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- Date:
- Thursday , February 25, 2010
- Author:
- Brent Justice
- Google +1
AMD's ATI Radeon HD 5830 Review
This is the video card gamers have been waiting for, an answer to the gap that exists between the Radeon HD 5770 and Radeon HD 5850 has been delivered. The Radeon HD 5830 launches today, and it offers price and performance right in-between these two video cards. If you are looking for a great value, this is it.
Perfect Performance
The Radeon HD 5830 is simply positioned perfectly between the Radeon HD 5770 and Radeon HD 5850 in performance. In all three games we tested, we found that it fits well in-between these two video cards performance wise. It delivers a gaming experience that is superior to the Radeon HD 5770. If the performance of the Radeon HD 5770 is just not enough for you, the Radeon HD 5830 will offer big improvements in every game.
In the latest DX11 title, Aliens vs. Predator, we were able to play at a high widescreen resolution of 1920x1200 with the Radeon HD 5830. This is admirable considering we were running the game with every DX11 feature turned on to the highest settings. This means we were using Tessellation, High Quality Shadows, High Quality Textures and all other effects at their highest possible quality. We were also able to have 2X AA enabled, which is a DX11 only feature in this game, further improving the gameplay experience.
In another DX11 title, DiRT 2, we were also able to run this game with every in-game setting at its highest quality setting at 1920x1200. This means we had all the Tessellation, all the shadowing and all the HDR DX11 quality settings at their highest values. This once again provides the best in-game image quality possible at a high widescreen resolution. We were also able to have 2X AA enabled, further improving the overall image quality in the game as a whole.
In Crysis: Warhead, we were able to also run at 1920x1200 with all "Gamer" in-game settings. While this wasn’t the highest possible settings the game could muster, it is still quite a good showing for this particular game. In past generations, these setting were only achieved at this resolution with dual-GPU video cards, and here we are doing it with a single-GPU video card today.
Perfect Price?
While the performance is perfect, we do have to say that the price may not be so perfect if we are making comparisons to the Radeon HD 5770 and Radeon HD 5850. The price of the Radeon HD 5830 at $239 falls closer to the price of the Radeon HD 5850 than it does to the Radeon HD 5770.
We feel that based on the performance provided here, and based on the intended positioning, the price should more appropriately be around $225 at the least. This is based on calculating the price exactly between the Radeon HD 5770 and Radeon HD 5850 based on current street prices of both video cards.
We know you would all like to see this video card even lower, around $200, but the facts are that this is a powerfully fast video card, and it does offer a substantial gameplay improvement over the Radeon HD 5770. Perhaps add-in-board partners will offer varying models, with varying specifications and varying prices, hopefully with some rebates and bundles to sweeten the deal.
The Bottom Line
The Radeon HD 5830 offers gamers what they have been demanding, gameplay performance that is superior to the Radeon HD 5770, but at a price that is cheaper than the Radeon HD 5850. The Radeon HD 5830 fills a $100 gap that existed between the Radeon HD 5770 and Radeon HD 5850.
The Radeon HD 5830 at $239 delivers very promising performance in DX11 games. In the two DX11 games we tested we were able to have the highest in-game settings enabled, with all the DX11 effects, at a high widescreen resolution with antialiasing! The Radeon HD 5830 allowed us to achieve the best gameplay experience possible in these games at 1920x1200.
If you are looking for great performance, and the Radeon HD 5850 is just too steep for you, the Radeon HD 5830 is an excellent alternative. You won’t lose a great deal of performance compared to the Radeon HD 5850, and you’ll certainly receive a substantial improvement in the gameplay experience compared to the Radeon HD 5770. The Radeon HD 5830 simply has no competition at this time. AMD currently dominates every price point with DX11 support, performance, and features.
Update – 2/26/2010
AMD has just sweetened the deal on the ATI Radeon HD 5830 by announcing a collaboration with Activision to make Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 part of the gamer pack in many retail Radeon HD 5830 video cards that are shipping now. AMD will also be rolling out Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 gamer packs with other high-end AMD video cards over the coming weeks. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 bundle is currently a $60 value. More information can be found here.
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