If you clocked your 9700 up a *lot* then you might be able to match stock 9800 Pro benchmarking scores - but the R350 / R360 cored 9800s are a fair margin faster at the same core speeds (15% if I recall correctly, someone correct me if I'm wrong). I'd bet you could match 9800 NP/SE benching scores pretty easily with a little bit of work on cooling.
However, a 9700 is still a superb gaming card, definetely not one I would be in any hurry to replace just yet
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