Now that AMD has launched its new flagship GPU, it's over to the partners to deliver the cards. The chip-makers biggest associate, Sapphire, is first out of the gates with a trio of Radeon HD 6970s available today.
Unfortunately, all three of the cards come with reference clocks and coolers, although that's to be expected with a new high-end GPU on launch day. However, they will ship with Sapphire's new TriXX overlocking software, which should help you to push the cards to the limit.
Although it doesn't come with any special extras, the base card is going to launch at £289, which is a bit less than AMD's MSRP and makes it among the cheapest HD 6970s available today.
Returning to the halcyon days of pack-in-games, the Gaming Edition card will ship with a code to download Battlefield: Bad Company 2 - Vietnam, the expansion to DICE's recent shooter which is due to be released on December 18. The card will also be adorned with a custom decal, and will retail for a reasonable £299.
For the collectors among us, Sapphire is also shipping a Special Edition of the HD 6970. Although the contents will be the same as the Gaming Edition - complete with a copy of BBC2V - the card will come packed in an aluminium carry-case and will retail for £319.
Each of Sapphire's cards should be available now from the normal retailers.
