choose you!

 

[Asus]

I looked around but I haven't been able to find the answer to my question, what's the difference between the GDDR3 on the 4850 and the GDDR5 on the 4870? How does the difference translate to the actual games?

helplife2.net, I choose you!

Well, if you look at benchmarks the 4870 is faster than the 4850. That's how it transfers to actual games...
The actual memory clock speed is very similar (4870@900MHz vs 4850@993MHz) but thanks to the 4870 using GDDR5 it has a lot more memory bandwidth since the memory transfers more data per clock. They scale surprisingly similar though, increasing the AA and resolution. scaling performance

Both have 800 'stream processors'. And the 4870 has a better cooler so they can clock the core higher (750mhz vs 625). That's about it.

 

[AiM]

Ah now I feel silly for not elaborating. I did look at the benchmarks and it seems it really only comes into play for the higher resolutions. At lower resolutions, both cards are near identical if I remember correctly. Since my current monitor is only 19" (limited to 1280 x 1024), a 4850 will make more sense for me until I switch to a bigger monitor right?

 

[Asus]

Probably. Also a lot better for the money since you can get a 4850 for almost half the price of a 4870 with mail-in rebates. From online US stores anyway.

 

[Sedako]

Ah now I feel silly for not elaborating. I did look at the benchmarks and it seems it really only comes into play for the higher resolutions. At lower resolutions, both cards are near identical if I remember correctly. Since my current monitor is only 19" (limited to 1280 x 1024), a 4850 will make more sense for me until I switch to a bigger monitor right?

A 4850 will be plenty at that resolution. I'm running most games above 60 fps with AA at 1600x1200. When you do finally upgrade your monitor, you could also just pick up a 2nd 4850 and crossfire them if need be (if your motherboard supports it and your PSU is up to the task).

 

[Sedako]

Newegg now has a Sapphire 4850 for $145 after a $30 rebate and $20 promo code: VGA7820. This is the cheapest the card has ever been.

 

[Krynn72]

GOD DAMN IT.

:angry: