Are all 4870s the same?

[snipper_cr]

I noticed newegg lists 5 different manufacturers for the 4870 and other than the cooler, the cards all look the same. Are they the same reference board or has each one done a few different things? Previously I would always get my cards directly from ATI and now don't know which 3rd party to go with.

Also I notice alot of people are saying their cards die after they do a BIOS flash... What is the purpose of this new bios flash? Whats the improvement?

[Morais]

Yes m8, they are the same.All brands are using the same reference PCB & cooler from ATi. For your decision, get a brand that gives you more bundle accesories and free games + good service consumer and good warranty. I dont know about 4870 flash bios because im running a 4850 and its running ok.

[Logos4]

@ Snipper: don't worry about the bios issue, as long as you don't try to flash it nothing will happen to you (the issue was about an incorrectly saved bios leading to a corrupt, bad sized file; when a card was flashed with it it wouldn't boot anymore).