Diamond Multimedia, purveyor of the HD 4870 XOC Black Edition SKU that has been the talking point of many HD 4800 series enthusiasts in recent days, is stepping up to the challenge of making the product available in the retail channel, according to a report from TechConnect Magazine.

Initially, highlighted as being exclusively available through system integrator, Smooth Creations, Diamond has perhaps been encouraged by widespread positive coverage and decided to open the floodgates, filter the HD 4870 XOC Black Edition through retail channels and thereby, quench enthusiasts' thirst.

Whilst pricing is not known at the time of going to press, cards could be available as early as next week.

As we reported here, Diamond's HD 4870 XOC Black Edition, is based on AMD's 'SuperRV770' and it is expected, that rival AIB's such as ASUS and Sapphire will also throw their own iterations into the mix.

With AMD's RV770 having achieved so much in its, still young lifespan, it will be exciting to see what else AMD has in store for the future and how much more performance it can extract from this product generation.