Interestingly, despite the smaller die size the GeForce 9800 GTX+ actually uses more power than the original 9800 GTX, which we find very surprising. Perhaps this is due to the higher core and shader clock frequencies of the 9800 GTX+. Either way, both 9800 GTX cards use slightly more power than the Radeon HD 4850.

While the operating temperatures of the GeForce 9800 GTX graphics card are well within acceptable limits, the Radeon HD 4850 are not. With a stress temp of 89 degrees, the Radeon HD 4850 can cook a computer case within minutes of gaming. The ATI reference cooler is near enough to useless, as it does an incredibly poor job of keeping the Radeon cool.

Considering the Radeon HD 4850 is based on a 55nm design, we were sure the problem was with the heatsink being insufficient. Our suspicions were confirmed when we installed the Thermaltake DuOrb on the Radeon HD 4850. With the new cooler in place idle temps sat at 28 degrees, while full load temperatures went down to 37 degrees. These figures go way more in line with the kind of low power consumption levels that the Radeon HD 4850 produces.