Introduction

The ATI 5 series Direct-X 11 capable graphics cards are flooding on to the market with numerous versions and models spanning a wide range of price / performance ratios. The 5700 series (5770 & 5750) have bolstered the budget options but ATI have continued to push ahead with the top-end performance cards with the 5970 being the front-runner so far it would seem.

The 5870 was the first card to hit the shop shelves and Sapphire has been keen to include it into their Vapor-X range. Featuring a custom cooler, the card has a 20MHz boost for the RV870 core and a larger 50MHz increase on the memory clock. The tweaked version aims to improve upon the already highly-praised original 5870 released back in the autumn so let’s take it for a spin...

Sapphire on the 5870 Vapor-X

“The SAPPHIRE HD 5870 Vapor-X is based on the latest graphics architecture from the ATI division of AMD, the second generation of GPU to be built in its 40nm process. It supports the advanced graphical features of DirectX 11, and delivers spectacular video clarity, speed and visual effects, including over multiple monitors with the new ATI Eyefinity mode.

Sporting a new 150GB/s memory interface supporting fifth generation GDDR5 memory and a new architecture with a total of 1600 stream processors and 80 texture units the SAPPHIRE HD 5870 Vapor-X has twice the computing power of the previous generation. With enhanced clock speeds of 870MHz core and 1250MHz (5GHz effective) the SAPPHIRE HD 5870 Vapor-X model is the fastest card in its class, and SAPPHIRE’s World leading Vapor-X technology not only allows the card to run as much as 15 degrees C cooler** and 10dB quieter** than the standard model, it provides additional headroom for performance tuning (overclocking).”

Features

Specifications

• SKU Number: 21161-03
• I/O Output: Dual DL-DVI-I+DP+HDMI, Triple Display Support
• Core Clock: 870 MHz
• Memory Clock: Effective 5000 MHz
• PCI Express 2.0 x16 bus interface
• 1024MB /256bit GDDR5 memory interface
• Dual Slot Cooler with Auto Fan Control, 2 Ball Bearing
• On-board HDMI, supports HDMI 1.3 with High Bitrate Audio
• On-board DisplayPort