AMD Radeon R9 290 Review: Hawaii Just Got Cheaper

This has been an exciting few weeks in the GPU space, to say the least. AMD has released a new line-up of cards that cover the entire spectrum, from entry-level, affordable products, to ultra-powerful, high-end solutions, targeted at hardcore gamers. We’ve also seen NVIDIA react to AMD’s recent releases with significant price cuts on the GeForce GTX 770 and GTX 780, new game bundles, and the announcement of the GeForce GTX 780 Ti, which will be available very soon. In less than a month, the entire GPU landscape has changed, and the metamorphosis isn’t quite complete just yet.

Today AMD is officially releasing the Radeon R9 290. This card was originally slated to do battle with the GeForce GTX 770, but due to NVIDIA’s price cuts, AMD decided to move the R9 290 upmarket at the 11th hour. Instead, thanks to a few tweaks that came via a last minute driver drop that improves performance, the Radeon R9 290 is poised to take on the $499 GeForce GTX 780...

AMD Radeon R9 290 Review: Hawaii Just Got Cheaper

Marco Chiappetta

Marco Chiappetta

Marco's interest in computing and technology dates all the way back to his early childhood. Even before being exposed to the Commodore P.E.T. and later the Commodore 64 in the early ‘80s, he was interested in electricity and electronics, and he still has the modded AFX cars and shop-worn soldering irons to prove it. Once he got his hands on his own Commodore 64, however, computing became Marco's passion. Throughout his academic and professional lives, Marco has worked with virtually every major platform from the TRS-80 and Amiga, to today's high end, multi-core servers. Over the years, he has worked in many fields related to technology and computing, including system design, assembly and sales, professional quality assurance testing, and technical writing. In addition to being the Managing Editor here at HotHardware for close to 15 years, Marco is also a freelance writer whose work has been published in a number of PC and technology related print publications and he is a regular fixture on HotHardware’s own Two and a Half Geeks webcast. - Contact: marco(at)hothardware(dot)com