For the last couple of generations, AMD has been striving to compete with Nvidia at the high end. However, with the AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT, Team Red has shifted its focus from the ultra-high-end RTX 5090 to delivering the best graphics card for the majority of gamers – a goal it absolutely achieves.
The AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT, priced at $599, goes head-to-head with the $749 GeForce RTX 5070 Ti, positioning it as one of the top GPUs on the market today. AMD enhances its appeal with FSR 4, introducing AI upscaling to an AMD graphics card for the first time. This makes the RX 9070 XT the ideal choice for 4K gaming, especially for those not willing to spend $1,999 on the RTX 5090.
Purchasing Guide
----------------The AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT will be available starting March 6, with a starting price of $599. Be aware that prices may vary due to third-party cards, which might be priced higher. Aim to purchase one under $699 for the best value.
AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT – Photos
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Specs and Features
------------------Built on the RDNA 4 architecture, the AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT showcases significant improvements in its shader cores, but the real highlights are the new RT and AI Accelerators. The AI Accelerators power FidelityFX Super Resolution 4 (FSR 4), marking the debut of AI upscaling on AMD graphics cards. While FSR 4 may not boost framerates over FSR 3.1, it significantly enhances image quality. Users can toggle FSR 4 off in the Adrenalin software if they prioritize framerates over image quality.
AMD has also optimized its shader cores, delivering better performance per core. Despite having fewer Compute Units (64) than the previous Radeon RX 7900 XT (84), the RX 9070 XT achieves a substantial generational leap at a lower launch price. Each Compute Unit contains 64 Streaming Multiprocessors, totaling 4,096, along with 64 ray accelerators and 128 AI accelerators.
However, the RX 9070 XT comes with less memory than its predecessor, featuring 16GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus compared to 20GB on a 320-bit bus. This reduction impacts both capacity and bandwidth, yet it remains sufficient for most 4K gaming needs. The new architecture is more efficient, but the RX 9070 XT has a slightly higher power budget of 304W compared to the 7900 XT's 300W, though actual power consumption was lower in testing.
Cooling the RX 9070 XT is manageable, with no reference design available from AMD; third-party manufacturers like Powercolor offer solutions such as the Radeon RX 9070 XT Reaper with a compact triple-fan design that maintains temperatures at 72°C. The card uses standard power connectors, requiring two 8-pin PCI-E connectors and a recommended 700W power supply. It features three DisplayPort 2.1a and one HDMI 2.1b port, though a USB-C port would have added more flexibility.
FSR 4
-----For years, AMD has sought an AI upscaling solution to rival DLSS. The Radeon RX 9070 XT introduces FSR 4, which uses AI accelerators to analyze previous frames and game engine data for accurate upscaling. While FSR 4 improves image quality over FSR 3, it does come with a performance hit. In Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 at 4K Extreme settings, FSR 4 reduced framerates by 10% compared to FSR 3.1, and in Monster Hunter Wilds, the drop was 20%. Despite the performance trade-off, FSR 4's enhanced image quality is beneficial for single-player games where visuals are paramount. Users can opt-out of FSR 4 in the Adrenalin software if needed.
AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT & 9070 – Benchmarks
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Performance
-----------AMD has delivered a strong contender with the Radeon RX 9070 XT. Priced at $599, it undercuts the Nvidia GeForce RTX 5070 Ti by 21% while being, on average, 2% faster. The RX 9070 XT outperforms the RX 7900 XT by 17% and maintains a 2% lead over the RTX 5070 Ti, particularly shining at 4K resolution, even with ray tracing enabled.
Testing was conducted using the latest drivers available, with Nvidia cards on Game Ready Driver 572.60 and AMD cards on Adrenalin 24.12.1, except for the RX 9070 XT and RX 9070, which used pre-release drivers. In 3DMark benchmarks, the RX 9070 XT showed an 18% improvement over the RX 7900 XT in Speed Way and a 26% jump in Steel Nomad, even surpassing the RTX 5070 Ti by 7% in the latter.
In specific games, the RX 9070 XT demonstrated strong performance. In Call of Duty: Black Ops 6, it led the RTX 5070 Ti by 15%, while in Cyberpunk 2077, it trailed by only 5% despite the significant price difference. Metro Exodus showed the RX 9070 XT and RTX 5070 Ti neck-and-neck at 4K, with the RX 9070 XT achieving a 24% improvement over the RX 7900 XT. Red Dead Redemption 2 highlighted the RX 9070 XT's Vulkan performance, outperforming the RTX 5070 Ti by 14%. However, in Total War: Warhammer 3, it fell 13% behind the RTX 5070 Ti.
In Assassin's Creed Mirage, the RX 9070 XT regained its lead, outperforming the RTX 5070 Ti by 12%. Black Myth Wukong showcased the RX 9070 XT's improved ray tracing capabilities, beating the RTX 5070 Ti by 8%. Forza Horizon 5 further demonstrated the RX 9070 XT's competitive edge, achieving a 5% improvement over the RTX 5070 Ti.
Announced quietly at CES 2025, the Radeon RX 9070 XT feels like AMD's strategic move against Nvidia's Blackwell graphics cards. At $599, it represents a return to more reasonable pricing in the graphics card market. While not as fast as the RTX 5080 or RTX 5090, the RX 9070 XT offers a compelling flagship option for gamers, reminiscent of the value and performance of the GTX 1080 Ti from 2017.
