14 DAY TRIAL // At this point in time, AMD's Radeon HD 5xxx-series is the only GPU series that can support the next-generation DirectX 11 API, and an upcoming wave of DirectX 11 games. However, aside from the enabled DirectX 11 support, it has also allowed the Sunnyvale, California-based chip maker to provide users with a choice for a high-performance GPU. On that note, PowerColor has just announced a new version of its HD 5870 graphics card, featuring the proprietary Liquid Cooling Solution (LCS), consequently enabling better support for overclocking enthusiasts, as well as a choice for a quieter working environment.
“The most efficient cooling solution should pack with the most powerful GPU,” said CEO of TUL Corporation, Ted Chen. “Having the partnership with EK, the LCS HD 5870 can work impressively in a cool and stable operating environment — it’s the card, which is designed to fulfill the true gamers [sic]!”
The card has been featured with the EK copper-made block, which has support for 3/8-inch and 1/2-inch fittings, a design feature that is said to allow for the maximization of the water flow. In addition, the liquid-cooling solution is conceived to fully cover the card's memory and power regulator chip, enabling a highly-efficient cooling environment for AMD's flagship graphics card.
As far as technical specifications go, the new card has been featured with a factory-overclocked 40nm GPU that works at 875MHz, compared to the stock frequency of 850MHz. The 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 memory has also been upped to 1250MHz, consequently providing users with a slight boost in performance, when compared to reference models.
Although no details on the pricing and availability of the new card have yet been provided, it is expected to ship with a dual-DVI/HDMI and DisplayPort interface, as well as a bundled DIRT2 gaming application.