The last word:
So, what do we think of this ASUS TUF Gaming RX 9070 OC?
You guessed it: nothing but good, and without a doubt. AMD has chosen to concentrate on mid-range cards, and it seems to have paid off. It’s a risky move, but one that seems to have paid off, even if we had to wait until March for the cards to arrive. It looks like the gamble of offering cards under the $700 mark, as indicated on the slides, may well be the winning choice, especially if stocks are good and with the MSRP prices in euros we’ve just received from AMD France.
Since the RX 7900 XT and RX 7900 XTX, a persistent question has been: “Why is AMD offering two cards with fairly similar performance?”. AMD launches two cards, with a price difference of $50 and performance that varies by plus or minus 12%. In the end, the RX 9070 XT would have been more than enough. We still don’t really have an answer to this question.
Performance:
There’s no doubt about it. Our ASUS TUF Gaming RX 9070 OC clearly takes the lead over the recently launched RTX 5070, with a 17% gain in performance. We consider this TUF model to be a dedicated 1440p card, although with the help of upscaling, even the most demanding games can be played at 2160p. The idea is not to take too much advantage of Frame Generation in order to maintain a good gaming experience. Compared to the previous generation, the RX 7900 GRE is relayed by almost 20%, and in 2160p, it does slightly better than the RX 7900 XT, but is sold for almost $350 more.
For lack of time, we haven’t had a chance to evaluate its overclocking capabilities , but the memory already seems very flexible and we should also have some nice surprises.
The MSRP price is very attractive, but…
AMD surprised everyone by announcing an MSRP of $549 for the RX 9070 and $599 for the RX 9070 XT! It was difficult to comment on these prices without knowing the performance. Now that they’ve been released, we’re thinking these are really excellent prices, especially since AMD France has given us MSRP prices of €629 for the RX 9070 and €689.95 for the RX 9070 XT!
The first regret is the absence of AMD reference boards. Had this been the case, it could have made a big impact, especially as the RTX 5070 Ti is not available as a Founders Edition, but only as a custom card. Now AMD can make room for its partners.
The MSRP of 629 euros for the RX 9070 versus 649 euros for the RTX 5070 remains clearly in favor of the reds, given the performance of our ASUS TUF Gaming RX 9070 OC. Now, neither AMD nor ASUS were able to provide us with the price of this TUF model… so let’s keep our fingers crossed that we don’t get a nasty surprise on March 6.
Finally, stocks! We have the impression that they should be substantial, since distributors were already receiving cards in January 2025. No doubt partners have had plenty of time to build up their stocks. And where the post-posted launch had led us to fear the worst, such as the need to update the cards’ BIOS following disappointing performance, we can tell you that this is absolutely not the case, since we received our sample of the RX 9070 XT on January 13, 2025. It had been waiting in its box ever since. We can well imagine that if stocks are high, scalpers will have very little interest in buying cards, which should prevent prices from skyrocketing – at least, once again, let’s hope so.
Should you sell your RX 7900 XT?
Well, as was the case with the RTX 5000: “NO, your RX 7900 XT will still do the job perfectly”. We’ve chosen this RX 7900 XT model because its performance is quite similar, even if the launch price is quite different. On the other hand, upgrading from a previous generation is totally feasible if prices are consistent.
Now, where AMD is likely to hurt is that, in the absence of RTX 5000 stocks, potential buyers are likely to turn to AMD if the cards are available and priced right. Once again, as we said in our introduction, we’ll know on March 6, the day of the official launch and availability of the RX 9070, whether AMD has fully succeeded in its gamble, which, to be frank, we didn’t see coming!
Once again, ASUS has graced us with an excellent card, the TUF Gaming RX 9070 OC. As with other TUF models, it’s finally a series we’re fully satisfied with. Less exuberant than the STRIX series, this TUF has everything to please: an efficient cooling system and a look that will suit most people. It remains to be seen what the price will be in stores on March 6, but if, as we hope, stocks are good, it’ll be banger!
Thanks to AMD France for making this copy of the ASUS TUF Gaming RX 9070 OC available.
