Power Consumption and Closing Thoughts

The Radeon HD 5670 uses by far the least power of all the graphics card being tested here today – it uses about 14% less power than the GT 240 under a full load and nearly 30% less power than the Radeon HD 4850 from the previous generation of GPUs. Considering that the GT 240 and HD 5670 were running slow close in terms of gaming performance that would obviously give the AMD card an edge in terms of computing and gaming efficiency.
Performance and Features
While the gaming power of the new Radeon HD 5670 isn’t going to blow anyone away (and if it does you need to read more GPU reviews) the fact is that the performance falls in line with other sub-$100 graphics cards on the market today. What I am disappointed with is that AMD didn’t push the HD 5670 a bit further to really give it the advantage over the GeForce GT 240 card – a card that I was also let down to find was only “meh” in terms of gaming performance boosts over previous cards.
To me it seems that AMD is basically saying that it thinks the feature and output differences between the HD 5670 and the GT 240 are going to be enough to make potential users and OEMs select the AMD option rather than the similarly performing NVIDIA option. They are likely right. But as a technology and gaming hardware reviewer I like to see the limits pushed not leaned against – I want these companies to constantly putting the screws to one another, even when they are down. I don’t feel like the HD 5670 does that; it just slightly nudges the GT 240 to the side to get in line for the buffet one spot ahead.
I do need to make a note about the HD 4850 and 9800 GT cards in these comparisons. If you can live with the extra power consumption and heat they are going to give you, and you can find one for under $100, buy it. They are far and away better GAMING cards even without features like DX11 support or Eyefinity multi-monitor gaming. The issue of course is that neither of these will be available for very much longer, then you will HAVE to get either an HD 5670 or GeForce GT 240.

I do need to make a note about the HD 4850 and 9800 GT cards in these comparisons. If you can live with the extra power consumption and heat they are going to give you, and you can find one for under $100, buy it. They are far and away better GAMING cards even without features like DX11 support or Eyefinity multi-monitor gaming. The issue of course is that neither of these will be available for very much longer, then you will HAVE to get either an HD 5670 or GeForce GT 240.
Pricing and Availability
As of this writing, the Radeon HD 5670 graphics cards will be available for about $95 in their 512MB form and slightly more ($110 or so) in the 1GB option. They should be available within the next 7 days or so I am told – sooner more likely. As for the competition, they are widely available at the prices I mentioned on the setup page though take note that prices on the older 9800 GT and HD 4850 are likely to fluctuate one way or the other as availability gets tighter and tighter.
Closing Thoughts
The new AMD Radeon HD 5670 graphics card is a great addition to the completely revamped lineup of graphics cards using ATI technology. With it AMD has solidified DX11-ready hardware in the market for prices under $100 while moving features like Eyefinity and triple-LCD support to a wider user base as well. The performance of the card is only on par with other $100 graphics boards like the GeForce GT 240 so we can’t call it the runaway performance leader, but if you or someone you know is going to be looking for a GPU for under a Franklin, the HD 5670 is the most well-rounded of next-generation GPUs.
Further Reading:
- Larrabee canceled: Intel concedes discrete graphics to NVIDIA, AMD…for now
- Galaxy and Palit GeForce GT 240 Review – More 40nm from NVIDIA
- AMD Radeon HD 5970 2GB Review – AMDomination
- Galaxy GeForce GTX 260+ Razor Edition – Single slot performance
- AMD Radeon HD 5770 and HD 5750 Review – Juniper and DX11 for all
- Galaxy GeForce 210 and GT 220 Review – NVIDIA 40nm GPUs hit consumers
- AMD Radeon HD 5870 Eyefinity Performance Testing
- The State of NVIDIA: For better or for worse
- NVIDIA Fermi Next Generation GPU Architecture Overview
- AMD Radeon HD 5850 1GB Review – Cyprus gets a bit cheaper
- ATI Radeon HD 5870 1GB Graphics Card and AMD Eyefinity Review
- Lucid HYDRA Multi-GPU Technology Launches – End of SLI and CrossFire?