AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT Still Isn't At MSRP But It's Getting Closer
What do Big Foot, the Loch Ness Monster, and an AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT priced at MSRP all have in common? Nobody has ever supplied definitive proof that any of them actually exist. That may change, however, with the Radeon RX 9070 XT inching closer to its $599 recommended pricing in the wild, with a PowerColor model selling for $50 over MSRP.
That's encouraging, though it also comes with some frustrating caveats. For one, the listing in question is on Micro Center's website, where the PowerColor Reaper Radeon RX 9070 XT variant is on sale for $649.99. However, it's an in-store only deal, and therefore dependent on your local Micro Center location having it in stock.
Related, the other caveat is that Micro Center locations are few and far between compared to retailers like Best Buy and Walmart. There are only 29 locations nationwide, which includes its new Charlotte, North Carolina store. That also happens to be the closest one to this author, but still over a 3-hour drive. Incidentally, if you live near Charlotte, the aforementioned GPU is showing as in-stock at that location.
As we noted in our Radeon RX 9070 XT review (in which we used the PowerColor Reaper model), we think most folks will be happy with this card, especially if street pricing approaches AMD's somewhat aggressive launch MSRP. Unfortunately, that hasn't been the case for the most part. Outside of Micro Center's discount, here are the next cheapest models we've found (we've limited our search to in-stock listings where shipping is an option)...
- PowerColor Reaper Radeon RX 9070 XT: $699.99 at Amazon
- ASRock Steel Legend Radeon RX 9070 XT: $699.99 at Newegg
- ASUS Prime Radeon RX 9070 XT OC Edition: $719.99 at Amazon
- Gigabyte Radeon 9070 XT Gaming OC: $719.99 at Best Buy (save $10)
- XFX Swift Radeon RX 9070 XT: $729.99 at Best Buy (save $20)
- XFX Swift Radeon RX 9070 XT (White): $749.99 at Best Buy (save $20)
That's not an all-inclusive list, but for the most part, the Radeon RX 9070 XT is commonly found for $719 and up. Some models even sell for north of $800, at which point the value proposition vanishes into the ether.
Is the situation finally improving, though? Back in March, we reported on retailers claiming that a second wave of Radeon RX 9070 series cards will have higher prices. AMD then reached out to us with a statement indicating that it's working with its retail partners to offer the 9070 XT at or close to $599 and the 9070 (non-XT) at or close to $549.
"It is inaccurate that $549/$599 MSRP is launch-only pricing. We expect cards to be available from multiple vendors at $549/$599 (excluding region specific tariffs and/or taxes) based on the work we have done with our AIB partners, and more are coming. At the same time, the AIBs have different premium configurations at higher price points and those will also continue," AMD said at the time.
Now six months later, the listing at Micro Center (as spotted by Videocardz) is encouraging, but we'll have to wait and see if other retailers latch on to cheaper pricing, too.
