HIS Radeon HD 5850 1GB GDDR5 Graphics Card
Conclusion
Published: 31st December 2009 | Source: HIS | Price: £251.99 |
Conclusion
And there we have it. Another impressive set of results from another Radeon HD 5850 graphics card. Like the others, we were able to achieve the maximum overclock permitted by the ATi Catalyst Control Centre as well. For those who wish to buy a HIS branded product, we can confirm that it performs no worse than it's rivals, is backed by a two year warranty and has an identical accessory list to other brands, including a Steam DiRT 2 Voucher.
You will however be hard pressed to find a HIS Radeon HD 5850 in the UK as we were not able to find one available at any major retailer's website. This is made worse by the fact that the retailers that have actually listed the HIS version of the graphics card have priced it annoyingly high at around the £250 mark. While this does not bode well for HIS, it is not that big a deal for the consumer for the simple matter of fact is that (factory overclocked cards excluded) there is nothing that distinguishes any Radeon HD 5850 from another. I realise that I have mentioned this already throughout the review and hammered the same point down in our Asus Radeon HD 5850 review but frankly, if one wants a Radeon HD 5850 as soon as possible, then brand will not be of any concern. If however, you do find a HIS Radeon HD 5850 graphics card at a bargain price then I have no quarms in recommending it. Nice work HIS.
The Good
- Excellent Performance
- Low Noise
- ATi 5 Series Feature Set
The Mediocre
- Price
The Bad
- None

Most Recent Comments
Hi Rasta,
To my knowledge, HIS has played no part in the PCB layout. Aside the badge on the top, it's physical attributes are no different to the Asus/Sapphire/XFX 5850's that we've handled.
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To my knowledge, HIS has played no part in the PCB layout. Aside the badge on the top, it's physical attributes are no different to the Asus/Sapphire/XFX 5850's that we've handled.

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Originally Posted by name='Rastalovich'
* note to staff: if u reply inside the article at the foot, nothing gets posted. For want of typing out again:
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Originally Posted by name='Rastalovich'
Worries me that HIS have chosen to block the rear intake/outtake holes with both pcie power connectors and a large old school capacitor. I'm sure that's not what the designers had in mind.
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Tis a great card. Not impressed with the artificial benchmarkers, especially when ur old rig either competes or beats them. Being what they are, u have to take the cpu differences into account. CCC drivers rely more on the cpu.
£250 is a decent price for these cards. I'd expect further etailer shaving off of that too. Currently tho, this isn't the rrp, or even the £251 posted in the article header. At the more sensible pricing I could recommend this card, but presently would feel guilty about doing so.
Roll on feb/mar when the playing fields are nice'n'level and the cash grab being made, especially in the UK, is all but over. It'll be something to behold when the prices of these suddenly plummits - the cash ofc already being made. It's quite something to have the backup of another company having production problems to smooth that over, however unsubstantiated.
Worries me that HIS have chosen to block the rear intake/outtake holes with both pcie power connectors and a large old school capacitor. I'm sure that's not what the designers had in mind.
A little concerned also that a card receives a performance award with only an 8 score.
Look forward to the end of January when the news of price drops come out with great cheer, and all else previous is forgotten and forgiven.Quote