2 questions about the HD4850

question #1: do I need a PCI-E 2.0 motherboard or will it run on a PCI-E x16 motherboard?

question #2: does it run better than the 8800Ultra or 8800 GTX?

It will run on both those motherboards. The 8800 GTX is very similar, beats 4850 in some games and loses to it in others. The Ultra is much faster than the 4850 though, but you pay more. I suggest a 9800 GTX+which offers 10% more performance than a 4850 for $30 more or 10 pounds more. You'll have to pre-order though, set to come out next week.OMGitsZAL

Beats the 8800GTX in every test. The Ultra isn't tested here but it is just an OCed GTX. It is NOT much faster then a 4850, it's slower.

http://www.anandtech.com/video/showdoc.aspx?i=3341&p=13