4850 pc review with imac like specs

[richprice79]

I thought I would post this as the pc used in this review is very close to the top of the line imac. I included the pc specs below used in the review. Assuming the card in the imac is not the mobile version and the one listed in this review, those who wait are in for an amazing machine.

http://www.guru3d.com/article/radeon-4850-and-4870-review-force3d/9

Mainboard

nVIDIA nForce 680i SLI (eVGA) (1)
Intel X48 (ASUS) (2)

Processor

Core 2 Duo X6800 Extreme (2.9 ghz)

Graphics Cards
ati 4850 and 4870

Memory

2048 MB (2x1024MB) DDR2 CAS4 @ 1142 MHz Dominator Corsair

 

[Perfectionist]

Would be a "Jizz In My Pants" moment if it were true ..... but I think it's safe to say that the ATI will be the Mobile version .....

 

[avihappy]

Would be a "Jizz In My Pants" moment if it were true ..... but I think it's safe to say that the ATI will be the Mobile version .....

Not quite. I have done multiple Sales chats, phone calls (speaking with an "Apple Systems Engineer"), and all but one chat confirmed that it was the Desktop version.

Apple sales reps who said...
IT IS MOBILITY - 1
IT IS DESKTOP - 4 (including the "Apple Systems Engineer")

So it is not a given that it is the Mobile version...

 

[GonzoRob]

Not quite. I have done multiple Sales chats, phone calls (speaking with an "Apple Systems Engineer"), and all but one chat confirmed that it was the Desktop version.

Apple sales reps who said...
IT IS MOBILITY - 1
IT IS DESKTOP - 4 (including the "Apple Systems Engineer")

So it is not a given that it is the Mobile version...

I *really* want it to be the desktop version, however I'm about 80% certain that it'll be the Mobility. I guess I don't have that much faith in Apple trying to hit the high end.

 

[Shivetya]

I thought I would post this as the pc used in this review is very close to the top of the line imac. I included the pc specs below used in the review. Assuming the card in the imac is not the mobile version and the one listed in this review, those who wait are in for an amazing machine.

http://www.guru3d.com/article/radeon-4850-and-4870-review-force3d/9

Mainboard

nVIDIA nForce 680i SLI (eVGA) (1)
Intel X48 (ASUS) (2)

Processor

Core 2 Duo X6800 Extreme (2.9 ghz)

Graphics Cards
ati 4850 and 4870

Memory

2048 MB (2x1024MB) DDR2 CAS4 @ 1142 MHz Dominator Corsair

So let me see if I get this right. People are reporting that the GT130 is a variant of the 9800 series which shows a 9800 series beating the 4850... plus the desktop 4850 is a 110w part

The problem I have been having is that people keep reporting 64 stream processors for the Apple GT130 yet that requires it to be the mobile version (which lists 32 processor cores as the desktop lists 48 meaning neither matches the number but one can assume you just double it)

So, I really doubt we are getting a desktop version of the 4850.

I am still simply going to wait till we have both to test side by side with the same memory and processor. It isn't like four to six weeks is going to matter. I mean, come on now, this is an update that wasn't.

 

[richprice79]

keep in mind though in the review listed, their using the 9800gtx + which is the fastest in the 9800 series. I doubt seriously that a gt130 can touch that.

 

[Shivetya]

keep in mind though in the review listed, their using the 9800gtx + which is the fastest in the 9800 series. I doubt seriously that a gt130 can touch that.

Keep in mind we don't know which 4850 we are truly getting to the link and review are entirely pointless to the Mac world.

 

[Hellhammer]

We know that the 4850 is the mobility version but it's likely that it's overclocked

 

[0087215]

We know that the 4850 is the mobility version but it's likely that it's overclocked

I think the ATi's card will be less power hungry... Looking at the details of the card at notebookcheck.net, one can assume it will... I also have a feeling ATi's drivers will be much better and much more efficient as they are made by ATi it self and they know as nobody else how to make this beast work as it should work.
Anyway, I guess we should wait and see....

 

[flopticalcube]

We know that the 4850 is the mobility version but it's likely that it's overclocked

overclocked and Apple??? does not compute...

 

[gasport]

Not quite. I have done multiple Sales chats, phone calls (speaking with an "Apple Systems Engineer"), and all but one chat confirmed that it was the Desktop version.

Apple sales reps who said...
IT IS MOBILITY - 1
IT IS DESKTOP - 4 (including the "Apple Systems Engineer")

So it is not a given that it is the Mobile version...

I just called Apple and asked the sales person what version the card was. He said he believed it was the desktop version. I asked if he could confirm that for me as I would wait the 6 weeks if it were the desktop version. He put me on hold and came back several minutes later. He said good thing I asked him to check as it is definitely the mobile version of the card.

He also told me that unless I was doing hi end gaming that I would not notice any difference between the two available cards. I asked him what the impact would be on video editing and using Photoshop. He said I would not notice any real difference. He said both cards were great. I then asked why the delay and could not give me a good answer on that one.

This is the second time I have called Apple on this and both times I had the person (one sales and the other customer service) check with someone else and after checking both confirmed the mobile card. I am surprised the sales reps are not more up to date on the components.

I have ordered the 4850 but since I am not a big gamer so I may just change the order and go with the NVDIA card. It would be nice if we really had a true comparison of the two however.

 

[jmpage2]

I just called Apple and asked the sales person what version the card was. He said he believed it was the desktop version. I asked if he could confirm that for me as I would wait the 6 weeks if it were the desktop version. He put me on hold and came back several minutes later. He said good thing I asked him to check as it is definitely the mobile version of the card.

He also told me that unless I was doing hi end gaming that I would not notice any difference between the two available cards. I asked him what the impact would be on video editing and using Photoshop. He said I would not notice any real difference. He said both cards were great. I then asked why the delay and could not give me a good answer on that one.

This is the second time I have called Apple on this and both times I had the person (one sales and the other customer service) check with someone else and after checking both confirmed the mobile card. I am surprised the sales reps are not more up to date on the components.

I have ordered the 4850 but since I am not a big gamer so I may just change the order and go with the NVDIA card. It would be nice if we really had a true comparison of the two however.

As soon as those systems are in peoples hands it should be pretty trivial to benchmark all three discrete video card options in a range of applications and see what the differences really are.

I see the point that others have made in so far as driver support. If you get the ATI card you might get better performance under XP/Vista for gaming, but you might get poorer Apple support in the way of updated drivers, etc.

 

[0087215]

An iMac is not an inexpensive machine and everybody would like it to last at least 2-3 years so that he wouldn't have any problems running graphical applications, games etc.

If we look at the characteristics of both cards, the 4850 and the GT130, the 4850 looks like a clear winner to me. It has 800 cores (160 5-dimensional shader cores) instead of 64 core which can be found in the GT130, the power consumption is lower and the features of the 4850 offered by ATi are just great (several HD video performance improvements (they claim you'll be able to watch Blu-Ray videos or some HD1080p material and at the same time do anything else, like working in Photoshop), power saving features etc.)

If the 4850HD is going to be a mobility card, I think it will be great. http://www.notebookcheck.net/AMD-ATI-Mobility-Radeon-HD-4850.13975.0.html It will run very cool, your iMac will make no noises and you will still be able to get a great graphic performance out of your machine...

I think it is a great deal.... I still really want to know how the GT130 performs in games etc...

 

[itommyboy]

I still really want to know how the GT130 performs in games etc...

Look around there are plenty of "real life" posts regarding the GT 130 performance in a multitude of games - in windows and OSX. Some on these forums and many others on the more frequented test/hardware sites. People (myself included) like what they see.

I'm going to come out now and say that the ATI should be a bit of an upgrade, but it is not going to blow this GT130 out of the water. Come on people Apple is a company out to profit - different than no other. Do you really think they are going to give us twice the card of their next best "high end" machine for a mere $50 more? Highly unlikely.

This all being said I also wait with baited breath to see just what that ati is and turns out to be. Because (jumps over to other limb) if the 4850 machine is somehow a major leap vs this GT130 model, I'm buying one and this bad boy will be my sweet new way overpowered and over priced office computer.

 

[JDELUNA]

From My understanding the Mobility HD4850

is the same as the desktop version just downclocked so it will be equal to a desktop HD4830 version. I hope this helps.

 

[gasport]

is the same as the desktop version just downclocked so it will be equal to a desktop HD4830 version. I hope this helps.

My current mantra..

No one at Apple Sales or Support knows for sure which version of the card it is.

No one at Apple Sales or Support knows for sure why the 4850 configured iMac will not ship until whenever.

We can only speculate until someone gets one and as far as I know no one has although DRiff claims his will ship immanently. However, we have yet to see the FedEx tracking confirmation.....

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/662986/

So let the fun continue while we who ordered the 4850 amuse ourselves with more speculation....

 

[jmpage2]

It just seems unlikely that there would be a desktop card in the iMac since it really has no way to deal with the massive amount of heat that such a card generates... not to mention the huge amount of power draw. I believe that a desktop 4850 card pulls something like 150 watts under full load, maybe more.

In a side bar question, I've seen a lot of discussion about using the iMac for Windows gaming (via boot camp) if it is equipped with one of the higher end graphics chipsets.

With the IPS panel that is in the iMac is there really slow pixel response, lots of ghosting/smearing during FPS games like Fallout 3?

I do a lot less gaming these days but do occasionally enjoy firing up the PC games and would prefer avoiding having to have two boxes on my desk.

 

[0087215]

It just seems unlikely that there would be a desktop card in the iMac since it really has no way to deal with the massive amount of heat that such a card generates... not to mention the huge amount of power draw. I believe that a desktop 4850 card pulls something like 150 watts under full load, maybe more.

In a side bar question, I've seen a lot of discussion about using the iMac for Windows gaming (via boot camp) if it is equipped with one of the higher end graphics chipsets.

With the IPS panel that is in the iMac is there really slow pixel response, lots of ghosting/smearing during FPS games like Fallout 3?

I do a lot less gaming these days but do occasionally enjoy firing up the PC games and would prefer avoiding having to have two boxes on my desk.

The H-IPS LCD panels are actually very well-responding if you talk about games etc. http://www.pchardwarehelp.com/guides/lcd-panel-types.php
As far as I know you can expect the best picture quality and a slightly lower response speed if you choose the H-IPS panel offered by Apple in their iMacs...

Apple is known for offering a great LCD panel in their 24-inch iMacs and when I had an iMac (24-inch, 3.06Ghz, 8800M GTS), I loved the screen: the colours are amazing and the gaming is just wonderful. If you buy one of these huge iMacs, you don't have to worry about the screen quality, it is just superb!

 

[JDELUNA]

My current mantra..

No one at Apple Sales or Support knows for sure which version of the card it is.

No one at Apple Sales or Support knows for sure why the 4850 configured iMac will not ship until whenever.

We can only speculate until someone gets one and as far as I know no one has although DRiff claims his will ship immanently. However, we have yet to see the FedEx tracking confirmation.....

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/662986/

So let the fun continue while we who ordered the 4850 amuse ourselves with more speculation....

You are correct in that all we can do is speculate. Here is a website that talks about the mobility HD4850, of course we do not know what Apple may do, as they can totally change things:


http://www.notebookcheck.net/AMD-ATI-Mobility-Radeon-HD-4850.13975.0.html




ALso since the iMac is probably going to be using a Mobility MXM card, then we can try to speculate the performance of other laptops that are out currently using that GPU, such as the MSI GT725.

 

[gasport]

It just seems unlikely that there would be a desktop card in the iMac since it really has no way to deal with the massive amount of heat that such a card generates... not to mention the huge amount of power draw. I believe that a desktop 4850 card pulls something like 150 watts under full load, maybe more.

In a side bar question, I've seen a lot of discussion about using the iMac for Windows gaming (via boot camp) if it is equipped with one of the higher end graphics chipsets.

With the IPS panel that is in the iMac is there really slow pixel response, lots of ghosting/smearing during FPS games like Fallout 3?

I do a lot less gaming these days but do occasionally enjoy firing up the PC games and would prefer avoiding having to have two boxes on my desk.

I agree with what you are saying. Not only this but there is a size difference and just where would they put such a card in the iMac?

 

[jmpage2]

The 4850 mobility is still a pretty quick card. Will it run all of the latest and upcoming PC games at 60fps? No, but it will probably be enough of a hedge for a couple of years for someone who wants to use an iMac for "some" gaming, and should have a big edge in the hungrier games like Starcraft 2 that are going to eat top spec machines for lunch.

 

[avihappy]

Even then it's still better...

I just called Apple and asked the sales person what version the card was. He said he believed it was the desktop version. I asked if he could confirm that for me as I would wait the 6 weeks if it were the desktop version. He put me on hold and came back several minutes later. He said good thing I asked him to check as it is definitely the mobile version of the card.

He also told me that unless I was doing hi end gaming that I would not notice any difference between the two available cards. I asked him what the impact would be on video editing and using Photoshop. He said I would not notice any real difference. He said both cards were great. I then asked why the delay and could not give me a good answer on that one.

This is the second time I have called Apple on this and both times I had the person (one sales and the other customer service) check with someone else and after checking both confirmed the mobile card. I am surprised the sales reps are not more up to date on the components.

I have ordered the 4850 but since I am not a big gamer so I may just change the order and go with the NVDIA card. It would be nice if we really had a true comparison of the two however.

OK, if it is the Mobility, it still has somewhat better numbers than what I am convinced is the GT 130, even if we assume Apple has really slowed the 4850 down. Remember that the only difference between the Desktop 4850 and its mobility is the slower GPU clock rate.

If it is actually the Desktop 4850 not underclocked (which it is not according to your calls) in any way then we have, then:

My point is, that unless Apple really gimps the Mobility 4850, it is still better than the GT 130 (aka 9800M GS).

PS, if you doubt that the 9800M GS is the same as the GT 130, go look at a thread entitled "Consolidater new iMac benchmarks", and notice that its specs are identical to what you see in the 9800M GS.

 

[EmperorDarius]

--

I'm sorry but you are wrong. It's the 9800M GTS, not GS. The GTS is more powerful. (Recheck the thread yourself)

 

[gasport]

Thanks for the info EmperorDarius. I don't think anyone doubts that the 4850 is a better card.

 

[Shivetya]

Like I said before, we don't know, we can only speculate. As such I am merely waiting for someone to jump the gun and order one to take the risk for me.

I already have one of the best iMacs produced, the white series with matte screen and 7600GT. I bought it used and never regretted it, well okay the two visits to the shop and nearly thirty days downtime did make me mad.

As for what people are seeing the GT130 report as, I am still wondering if we are getting table guesses? Has anyone run the RIVA tuner program against it? It usually is very good at identifying what the hardware does versus what a table think it does.