Sapphire Radeon HD 6950 2GB Dirt 3 Edition Video Card Review

Introduction

Like the previous Dirt game, Dirt 2, the latest iteration from Codemasters, Dirt 3, is another big release for AMD. While maybe not quite as big as the second one which saw the implementation of DirectX 11, one would argue that this one could be even bigger because of the rave reviews the game has received, making it not only a game that looks good, but also a game that's good to play.

So with the release of another high profile game for AMD, we've seen their partners begin to bundle the game in the form of keys with their video cards. While most companies have just added the bundle to the package, Sapphire has instead chosen to create a "Dirt 3" Edition of the card to coincide with the release.

At first I thought the "Dirt 3" Edition was just going to be the same HD 6950 we've seen from Sapphire before, but with the inclusion of Dirt 3. Instead, though, we've got a new cooler on hand that looks like it will hit the spot.

Before we take a closer look at the card, though, let's first get into the package to see what exactly Sapphire is offering; then we'll look at the card, specifications and of course get into the benchmark side of things to see how the card performs.

Package

Looking at the box, there's nothing too out of the ordinary. The main thing we notice is the inclusion of the Dirt 3 labeling. Inside the box we've got the normal extras like Sapphire Select Club, Quick Install Guide, Driver CD, DVI to VGA connector, CrossFire Bridge and two Molex to 6-Pin PCI-E power connectors.

Along with all this, we've of course got a copy of Dirt 3 in the form of a key that you add to Steam. The other stand out extra would be the HDMI cable that's included in the bundle which is always an appreciated addition.