Sapphire R9 380 Nitro 4GB Review

The Sapphire R9 380 Nitro 4GB is a good mid-range graphics card that doesn't break the bank and offers comfortable 1920×1080 gaming performance.

Sapphire's twin-fan Nitro cooler is a well-designed model that effectively cools the GPU core. Attention is also paid to cooling of the card's power-switching MOSFETs, which is always good to see on a mid-range graphics card. I would, however, have liked to see a low-cost backplate deployed by Sapphire.

Backplates very rarely get used on cards below the higher-end performance scale, but our thermal imaging photos show how a low-cost, heat-spreading backplate would help to mitigate hotspots behind the VRM area. This backplate design could be very simple (a sheet of metal with some thermal pads) and could be implemented without noticeable addition to the cost.

The noise levels were perfectly tolerable (in our unfortunately loud testing environment), even whilst gaming. Sapphire implements a 0dB fan mode for times of low GPU load, even if the Antigua Pro (formerly Tonga) graphics core is not particularly well optimised for such operation judging by the high idle GPU temperature.

Performance of the Sapphire R9 380 Nitro 4GB is roughly on par with a factory-overclocked GTX960, 4GB models of which retail for a similar price to the AMD-based offering. Our R9 380 Nitro sample allowed a quick-and-easy overclock to be tuned in, netting a straightforward performance boost of around 10%.

Power consumption is a clear weakness for the R9 380 and its ageing GPU core. Whilst gaming, the R9 380 consumed around 60W more power than a GTX960. It's not only the electricity bill that suffers from increased power draw, but also the temperature inside your chassis and gaming room, as well as the effort required by a card's cooler.

Priced at £179.99 from OverclockersUK, the Sapphire R9 380 Nitro 4GB is a solid option that delivers compelling 1080P performance for the price, and decent 1440P numbers with reduced image quality settings. The similarly-priced GTX960 solutions are competitive alternatives, so the purchasing decision boils down to varied aspects such as the games you play, FreeSync or G-Sync support, and possible multi-GPU options with your motherboard.

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Pros:

• Strong 1920×1080 frame rates and decent 1440P results with reduced IQ settings.
• Sapphire's twin-fan Nitro cooler does a good job and is quiet.
• Supports a 0dB fan mode.
• Understated colour scheme and overall design.
• 4GB VRAM is plenty for games such as GTA V and Shadow of Mordor at 1080P and 1440P.

Cons:

• High power consumption from the R9 380 GPU.
• A low-cost backplate would help spread heat across the rear PCB surface (away from the VRM).

KitGuru says: Sapphire's R9 380 Nitro 4GB is a smart option for delivering playable frame rates in a quiet, well-cooled package.

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