For several generations, AMD has striven to match Nvidia's high-end performance. However, with the AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT, Team Red strategically targets the majority of gamers, rather than directly competing at the ultra-high end dominated by the RTX 5090. This focus results in a remarkable achievement.
Priced at $599, the AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT rivals the $749 GeForce RTX 5070 Ti, immediately establishing it as a top contender. AMD further enhances its appeal with FSR 4, introducing AI upscaling to its graphics cards for the first time. This makes it an exceptional choice for 4K gaming, particularly for those not considering the $1,999 RTX 5090.
Purchasing Guide
The AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT launched March 6th, starting at $599. Expect price variations among third-party cards; aiming for under $699 is advisable.
AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT – Photos
Specs and Features
Built on the RDNA 4 architecture, the AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT boasts improved shader cores, but its standout features are the new RT and AI Accelerators. The AI Accelerators power FidelityFX Super Resolution 4 (FSR 4), AMD's first AI upscaling technology. While not always increasing frame rates compared to FSR 3.1, FSR 4 significantly enhances image accuracy and quality. Conveniently, Adrenalin software allows disabling FSR 4 for prioritizing frame rates.
Beyond AI upscaling, enhanced shader cores deliver better per-core performance. Despite having 64 Compute Units (fewer than the 84 in the Radeon RX 7900 XT), the 9070 XT achieves a substantial generational leap at a lower price. Each Compute Unit features 64 Streaming Multiprocessors (SMs) totaling 4,096, along with 64 ray accelerators and 128 AI accelerators.
The Radeon RX 9070 XT features 16GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus (less than the RX 7900 XT's 20GB on a 320-bit bus). While sufficient for most 4K gaming, the reduction in capacity and bandwidth is a notable trade-off. The continued use of GDDR6 is another point to consider.
Though more efficient, the RX 9070 XT has a slightly higher power budget (304W) than the 7900 XT (300W). Testing, however, showed the 7900 XT consuming more power (314W) than the 9070 XT (306W). This standard power budget simplifies cooling. Unlike previous generations, AMD isn't releasing a reference design, so third-party manufacturers provide all models. My review unit, the Powercolor Radeon RX 9070 XT Reaper, maintained a temperature of 72°C during testing despite its compact triple-fan design.
The Radeon RX 9070 XT uses two standard 8-pin PCI-E power connectors, simplifying upgrades for most users with a recommended 700W power supply. Connectivity includes three DisplayPort 2.1a and one HDMI 2.1b ports; a USB-C port would have been a welcome addition.
FSR 4
FSR 4, AMD's AI upscaling solution, finally rivals DLSS. While previous FSR versions suffered from ghosting and fuzziness, FSR 4 uses AI accelerators to analyze frames and game engine data for accurate upscaling. Image quality surpasses FSR 3, but at a performance cost.
In *Call of Duty: Black Ops 6* at 4K Extreme settings (FSR 3.1 at "Performance"), the 9070 XT achieved 134 fps, dropping to 121 fps with FSR 4 (a 10% decrease) but with improved image quality. *Monster Hunter World* showed a 20% performance drop with FSR 4. This performance hit is expected due to the increased computational demands of AI upscaling. The improved image quality is a trade-off users must consider. Fortunately, FSR 4 is optional, easily toggled off in Adrenalin software.
AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT & 9070 – Benchmarks
Performance
The Radeon RX 9070 XT delivers exceptional performance for its price. At $599, it's 21% cheaper than the RTX 5070 Ti while offering, on average, 2% faster performance. While the RTX 5070 Ti wins in some games, the overall competitiveness is a victory for AMD. The RX 9070 XT is approximately 17% faster than the RX 7900 XT and 2% faster than the RTX 5070 Ti. Its 4K performance, particularly with ray tracing, is outstanding.
Testing used the latest drivers: Game Ready Driver 572.60 for Nvidia cards (except the RTX 5070, using review drivers), and Adrenalin 24.12.1 for AMD cards (except the RX 9070 XT and RX 9070, using pre-release drivers). 3DMark results, while not reflecting real-world performance perfectly, indicate potential. The RX 9070 XT outperforms the 7900 XT significantly in some 3DMark benchmarks and even surpasses the RTX 5070 Ti in others.
Game benchmarks reveal varied results. The RX 9070 XT leads in *Call of Duty: Black Ops 6*, *Red Dead Redemption 2*, and *Assassin's Creed Mirage*, while trailing slightly behind in *Cyberpunk 2077* and *Total War: Warhammer 3*. The performance in *Metro Exodus* and *Black Myth: Wukong* is particularly impressive, showcasing improvements in ray tracing capabilities.
**Test System:** CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D; Motherboard: Asus ROG Crosshair X870E Hero; RAM: 32GB G.Skill Trident Z5 Neo @ 6,000MHz; SSD: 4TB Samsung 990 Pro; CPU Cooler: Asus ROG Ryujin III 360
The Radeon RX 9070 XT's unexpected release feels like a strategic counter to Nvidia's Blackwell cards. At $599, it offers a compelling value proposition, avoiding the overkill and high cost of the RTX 5080 and 5090. It represents a return to a more sensible flagship graphics card, reminiscent of the GTX 1080 Ti's value proposition.
