Skip to main content

AMD’s next budget GPU may be a killer card — here’s why

The release of AMD’s Radeon RX 7000 graphics cards is still a while away, but we’re already hearing rumors about the performance and power requirements of these next-gen graphics cards.

Today, a known leaker has teased that even entry-level AMD RX 7000 GPUs may be capable of outperforming the current-gen flagship, the RX 6900 XT. As a cherry on top, new AMD graphics cards could be a lot less power-hungry than the upcoming Nvidia GeForce RTX 4000 GPUs.

Compared to FP32 alone, navi33 is theoretically possible to be higher than 6900XT, which can reach 22.9T at 2.8ghz.For power consumption, 220-250W is what I think is ideal.🤔

— Greymon55 (@greymon55) March 15, 2022

The information comes from Greymon55, a leaker with a good track record when it comes to PC hardware. Even though Greymon has been accurate in the past, it’s best to take these rumors with a grain of salt, because they are exactly that — rumors, at least until AMD tells us more about its plans for the RX 7000 GPU line.

According to Greymon, the upcoming Navi 33 GPU may be able to outperform even high-end Navi 21 graphics cards, such as the RX 6900 XT — and this applies even to more budget-friendly versions of the card. If AMD retains the current naming scheme, this could mean that potentially, a Radeon RX 7700 XT could beat the current-gen RX 6900 XT in terms of pure performance.

Greymon bases this rumor on FP32 testing, which describes how many calculations the chip can perform per second. According to the leaker, the RX 6900 XT can hit 22.9 teraflops (TFLOPs) when clocked at 2.80GHz. This implies the card would have to be overclocked to reach such frequencies, as the regular boost clock for that GPU is 2.25GHz. Greymon implies that the Navi 33 GPU should be capable of hitting higher TFLOP counts, or at least a similar level. If proven true, this would mean that a high-end GPU from the previous generation would become outclassed by a mid-range offering from the current generation when the RX 7000-series launches.

AMD's RX 6900 XT graphics card.
AMD

The high expectations for the RX 7000-series graphics cards don’t end there. Greymon also stated that an expected power consumption level for such a GPU would be in the 220 to 250 watts range. Considering that the current flagship RX 6900 XT has a TGP of 300 watts, this implies great things for the upcoming GPUs. If the leak proves to be true, the card could be capable of hitting high performance while keeping power consumption at a reasonable level.

Reasonable power requirements would help AMD compete with Nvidia’s upcoming RTX 4000 “Ada” GPUs. Of course, we’re still in the rumor stages, but there have been signs that especially the flagship RTX 4090 may be extremely power-hungry, reaching as high as a TGP of 850 watts. Even if we slice that in half, AMD could be the winner in this regard if it maintains the aforementioned low power requirements on its flagship GPU.

Editors' Recommendations

Monica J. White
Monica is a UK-based freelance writer and self-proclaimed geek. A firm believer in the "PC building is just like expensive…
Nvidia’s RTX 4060 might not be such a disappointment after all
Nvidia's RTX 4070 graphics cards over a pink background.

Nvidia's RTX 4060 is right around the corner, so it's really no surprise that the first benchmarks are already starting to leak out. Today, two tests have been spotted, and they bode pretty well for the GPU. The RTX 3060, which is still a favorite among Nvidia users, might be around 20% slower than the upcoming Ada Lovelace model.

Will the RTX 4060 become one of the best GPUs, or at least one of the most popular models in this generation?

Read more
Nvidia’s most important next-gen GPU is less than 2 weeks away
An Nvidia GeForce RTX graphics card seen from the side.

Nvidia has just quietly announced the official release date of the RTX 4060. The GPU is coming out on June 29 and will be priced at $299.

Although performance-wise, the RTX 4060 can't hope to compete against some of the best graphics cards, it's still one of Nvidia's most important GPUs. Can it repeat the success of its predecessors?

Read more
Nvidia’s RTX 4060 might arrive sooner than expected
Logo on the RTX 4060 Ti graphics card.

It looks like Nvidia's upcoming RTX 4060 might arrive sooner than expected. Although initial predictions put its arrival sometime in July, Nvidia may still launch it before June is over.

With a questionable set of specifications, but a highly affordable price, will the RTX 4060 become one of this year's best GPUs?

Read more