To test power consumption today we are using a Keithley Integra unit and we measure power consumption from the VGA card inputs, not the system wide drain. The best way to get maximum load results is by using Furmark, and even though it is not indicative of a real world situation it shows the limits the card can theoretically demand. The ‘gaming’ results are measured when playing Crysis Warhead and is a more valuable result to take from this.
19 Watts at idle is an incredible result, and lower than any overclocked HD6970 we have tested to date. Under load the power demands are very similar to the Asus HD6970 Direct CU II which we reviewed last month.