Nvidia missed the mark with its $549 GeForce RTX 5070, leaving the door wide open for AMD’s new Radeon RX 9070 and 9070 XT. These cards, priced at $549 and $599 respectively, offer superior performance and a generous 16GB of VRAM, eclipsing the RTX 5070’s lackluster 12GB. Even ray tracing, traditionally an AMD weak point, has seen significant improvements. This review dives into the performance, features, and overall value proposition of the Radeon RX 9070 series, based on testing with the XFX Swift Triple Fan Gaming Edition and the overclocked Asus TUF Gaming OC models.
Performance Benchmarks: AMD Takes the Lead
Call of Duty Black Ops 6 Benchmark
Our 1440p benchmarks show the Radeon RX 9070 cards delivering exceptional performance. While AMD still trails Nvidia in complex ray tracing scenarios, the $549 Radeon RX 9070 outperforms the $549 RTX 5070 in overall gaming performance. Averaging results across our test suite, the Radeon 9070 is approximately 8 percent faster. Excluding Black Myth Wukong, a demanding title with heavy ray tracing where Radeon GPUs struggle, the performance gap widens to 11 percent in favor of the 9070.
The $599 Radeon RX 9070 XT further solidifies AMD’s advantage. It delivers a 15 percent average performance increase over the RTX 5070 and a 7 percent boost over the standard 9070. Ignoring Black Myth Wukong, the 9070 XT’s lead over the RTX 5070 jumps to an impressive 19 percent.
AMD Radeon RX 9070 Series Performance Slide
Remarkably, the Radeon RX 9070 XT even challenges the $750 RTX 5070 Ti, offering comparable performance at a significantly lower price. The 5070 Ti is only 3 to 6 percent faster than the 9070 XT, making it a less attractive value proposition unless DLSS 4 or superior AI and content creation capabilities are paramount.
Gaming Power Consumption
Idle Power Consumption
One minor issue encountered was unusually low 1 percent lows in Returnal specifically with the 9070 GPUs, a problem we’ve reported to AMD.
Ray Tracing: A Significant Improvement
F1 2024 Ray Tracing Benchmark
RDNA 4, the architecture behind the Radeon 9000 series, brings substantial ray tracing improvements. The 9070 series rivals the RTX 5070 in games with moderate to heavy ray tracing, even surpassing it in titles like F1 24 and Returnal. However, in games with more complex ray tracing implementations like Black Myth Wukong and Cyberpunk 2077‘s RT Overdrive mode, Nvidia cards still hold a performance edge.
Memory Capacity: Future-Proofing Your Gaming
XFX AMD Radeon RX 9070 and 9070 XT
AMD’s decision to equip the Radeon RX 9070 series with 16GB of VRAM and a 256-bit bus provides a significant advantage over the RTX 5070’s limited 12GB and 192-bit bus. This not only allows for smoother 4K gaming but also future-proofs the cards against increasingly demanding game requirements. The RTX 5070 already faces memory limitations in some titles, highlighting the importance of ample VRAM.
FSR 4 and Hypr-RX: Boosting Performance Further
AMD FSR 4 Slide
AMD leverages FSR 4 and Hypr-RX to enhance performance. FSR 4 uses AI-powered upscaling, delivering noticeable image quality improvements over previous generations. While promising, initial implementation has been inconsistent. Hypr-RX, on the other hand, offers a one-click solution to activate various Radeon features like FSR, Frame Generation, and anti-lag, boosting performance in most games. While it may introduce some image softness, it’s a powerful tool for maximizing frame rates.
Content Creation and AI: Nvidia Still Reigns
AI Text Benchmark
In content creation and AI workloads, Nvidia cards maintain their superiority. Benchmarks in Adobe Premiere Pro and AI text generation show a clear advantage for the RTX 5070.
No Reference Cards: Partner Models Only
Unlike Nvidia, AMD is not releasing reference models for the Radeon RX 9070 series. All cards will be available from AMD partners, with most utilizing a pair of 8-pin power connectors. However, some custom models may opt for a 12-pin connector, and overclocked versions might require additional power.
Conclusion: AMD Delivers Compelling Value
XFX AMD Radeon RX 9070 and 9070 XT
The Radeon RX 9070 and 9070 XT are compelling choices for 1440p gaming, offering superior performance and value compared to the RTX 5070. The 9070 XT, in particular, stands out, offering near-RTX 5070 Ti performance at a significantly lower price. While some software issues and Nvidia’s continued dominance in content creation persist, the Radeon 9070 series delivers a compelling mix of performance, memory capacity, and value, making them the new 1440p gaming champions.
