AMD's highly anticipated RX 9070 and RX 9070 XT graphics cards, unveiled at CES 2025, are finally getting a release date: March 2025. This announcement, made via Twitter/X by David McAfee, VP & GM of Radeon Graphics and Ryzen CPUs, confirms the cards' arrival next month. While McAfee expressed excitement for the global launch, crucially, specific details regarding pricing and precise specifications remain undisclosed.
Industry speculation suggests the RX 9070 series will compete directly with Nvidia's RTX 5070 and RTX 5070 Ti, launching in February, occupying similar performance and price tiers. Intriguingly, reports suggest review samples have already reached outlets like eTeknix, raising questions about the timing of the official launch.
The delayed announcement has fueled speculation that AMD strategically postponed the launch to analyze and respond to Nvidia's February releases, enabling a more direct comparison and potentially mitigating pricing pressure from its competitor. This strategic move is particularly noteworthy given Nvidia's commanding 88% share of the discrete GPU market, as reported in June 2024, leaving AMD with a significantly smaller 12%. AMD's success in regaining market share hinges on a well-executed launch and competitive positioning against Nvidia's dominance. The lack of clear communication surrounding the RX 9070 series launch has, however, created a somewhat muddled and confusing situation for consumers.
