Last September 25th, AMD has officially introduced their latest flagship graphics processor, and dubbed as the currently fastest single GPU on the planet – the AMD Radeon R9 290X. The Radeon R9 290X is based on the new “Hawaii” silicon and second generation Graphics CoreNext (CGN) micro-architecture. It is expected to outperform NVIDIA’s fastest single graphics processor, not only in terms of performance but probably in price as well.
The AMD Radeon R9 290X features a whooping 4GB of memory in a 512-bit memory interface, has 4 independent tessellation units, and can process 4 billion triangles per second, has 6 billion transistors, 300 GB/s memory bandwidth and 5 TFLOP/s of computing power. It fully supports DirectX 11.2 which would be beneficial to the latest games, like Battlefield 4. According to AMD, it also scored around 7,000 points in 3DMARK FirstStrike Performance benchmark. Of course, we will need to see real benchmark to confirm this.
Obviously the AMD Radeon R9 290X is geared towards PC enthusiasts and gamers who want to max out their games’ settings and experience the highest quality of gaming experience as possible. It also supports UHD or Ultra High Definition display, or 4K resolution. The new fastest graphics card, R9 290X, also features True Audio Technology that “revolutionizes game audio and provides artistic freedom”.
So far these are just the only AMD Radeon R9 290X specs that we know, since AMD is still holding the full details about their latest flagship. I’m sure we will get know more about the new fastest graphics card, including real life benchmarks as soon as it is released in the market. But it’s expected that graphics card manufacturers like Asus, MSI or XFX will use their own cooling technology, like the XFX’s Double Dissipation cooling system, and will be priced above or slightly above the reference price.
Price and Release Date
AMD has also not disclosed the suggested retail price of the Radeon R9 290X. But there are some reports saying that AMD might price it somewhere in the $599 price point. We are also expecting that AMD would give it a much affordable price tag compared to NVIDIA’s GeForce GTX Titan.
The AMD Radeon R9 290X will be available for pre-order, bundled with a couple of games like Battlefield 4 starting sometime in October. I’m sure the timing is right since Black Saturday, Cyber Monday and Christmas season is almost upon us. The new R7 and R9 graphics cards would be a perfect gift for gamers and PC Enthusiasts this Holiday season. Expect a price drop from the previous generation of AMD graphics cards.
More pictures below courtesy of WCCFTECH:
