Sapphire Radeon HD 6850 Vapor-X Review - PAGE 19

In its three years on the market, the Vapor-X design has evolved from a single slot thermal solution to an all-in-one heatsink that includes heatpipes, a large fin array and a large centralized fan in conjunction with the vapor chamber. All these feature ensure the Vapor-X thermal solution is highly efficient at transferring heat away from the GPU and dissipating it out of the array. Additionally, with the heatsink having such an efficient design, the fan can run at a lower RPM level, meaning the HD 6850 Vapor X will produce less noise than a standard HD 6850 card.

Along with thermal efficiency, the HD 6850 Vapor-X Edition graphics card also offers excellent mid-range performance. The HD 6850 effectively replaced the HD 5750 in terms of market positioning and pricing, but the total performance offered by this particular card is more in line with the HD 5850. This means the HD 6850 offers plenty of bang for the buck and will be able to play virtually any game at resolutions up to 1920x1080. However, the performance does take a hit at resolutions higher than 1080p, but for $169 you would be hard pressed to find a graphics card that can play games at 2560x1600.

The Sapphire HD 6850 Vapor-X also supported a wide array of features and technologies. These include AMD's HD3D technology, which allows games to be played in full stereophonic 3D, Eyefinity, and Advanced Parallel Processing. All of these features really help improve the overall value of the HD 6850, making it is an affordable graphics card that offer excellent desktop expansion and 3D support, all while playing virtually any DX 11 game at high resolutions.

The Vapor-X Edition graphics card is also quite capable when it comes to overclocking. The GPU clock frequency managed to reach 990MHz, which required the voltage to be set at 1237mV. For an HD 6850 this is an impressive overclock, but other models Neoseeker has tested such as the MSI R6850 Cyclone easily scaled beyond the 1000MHz marker. While the Sapphire HD 6850 Vapor-X overclocks quite well, it is not necessarily the best option available for anyone looking for the best overclocking potential possible.

All in all there is really nothing bad to say about the Sapphire HD 6850 Vapor-X Edition graphics card given its solid performance, high efficiency, support for a wide array of technologies and having an MSRP below $200. So if you're in the market for a new mid-range graphics card, this is model is one of the best options available.