AMD HD 4850 – Best Mid-Range GPU Ever? Yes.

If you are excited about the GPU market right now, then good, you sure have the right to be. It’s been a little while since ATI released a GPU to cause alarm for NVIDIA, but it’s happening now with the HD 4850. Despite being a mid-range offering, it’s more powerful than what would be considered high-end just a few months ago, and that, in itself, is impressive to think about.

Though our review is not yet ready, I couldn’t help but make a post and build up some anticipation. The main reason for excitement would be the fact that the HD 4850 is faster in almost all of our tests than NVIDIA’s 9800 GTX. The reason that’s impressive is because the HD 4850 debuts with a $200 price tag. In most of the games we’ve tested, even 2560×1600 proved more than playable… especially with Half-Life 2 and Call of Duty 4.

Overclocking is not entirely impressive, but still reasonable. The fact is though, if you have this card, you should find little need to even want to overclock it, unless you are one of those who feels dirty unless there is a good OC in place. Add to the fact that the card at stock speeds is hot, overclocking feels even less important.

Credit: Techgage / Rob Williams

Right now, the HD 4850 is a fantastic choice for someone looking to spend $200 on a new GPU. For those looking for something smaller, I still whole heartily recommend NVIDIA’s 9600 GT, because at ~$140, it’s still the king of that segment. Considering how much more power could be had for that extra $60 though, it can be a difficult decision to make.

The best part of the HD 4850 is the fact that it’s available right now at numerous popular e-tailers. NewEgg alone offers eight different models… all priced at $199.99. NVIDIA will launch their 9800 GTX+ next month, which might shake up the decision-making process a little bit. That will most likely ride on pricing, though, so don’t be surprised to see this new card even lower than its $199.99 SRP by that time.