Despite AMD's promise to deliver RDNA 4 GPUs at MSRP, it is still letting its partners charge whatever they want to.
Not Just Premium Models, but Base Models of the RX 9070 Series are Now Listed for Significantly Higher Prices Than at Launch
Last week AMD issued a statement, indicating that they won't be increasing the prices of the RX 9070 series as was previously thought. Initially, some reports suggested that the RX 9070 XT and RX 9070 would become pricier after the first batch of GPUs were sold out, but AMD said it would 'encourage' MSRP pricing even after that.
What exactly AMD meant by 'encouraging' MSRP pricing isn't clear, but it doesn't seem to hold up when it comes to the current pricing trend of its RDNA 4 GPUs. The prices soon soared in just a week, with retailers listing the already-launched models at a much higher price than on launch day. While this doesn't apply to every model from various vendors or retailers, The Verge tracked down many such editions that were affected by this.
The pricing trend doesn't just show that the premium models increased in prices, but the base models did as well. If you have been following the recent GPU launches, you must be aware that AMD didn't launch its reference design for either of the cards, even though it did make some, as we reported earlier today. However, you won't find them officially in the market as AMD left it all to its board partners.
While it's obvious to assume that the OC or premium models will list for noticeably higher prices than the announced MSRP, AIBs are silently increasing the prices of those as well, to the point where they no longer offer that appealing value compared to the RTX 5070 series. For instance, PowerColor's RX 9070 XT Reaper series, which was listed at $599 on Newegg, now sits at $699. The card showed a similar price bump at Overclockers UK, including the Sapphire Pulse edition as well.
Meanwhile, the XFX RX 9070 XT Swift bumped up to a staggering $730, which is a nearly 21% price increase and is almost close to the MSRP of the RTX 5070 Ti, which outperforms the RX 9070 XT by a small margin at rasterization but significantly in ray tracing benchmarks. Unfortunately, the only card we could find at under $700 was the ASRock Steel Legend RX 9070 XT at $669, while premium models like Red Devil and XFX Mercury were easily touching $800. It should be noted that these price increments occurred despite GPUs not being in stock at most retailers.
The RX 9070 cards also saw up to a $130 bump in price at retailers like Micro Center and a minimum of $50 at Overclockers UK. This clearly indicates that even though AMD says it encourages MSRP pricing, its board partners are allowed to price their cards at whatever they want to charge.
News Source: The Verge
About the author: Sarfraz Khan is a hardware reporter with a focus on PC components and the builder community. With years of experience writing about PC hardware and laptops, his work has been featured on several reputable technology publications. Sarfraz's hands-on experience is demonstrated through his first-person accounts of using and comparing different hardware configurations, providing practical and relatable insights for everyday users. His technical analysis is respected by peers in the enthusiast community and has been cited by specialized hardware sites such as Germany's Igor's Lab.
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