AMD launches refreshed Radeon graphics cards with more performance, higher prices

Although the Radeon RX 6000 Series launched back in fall of 2020, AMD is not done yet with releasing new models for its current generation of graphics cards. The company announced a refresh today for the existing lineup based on the RDNA 2 architecture. The new models from AMD include the Radeon 6950 XT, 6750 XT, and the 6650 XT. These models all offer slightly more gaming performance than the standard versions, but unsurprisingly cost more.

Gaming performance increases vary per model and per game, but you can generally expect small performance gains. This refresh is nothing that invalidates the previous lineup. These new models are differentiated from the existing options by higher clock speeds, improved Infinity Cache, and faster GDDR6 memory. Other than that, these are the same GPU chips. Whether or not these improved models are worth it will just depend on the performance targets you want to hit. And, of course, the size of your wallet.

The Radeon 6950 XT starts at $1,099 USD, offering a slight performance increase that gives it the edge over Nvidia’s RTX 3090. The 6750 XT starts at $549 USD and AMD claims that it beats the Nvidia RTX 3070 in a decent number of games now versus the original 6700 XT. Finally, the 6650 XT starts at $399 USD and AMD markets it as a premium high-refresh 1080p card capable of beating Nvidia’s RTX 3060 in most cases.

Refreshing or redundant?

Even with the benchmarks provided by AMD, the gaming performance improvements for these cards are modest at best for the additional costs when strictly looking at MSRP. The added $100 USD for the 6950 XT might be worth it for those interested in having the best gaming hardware possible. The 6750 XT is best pick of the bunch for the performance uplift you get, but the $70 USD price bump is significant. As for the 6650 XT, there’s a minimal performance increase that’s simply not worth the higher price.

The reality of the situation is that most of the original Radeon RX 6000 Series cards never reached MSRP. While the recent downward pricing trends for graphics cards might eventually make MSRP a reality, the current costs are around what AMD’s now charging for the refreshed models.

If we take a look at market prices, we can see that various 6X50 XT models are available for the new MSRPs. In that sense, these cards are better value. One example for the 6650 XT is the Gigabyte Gaming model that’s in stock now for $399 USD. The Sapphire Pulse is another example for the 6750 XT, priced at $550 USD. As for the 6950 XT, you can find most models listed exactly at the MSRP in addition to the Radeon reference model at AMD.com for $1,099 USD.

Although the graphics card market is still pricey compared to 2019, this refresh does offer some benefit to consumers when considering current market conditions. You can now get a factory overclocked AMD card for about the same price as before with the additional benefits of tailored coolers and guaranteed stability. Just keep in mind that a new generation is expected later this year.