5700 series available and cheap
It's been more than two months since AMD launched the Radeon HD 5000
series, the world's first DirectX 11 cards manufactured in TSMC's
troubled 40nm process.
Sadly, two months on, it's virtually impossible to get HD 5800 cards in
most markets and the situation isn't much better when it comes to 5900
series products. AMD execs said the shortage should be resolved by the
end of November, but it's obvious AMD is still struggling to meet
demand.
A quick search on our price search engine reveals that you're much more
likely to get struck by lighting than find an HD 5850 in European
retail. Getting an HD 5870 is somewhat easier, as it's available in a
couple of stores at €400+. The cheaper HD 5850 is a much better deal,
as it should sell for around €200.
Oddly enough, getting a dual-GPU HD 5970 is a bit easier, but its still
far from widely available. Prices range from €575 to over €640, not
what we'd call cheap.
Fortunately, HD 5700 availability has greatly improved over the past
several weeks. They are readily available in most major EU markets and
the prices are very competitive. HD 5750 prices start at under €100 and
this sounds like a great deal for casual gamers or consumers on a
budget. An HD 5770 will cost you at least €121, but most sell for €130+.
We can only hope AMD manages to muster some stock over the next couple
of weeks, but with Nvidia's Fermi nowhere in sight, there is no doubt
demand for 5000 series products will remain strong over the next couple
of months.