AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT Reference Card Spotted In The Wild, Is A Release Imminent?
AMD's Radeon RX 9070 and RX 9070 XT both launched recently after much anticipation from gamers. Notably missing were any AMD Reference Edition models, something AMD has released in the past for its various GPUs. Similar to the NVIDIA Founders Edition cards, AMD's Reference Edition cards are manufactured for AMD and not the typical third party add-in-board partner.
According to Uniko's Hardware on X, the Reference model of the RX 9070 XT was just spotted with someone in China selling it. The price was $599, which is the same as the MSRP that AMD set for the Radeon RX 9070 XT. The AMD Reference Edition is notable because it typically will only sell for the exact MSRP of the GPU itself. In comparison, third party partners often add different coolers and other perks to GPU models, which in turn add a premium to the price.
According to Uniko's Hardware on X, the Reference model of the RX 9070 XT was just spotted with someone in China selling it. The price was $599, which is the same as the MSRP that AMD set for the Radeon RX 9070 XT. The AMD Reference Edition is notable because it typically will only sell for the exact MSRP of the GPU itself. In comparison, third party partners often add different coolers and other perks to GPU models, which in turn add a premium to the price.
The design of the AMD Reference Edition GPUs are often desirable as well, for many reasons. First, the form factor is usually a reasonably sized design, which can fit in many smaller cases. For example, the Reference Edition Radeon RX 7900 XTX could easily fit into a mini-itx enclosure, while its third party variants may not be able to (depending on the model). Secondly, it often has a very minimalist and monochromatic design, which can compliment almost any build with simplicity.
Both AMD Reference Edition and Founders Edition GPUs from NVIDIA can be hard to track down, as not all retailers will carry them. They also seem to be highly desired and sell out fairly quickly, and in the latter stages of the GPU's existence, they can be even more difficult to track down.
The Reference Edition of AMD's Radeon RX 9070 and 9070 XT would have the base specifications, and perform on par with most offerings on the market. If they actually existed (outside of leaked prototypes), that is. Highly overclocked models of these GPUs exist in third party trim, but at a larger form factors and typically higher costs for what usually amount to just modest gains.
It will be great news if these are coming, but typically they would release simultaneously at the launch of the product. This generation of GPUs seem to have a lot of quirky occurrences, however. NVIDIA has delayed the release of its GeForce RTX 5070 Founders Edition model to late March, even though the RTX 5070 has already been released.
Both AMD Reference Edition and Founders Edition GPUs from NVIDIA can be hard to track down, as not all retailers will carry them. They also seem to be highly desired and sell out fairly quickly, and in the latter stages of the GPU's existence, they can be even more difficult to track down.
The Reference Edition of AMD's Radeon RX 9070 and 9070 XT would have the base specifications, and perform on par with most offerings on the market. If they actually existed (outside of leaked prototypes), that is. Highly overclocked models of these GPUs exist in third party trim, but at a larger form factors and typically higher costs for what usually amount to just modest gains.
It will be great news if these are coming, but typically they would release simultaneously at the launch of the product. This generation of GPUs seem to have a lot of quirky occurrences, however. NVIDIA has delayed the release of its GeForce RTX 5070 Founders Edition model to late March, even though the RTX 5070 has already been released.
AMD has already said it's not planning to release its own Radeon RX 9070 / 9070 XT cards, so this is almost definitely a prototype (assuming it's real).
