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Category: Video Cards
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Published: Wednesday, 06 September 2023 16:32
To start the launch off I had the chance to check out the Sapphire RX 7700 XT Pulse which is their budget-focused card and a stock-clocked card. I also took a look at the overclocked XFX QICK 319 RX 7700 XT Black. Well, now I’ve got the Sapphire RX 7700 XT PURE which sits in between Sapphire’s Pulse and Nitro+ lineups. It is an overclocked card and it also improves on the Pulse with a third fan and a larger cooler but most exciting is this is a white color scheme card from Sapphire. They did bring out the RX 6950 XT PURE which was partially white but still had black fans. White cases and white builds have been popular for a long time now, it is exciting to see Sapphire finally jumping in with their own option. So I’m going to check out what the RX 7700 XT PURE is all about, put it to the test in our test suite, and then we can see how it fits in the market!
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Category: Video Cards
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Published: Wednesday, 06 September 2023 14:03
With today's 7700 XT and 7800 XT launch, I had the chance to check out a reference RX 7800 XT up against XFX’s MERC 319 RX 7800 XT Black and I was extremely impressed with its performance both from the overclock as well as its cooling and noise performance. So getting in the stock clocked RDX 7700 XT Pulse and checking it out then getting to check out the XFX Qick 319 RX 7700 XT Black which is overclocked and has a similar looking cooler design minus a few bells and whistles. I’m excited to see if the QICK 319 RX 7700 XT Black can impress as well. So we are going to dive in and see what the QICK is all about then put it through our full test suite to check out its performance. Let’s get into it!
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Category: Video Cards
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Published: Wednesday, 06 September 2023 09:22
With our RX 7800 XT testing out of the way with both the reference card and the XFX overclocked card I can finally jump into the Radeon RX 7700 XT to check out its performance. For this card AMD doesn’t have a reference design so to check out stock clocked performance I’ve got the Sapphire RX 7700 XT Pulse. It has the stock clocks and is Sapphire’s budget friendly card which in the past has combined great performance while avoiding adding in all of the unneeded flashy features you see on higher-end cards including RGB. So I’m going to dive in and check out what Sapphire has done with their card design, and then after that, we can put it through our test suite. When we are done we can then step back and see how it all comes together and where the 7700 XT as well as the 7700 XT Pulse fit into the market.
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Category: Video Cards
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Published: Wednesday, 06 September 2023 09:14
I already took a look at the Radeon RX 7800 XT reference card this morning so we have an idea of how the new 7800 XT GPU performs. But most people aren’t picking up the stock-clocked reference cards, they run the partner cards with larger coolers and are overclocked. To get an idea of how the 7800 XT performs in that situation, XFX sent over their Merc 319 7800 XT Black. I’ve been a fan of XFX’s clean styling for the last few generations, they haven’t done the standard “gaming” styling that packs a bunch of angles into the design with multiple shades of grey. They have simple smooth fan shrouds and stick mostly with black. I’m hoping that the Merc 319 7800 XT Black is going to continue that. So let’s dive in and see what the Merc 319 7800 XT Black is all about and how it performs.
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Category: Video Cards
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Published: Wednesday, 06 September 2023 09:07
AMD launched their first 7000 Series cards back in December with the RX 7900 XT and RX 7900 XTX. They have also launched the lower end of their 7000 Series with the RX 7600 but the middle of the lineup has been completely missing until now. At Gamescom, AMD announced both the Radeon RX 7800 XT and RX 7700 XT to fill in some of the middle of the lineup with a focus on 1440p performance. Today I’m going to check out a few options from both GPUs but to start things off I am going to check out the Radeon RX 7800 XT reference card to get a look at the base performance the 7800 XT is capable of then we can go from there.
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Category: Video Cards
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Published: Tuesday, 18 July 2023 20:25
With the original Radeon RX 7900 XTX launch, I had the chance to check out the reference 7900 XTX and was impressed with its performance but our card did run hot. With the 7900 XT I have had the chance to check out aftermarket cards, but for the 7900 XTX, I haven’t. So when I had the chance to check out the PowerColor Hellhound RX 7900 XTX I jumped at the chance. I’m really curious how improved cooling and an overclock will change performance, on top of that 7900 XTXs are now more available and selling for less than the original $999 MSRP the Hellhound can be found for $949 so today I’m going to check out what makes the Hellhound special, put it to the test to see how it compares, and then reevaluate how it fits in the market now that prices have dropped. Let’s dig in!
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Category: Video Cards
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Published: Thursday, 29 June 2023 09:00
Yesterday Nvidia lifted the embargo on the MSRP-priced RTX 4060 cards ahead of the RTX 4060 hitting the store today. Now that it is available in stores we can now also talk about the other models as well. ZOTAC GAMING sent over their RTX 4060 Twin Edge OC White Edition which is similar to the Twin Edge White Edition of the RTX 3060 that I previously took a look at. Today I’m going to dive in and see what ZOTAC GAMING has going on with their new card then put it through our test suite to see how it performs.
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Category: Video Cards
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Published: Wednesday, 28 June 2023 09:01
At the end of last month, both Nvidia and AMD launched their first cards targeted specifically at gamers who are gaming at 1080p. While the resolution’s use is dropping (very slowly at -.19%), 1080p is still by far the most widely used resolution. This is supported by the Steam hardware survey having 64.33% of users running the resolution. Having cards focused on the resolution is a big deal and xx60 cards from Nvidia dominate the top of the charts with five out of the top ten cards on Steams survey being xx60 and the rest being xx50 or xx60 Ti which are also in the same range. Nvidia’s previously launched RTX 4060 Ti was targeted as a higher-end 1080p card, well tomorrow the RTX 4060, which was announced alongside the 4060 Ti, will hit stores and today we can check out how it performs. With an MSRP of $299, I’m excited to see how well it will perform and see how it fits into today's market so let’s dive in and check it out.
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Category: Video Cards
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Published: Thursday, 08 June 2023 07:21
With the RX 7600 and RTX 4060 Ti launches behind us now. I did have a fourth card come in around the same time. Gigabyte sent over their RTX 4070ti Gaming OC. The RTX 4070ti Gaming OC isn’t their highest-end RTX 4070 Ti, they do have the two Aurus cards as well. But it is their highest-end Gigabyte branded card which, unlike their Eagle or Windforce models, it does incorporate some RGB lighting that goes beyond just backlit branding and it is also overclocked so I’m excited to see how it compares to the other RTX 4070 Ti’s that we have taken a look at. So let’s dive in check out the card then put it to the test!
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Category: Video Cards
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Published: Wednesday, 24 May 2023 09:02
When I think of AMD cards, Sapphire is still the first brand that comes to mind. Much like EVGA did for Nvidia for years. So with today's launch of the Radeon RX 7600, in addition to checking out the reference card which we already have done, I’ve also got the Sapphire RX 7600 Pulse. Their Pulse brand tries to bridge the gap between performance and affordability by cutting out things like RGB lighting. With a focus on 1080p performance, that is the exact mindset needed, so I’m excited to see what the Sapphire RX 7600 Pulse has to offer and to find out how the RX 7600 performs with a slight overclock and a hopefully it has better cooling performance than the reference design. So let’s dive in and see what the RX 7600 Pulse is all about.
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Category: Video Cards
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Published: Wednesday, 24 May 2023 09:01
Yesterday the embargo lifted on the Nvidia RTX 4060 Ti and today it hits store shelves, but AMD is hoping that before you consider that you take a look at their new RX 7600. Today the 7600 embargo lifts and we can dive into what it is all about and check out its performance, then it hits store shelves tomorrow. The RX 7600 is targeting the mainstream segment as well which means it is designed for 1080p performance and is priced to match the RTX 4060 which Nvidia announced for a July launch. Mainstream users can finally get excited, the next generation of cards is finally here, and with 64.52% of Steam users on the latest survey still gaming at 1080p that is still by far the largest market. So I’m excited to see how the new RX 7600 performs!
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Category: Video Cards
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Published: Tuesday, 23 May 2023 09:01
With every new generation of video cards, the latest and greatest cards are always exciting. But the truth is most people aren’t gaming at the resolutions needed to justify those cards. The latest Steam hardware survey has just 2.75% of users running a 4K display, 1440p is gaining ground at 12.49% of users. But it is still 1080p that is the most used resolution with an impressive 64.52% of users. That tells us that the power users may benefit from the highest-end cards, but for a while longer a majority of people will be better served with the mid-range of the newer lineup and we are finally starting to get into that with Nvidia’s recent announcement of the RTX 4060 Ti 8GB, RTX 4060 Ti 16GB, and the RTX 4060. The RTX 4060 Ti 16GB and the RTX 4060 are scheduled for release in July, but the RTX 4060 Ti itself will be in stores tomorrow. So today I’m going to dive into the details on the card, check out the design of the Founders Edition card, and then put it to the test to see how it fits in the market right now.
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Category: Video Cards
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Published: Thursday, 13 April 2023 09:01
Well, today is the day, RTX 4070s have hit the stores and yesterday Nvidia took the wraps off of their stocked clocked RTX 4070s that sell at the $599 MSRP. Of course that doesn’t include any of the overclocked cards and luckily today we have the RTX 4070 Amp Airo from Zotac which has their unique Airo cooler design which is significantly larger than the Nvidia RTX 4070 Founders Edition and also has an overclock. I haven’t had the chance to check out any Zotac cards this generation and I’ve never seen the Airo design in person so today I’m going to take a closer look at the design and then put it through our test suite to see how it performs, especially focusing on power, cooling, and noise where aftermarket cards can make the biggest difference.
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Category: Video Cards
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Published: Wednesday, 12 April 2023 13:36
The Nvidia Founders Edition isn’t the only base MSRP option out on the market. In fact, it is only available in a few places to buy and is often harder to come by than the MSRP options from everyone else. A good example is the MSI RTX 4070 Ventus 3X 12G which is also a $599 option. MSI has gone a different direction from Nvidia’s card, the Ventus has the same clock speed but it is larger and has three fans, not two. Today I’m going to check out the MSI RTX 4070 Ventus 3X 12G and see how the different direction changes the card performance and to see if the Ventus is a good option for those looking for an RTX 4070 at the entry price.
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Category: Video Cards
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Published: Wednesday, 12 April 2023 13:07
I know at least for my wife and myself, when shopping for our PC upgrades the highest-end cards are typically out of our budget and frankly that is fine because with our monitors we are also not normally gaming at 4k where those cards are needed. That’s why when new generations of cards start getting down into the middle of the product stack things start to get exciting and with tomorrow's launch of the Nvidia RTX 4070 we are starting to get into that range. So today I’m excited to check out the RTX 4070 Founders Edition to see how Nvidia’s new GPU performs. Before doing that I will dig into the specs to see what it has going on and then take a closer look at the card itself. So let’s dive in!
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Category: Video Cards
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Published: Thursday, 09 March 2023 11:44
The AMD RX 7900 XT and RX 7900 XTX launches this past December were exciting. AMDs latest generation of cards showed that the giant cards that Nvidia had recently launched weren’t the only option with the upcoming generation and they had impressive performance as well. Sadly I didn’t get to see Sapphire's take on the new generation of cards but that changes today. They sent over the Sapphire RX 7900 XT Pulse and today I’m going to dive in and see what it has going on and then put it through our test suite to see how it performs. I’m especially curious to see how it compares to AMDs reference design as well as the RTX 4070 Ti and we can take a second look now and see how the 7900 XT fits in the market now that things have had time to settle down post-launch. So let’s dive in!
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Category: Video Cards
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Published: Wednesday, 04 January 2023 14:26
In addition to the Asus card that Nvidia sent over for the RTX 4070 Ti launch, MSI also sent over their flagship RTX 4070 Ti Suprim X. Their Suprim lineup always goes way over the top on cooling performance and the X means that this is also an overclocked card. So today I’m going to check out the MSI RTX 4070 Ti Suprim X to see if MSI is still keeping the Suprim styling as a clean opulent model which focuses on better build quality and performance. Without a Founders Edition for the new RTX 4070 Ti that leaves a big opening for anyone like me who may not want the crazy “gamer” styling that most cards have and the styling and build quality that the Founders Editon cards have. Will this be the best option when shopping for an RTX 4070 Ti? I’m going to check out what sets it apart and then put it through our test suite to find out!
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Category: Video Cards
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Published: Wednesday, 04 January 2023 09:00
Well here we are in the new year and with it being CES time there are lots of new tech announcements and Nvidia has pulled the cover off of their latest 4000 Series GPU the RTX 4070 Ti and this is a case of what is old is new again as those of you who have been paying attention may recognize this as the unlaunched RTX 4080 12GB. After fixing that mistake and renaming the card we finally have the chance to check out Nvidia’s planned step below the RTX 4080. This is great timing as well, this is the first card launched after AMD’s 7900 XT and 7900 XTX and the 4070 Ti looks positioned to compete with the 7900 XT. The new cards don’t have a Founders Edition sadly but Nvidia along with Asus has sent over the Asus TUF Gaming RTX 4070 Ti OC that I’m going to check out so let’s learn a little more about the RTX 4070 Ti and then check out what Asus’s card is all about.
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Category: Video Cards
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Published: Tuesday, 13 December 2022 16:01
Yesterday I had the chance to check out both of AMD's reference cards for the Radeon RX 7900 XTX and XT launch. Well, today cards are available for sale and alongside of that, I have the opportunity to check out an aftermarket card from XFX, specifically the XFX MERC 310 7900 XT. This gives us a great chance to check out how XFX’s card compares with the stock-clocked reference design both in performance but also in cooling and noise. Being an aftermarket card, the MERC 310 7900 XT is larger than AMDs design, and XFX has used that as a chance to up the clock speeds as well with the game clock increased from 2000 MHz up to 2220 MHz and the boost clock which on the reference card can go up to 2400 MHz can go up to 2560 MHz on XFX’s card which is a big overclock. So let’s dive in and see what XFX has to offer!
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Category: Video Cards
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Published: Monday, 12 December 2022 20:55
In addition to the Radeon RX 7900 XTX that I already covered today, AMD is also launching its brother the Radeon RX 79000 XT and we have had that card in the office as well. This is also an RDNA 3 architecture card and it shares the same Navi 31 GPU as the 7900 XTX but with a few changes. So today I’m going to check out what those changes are and then we can see what the AMDs reference card looks like and how it differs from the 7900 XTX then see how it performs in our test suite as well. So let’s dive in!
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