Performance
Performance
To confirm all is well with the performance of the Zotac GTX480 we compared it to the Asus card also recently reviewed. For reference we also include results from Sapphire’s Toxic 5870 2GB, which is available for a similar sort of price (currently around £10 cheaper).
A good start for the GTX 480 cards. Both the Zotac and the Asus show the Radeon a clean pair of heels.
This time it is ATi's turn to come out ahead, though in real terms the gaming experience with either card is virtually the same.
Although matched at 1920x1200 the radeon pulls out a significant lead at 2560x1600.
At 1920x1200 the two cards play the same, but on our 30" monitor the GeForces feel smoother.
2GB of RAM helps the Sapphire greatly in this test but it still can't keep pace with the Fermi. If you're a fan of Nico the GTX480 is the best choice here.
Zombie shooter Left 4 Dead 2 is an efficient Source-powered title. Both cards are equally adept when playing this game at full detail at 2560x1600, though at "just" full-HD the GeForce pumps out more frames.
Stalker sees the Radeon card come out ahead. At maximum resolution the ATi card feels smoother and is less prone to stutter.
Once again 2560 x 1600 sees the Fermi's lead diminish to zero. Both cards play a mean game of Call of Duty though.
As you can see, performance is well within the margin for error of our benchmarks – whether you opt for an Asus or a Zotac version of the GTX 480, the performance will be identical. When compared against the top single GPU Radeon card the GeForce wins more tests than it loses, though at ultra high resolutions the advantage is slight.
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