Differences between 9700 Pro manufactures

[Regs]

I've noticed like on a site like newegg.com, when you search for a hardware item like the Radeon 9700 Pro you of course end up with many results from different producers of the product. My question is, how do you know the difference between a "FIC A97P RADEON 9700 PRO" or a "POWERCOLOR Evil Commando 2 " ? Also, does cheaper mean you are getting a less reliable card with a crap heat sink?

I would ask also if you could recommend from which company I should buy the 9700 pro from. I can guess all ready that most of you would say just buy it from ATI .

Thank you.

 

[Krk3561]

Don't get powercolor, alot of people have problems with their cards. FIC is a great manufacturer.

 

[jackschmittusa]

Many manufacturers buld "reference boards" which are fubctionally equivilent and are identical to the GPU designer's specs. These are differentiated by their software bundles. Some add features, i.e. VIVO. Some use faster ram than spec to allow for ocing. And at least one (Gainward-Golden Sample series) picks chips and ram that are guaranteed to oc. Run some model numbers through a Google search and find reviews on them. You can then evaluate comparing price, performance, features, bundle, and oc ability.