Card appearance
As usual, to see what makes the HD 4800 series tick along, why not look at our architecture review.
The HIS Radeon HD 4850 IceQ4 TurboX differentiates itself from the reference Radeon HD 4850 through the use of an upgraded IceQ4 cooler and increased clockspeeds of 685MHz core and an effective 2,200MHz memory, compared to the reference's 625MHz and 2,000MHz, respectively. Quite a boost on the core, we're sure you'll agree.
The rear of the card features no extra memory modules, with the IceQ4 TurboX employing the same 512MB of GDDR3 arrangement as the reference design. The striking blue PCB is cool, though.
An evolution of the previous IceQ coolers, the dual-slot solution features an 80mm fan that channels air through the shroud and over the heatsink, before exhausting the heated air out of the case. This approach should keep ambient case temperatures down.
Viewing the cooler from the top highlights the two heatpipes that transfer the heat from the initial copper baseplate and heatsink to the aluminium fins. Such a design allows increased thermal performance whilst keeping both weight and costs down.
Additionally, both the VRM and memory sections are covered with copper heatsinks, and they receive some airflow from the cooler's fan.
The fan is quiet when idling and under load, easily matching the reference design's aural characteristics.
The HD 4850 only requires the use of a single six-pin PCIe power connector. We have to wonder, however, that if the reference Radeon HD 4870 requires two such connectors, whether the use of only a single connector limits the overclocking potential of the HD 4850?
The rear of the card features a dual-slot bracket with slotted exhaust vent, much like the reference HD 4870 design.
HIS provides gold-plated connections for the two dual-link DVI ports and TV out. More of a gimmick than value-adding extra, we reckon.
HDMI, VGA and composite adapters are provided to offer further connectivity options.
