Sapphire ATI Radeon X850 XT PCIe Review

For a while, the Radeon X800 XT PE was the best ATI-based card you could get. At the end of last year, ATI changed that by releasing the X850 series of cards. Just like the X800 series, the X850 comes in several flavors: Pro, XT, and XT Platinum Edition (in order of least to most horsepower and therefore cost). Because Sapphire works so closely with ATI, it is a leader in ATI-based cards and is usually one of the first to market with new cards. In this review, I’ll be taking a look at the Sapphire Radeon X850 XT PCI Express.

..Overall, the Sapphire Radeon X850 XT is a mixed bag. The performance is great, but the level of value is low, which happens to be the case with all high-end cards regardless of brand or VPU/GPU. If you are willing to do a little overclocking to PE speed, have a $500 budget and want the best ATI performance available, then this is a no-brainer. Get this card and be the envy of your friends (regardless of whether they own NVIDIA or ATI cards, they will drool).

On the other hand, if you want excellent value and the most bang for your buck, then the X850 XT is not for you. Sapphire’s X800 XL would make a perfect candidate for your machine at around $170 less (the X800 XL price is around $310 for OEM right now).

BJorn3D