NVIDIA GeForce GTS 250: A Rebadged 9800 GTX+
by Derek Wilson on March 3, 2009 3:00 AM EST- Posted in
- GPUs
Final Words
If we focus on what is likely to be the target resolution of 1680x1050, the Radeon HD 4850 ties its direct competition, the GTS 250 512MB, the Radeon HD 4850 leads more often than it trails or loses. The 1GB GTS 250 does edge out the 4850 in one more benchmark, but it does cost $20 more and we haven't tested the 1GB 4850 which might make the difference.
We've recommended the 4850 over the 9800 GTX+ in the past, and we'll continue to do so now that it's called the GTS 250. But the extra memory does help out, especially if the card is to be used for 1920x1200 on a budget (or maybe with an HDTV).
Power consumption is an advantage the GTS 250 1GB holds. The new board design is only required on the 1GB model, and board vendors may opt for the new design on their 512MB parts, but they may also stick with their current 9800 GTX+ designs. We expect that at first the 512MB GTS 250 will more closely resemble the 9800 GTX+. This does mean we are left with the oddity of the 1GB part drawing less power than the 512MB part for now. Once we get a 512MB version with the new board revision we'll have to take another look at power draw.
The GTS 250 1GB is a better option than it's 512MB brother, and it's also a better option than the 4850 based on our tests. It isn't a game changing difference, but its an edge nonetheless. Is the added performance worth the extra $20? That has to come down to the individual gamer.
UPDATE: We are hearing rumblings of a price drop for the Radeon HD 4870 512MB to $150, and if this happens, there will be no contest between the two. AMD will handily lead at the $150 price if they can get their partners to adjust the price down this much. But doing this would also eat into the market for the 4850, as the jump in value for the extra money would be way more than worth it. Spending $150 over $130 (for either the 4850 or GTS 250) and getting the performance jump from the 4870 is just a no brainer. With the extra RAM, not even the 1GB GTS 250 can compete with the 4870, so IF we see the price adjustment THEN the GTS 250 1GB will be a non-starter. Without this price adjustment, our conclusion stands as is.
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SiliconDoc - Wednesday, March 18, 2009 - link
That's nice, the 4870 512 top core DDR5 ati best they have for core and memeory speed can beat the 2 year old renamed a thousand times Nvidia g92b. Gosh what a GREAT CARD(err... MEMORY ONLY) ati has there... what "awesome technology".... what "efficient core!!! ( WRONG! IT'S ALL THE DDDR5 MEMORY ! THAT'S WHY THE 4850 IS THE SAME CORE WITH DDR3 AND IS UNDER THE GTS250 (g92b / reworked stale ol tired core that ATI has just barely matched ! )Don't feed me any crap anymore - ANYONE about "the great ati core ! " --
It is the same as the g92b (4850) unless you slap DDR5 on it.
I can hardly wait - or rather I certainly HOPE nvidia slaps DDR5 on that "rebranded piece of crap g80/g92/g92b " !
My golly, it would be GREAT to see the ten thousand jaws of the red rooster propaganda boys DROP TO THE FLOOR when it matches and spanks the 4870 ...
PLEASE NVIDIA ! PLEASE DO IT ! DO IT NOW !
Hrel - Wednesday, March 4, 2009 - link
why isn't the HD48701Gb in this review? I just noticed that.Totally - Thursday, March 5, 2009 - link
Why isn't the GTX 285 in this review? I just noticed that.Hrel - Wednesday, April 1, 2009 - link
my guess would be cause it's an overpriced piece of crap that is matched in many cases by the HD4870 1GB.DerekWilson - Tuesday, March 3, 2009 - link
4870 is ~$175 right now, which is much more than the $130 for the GTS 250. It would hold an advantage over the GTS 250 1GB if the end user is willing to spend the extra cash.Jansen - Tuesday, March 3, 2009 - link
Ahem...http://www.dailytech.com/Radeon+4870+Gets+50+Price...">http://www.dailytech.com/Radeon+4870+Ge...4850+Wil...
SiliconDoc - Wednesday, March 18, 2009 - link
Did you read the follow on link that was out quite a while ago where the ati board partners told ati to "go shove it!" - because ati wanted the board partners to "take a lot of the loss" and only offered a partial "reimbursement" for the lower price scheme they cooked up ?BOY I HOPE YOU DO.....
So, ati wanted it's board partners to TAKE A LOSS - while the little red fans slopped up the savings and praised ati "for almost destrpying nvidia, again!" - yes.... very, very underhanded and evil.
Well, the board partners told them to go blow.
And the price stayed the same, in fact it went up at our fave egg with the usually the very lowest prices around widely known.
So, so much for that for now.
The day will come eventually... unless inflation from the monetary crisis whips us all.
Roland00 - Tuesday, March 3, 2009 - link
several news sites that aren't Anandtech are saying there is a 4870 price drop coming this week to $149.99 for the 512mb version.It isn't true yet, but if it is ATI is much faster for dollar spent.
Matt Campbell - Tuesday, March 3, 2009 - link
There are several models at Newegg now that are falling below $165, and one Powercolor that is $149.99 after mail in rebate. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N8...">http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N8...Competition is making for a great market right now for gamers :)
Roland00 - Tuesday, March 3, 2009 - link
Currently Newegg has the Asus 4870 512mb model for184.99-50 dollar promo code=134.99 with a 30 dollar rebate on top of that (104.99 after rebate).
The problem is as very soon as they posted this deal they sold out. Deal is good till the 8th but are they going to get anymore in by then?