AMD also released the Radeon HD 3850; a cut-down version of the 3870 that featured slower clocks - 670/1660 (engine/memory) vs. 775/2250 - and a smaller 256MiB frame buffer. All other architectural features were kept intact, including PCIe 2.0, UVD, CrossFireX and DX10.1 support.
The lower-power nature of the HD 3850 256MiB has allowed enterprising add-in board (AIB) partners to release passively-cooled SKUS into their respective ranges, and that's exactly what Sapphire has done.
Using zero-noise cooling via heatpipe-based cooling, the 55nm-based Sapphire HD 3850 ULTIMATE Edition clocks in at a reference-like 668MHz/1660MHz.
Sapphire, however, equips this board with 512MiB of GDDR3 memory, doubling what's normally present. We see this is a better move than, say, just increasing operating frequencies, as frame-buffer limitations will play a larger part in determining performance once resolution and image-quality have been dialled up.
We like the fact that the passively-cooled design keeps to a single-slot, too (at leasst on the topside).
Expect to see the Sapphire HD 3850 ULTIMATE Edition available for around £125, and keep an eye out for the review.
Read the press release here, if you're so inclined.
