Yes very low. Imho, too low. Videos will run choppy or even freeze sometimes due to the low power play clocks. You can disable power play if you download MSI afterburner, load it, then set the volts and or mhz a notch higher. Then the card will run 850/1200 all the time.
So in order to compete with Fermi, we now have a 5970 that cannot be purchased, a 5870 that now seems to start at $410, a 5850 that starts at $320. Good strategy ATI.
5870's are becoming rarer on sites like newegg... most brands out of stock now. 5970's are and remain hard as heck to find period. I smell ATI cooking something up to compete with a strong Fermi .
I noticed last week that lots of 5870 and 5850 models were out of stock, however I have seen most of them replenished this week. However prices seem to have gone up some lately.