AMD Radeon RX 7000 RDNA 3 GPUs Could Arrive In December

AMD
(Image credit: AMD)

AMD could formally introduce its next-generation Radeon RX 7000-series graphics cards based on the RDNA 3 architecture sometime in November and release them commercially in December, according to ECSM, a leaker with a good track record who revealed accurate launch schedule for Intel's Raptor Lake processors earlier this year. The information corroborates with AMD's plan to launch its following graphics processing units this year.

The leaker didn't reveal a specific date, only claiming that the product launch event would be in November. However, he stated that AMD would likely start shipping its flagship and sub-flagship RDNA 3 graphics card in the second half of December.

ECSM did not specify whether by flagship and sub-flagship he meant graphics cards (which can use the same GPU, but with different core count/clock speed configuration) or graphics processing units (which are separate pieces of silicon with their configuration), but we would put our money on actual add-in-boards keeping in mind AMD's track record.

If this is the case, we would expect AMD to release its top-of-the-range codenamed Navi 31 GPU and two graphics cards on its base (think Radeon RX 7900 XT and Radeon RX 7800 XT, though we are speculating) that will likely join the stable of the best graphics cards for gaming. Meanwhile, considering a significant performance uplift brought by Nvidia's GeForce RTX 4090 graphics card compared to the prior generation, ECSM thinks it will be hard for AMD to compete against this board. Thus, he does not expect AMD's flagship graphics offering to carry an extreme price tag. 

Meanwhile, bearing in mind that AMD's Navi 31 will use the company's all-new RDNA 3 architecture, a brand-new chiplet design, and feature a 384-bit memory bus, we would anticipate the performance gap between AMD's flagship and Nvidia's flagship offerings to be considerably narrower than the gap between the Radeon RX 6900 XT and the GeForce RTX 4090. Again, though, we are just making a guess. 

Suppose the information is correct and AMD intends to start selling two Radeon RX 7000-series graphics boards in the second half of December. In that case, we can only wonder whether they will be available widely this year and at recommended prices. Typically, product ramps take time, so AMD's next-generation, high-end offerings may be hard to find in calendar 2022, especially during the Christmas holidays. 

AMD has always said it will use its next-generation RDNA 3-based GPUs for desktop PCs in 2022. Ruth Cotter, the company's SVP responsible for marketing, human resources, and investor relations, reiterated this plan in mid-September at Goldman Sachs Communacopia + Technology Conference. 

"We have new product launch before the end of the year, which we are pretty excited about and we think that will be helpful [in terms of shipments growth]," said Cotter (via SeekingAlpha). "But, certainly, the back half of the year is having to work through those sort of machinations. […] That kind of messiness in the consumer graphics market, product launches will help and then we will just have to see how we head into 2023 from there."

Anton Shilov
Contributing Writer

Anton Shilov is a contributing writer at Tom’s Hardware. Over the past couple of decades, he has covered everything from CPUs and GPUs to supercomputers and from modern process technologies and latest fab tools to high-tech industry trends.

  • btmedic04
    im beginning to suspect Anton writes for userbenchmark :ROFLMAO:
    Reply
  • thisisaname
    The moon could also be made of Cheese.

    I also would only consider the AMD Radeon RX 7000 RDNA 3 GPUs to be released if I can buy cards that are not the top end.
    Reply
  • Soul_keeper
    Having 7000 series CPUs and 7000 series video cards might be confusing imo.
    Reply
  • BeedooX
    Soul_keeper said:
    Having 7000 series CPUs and 7000 series video cards might be confusing imo.
    I must be quite smart then as I don't feel confused at all :D
    Reply
  • -Fran-
    Dear Santa...

    :LOL:

    I just hope they don't screw this one up. Come on AMD, another HD4870 moment. We don't need stinkin $1600 GPUs; we plebs want $200 greatness.

    Regards XD
    Reply
  • gg83
    btmedic04 said:
    im beginning to suspect Anton writes for userbenchmark :ROFLMAO:
    Anton is a great writer regardless. I really like his style and topics.
    Reply
  • husker
    "...we would anticipate the performance gap between AMD's flagship and Nvidia's flagship offerings to be considerably narrower than the gap between the Radeon RX 6900 XT and the GeForce RTX 4090. Again, though, we are just making a guess."

    Nice straight faced delivery on that one. :sneaky::ROFLMAO:
    Reply
  • helper800
    I hope one day AMD releases their top card and just blows Nvidias top card out of the water by like 40%+ across the board. Then the argument will shift to features and drivers as a distraction from the loss.
    Reply
  • hannibal
    4090 was / is quite fast so maybe navi 31 is quite near, but lets see. First multi chip CPU is not easy task to make optimal.
    I am more waiting for Nvidia 4070 and Navi 32 aka 6700XT that may be less than $900... But those will be released somewhere next year. Hopefully before the summer.

    $200 GPUs are practically dead and I don´t expect to see sensible GPUs in that price category. Maybe 4050 and 6400XT could be near $400 to $500...
    Reply
  • pyrocyborg
    hannibal said:

    $200 GPUs are practically dead and I don´t expect to see sensible GPUs in that price category. Maybe 4050 and 6400XT could be near $400 to $500...

    If the rumours about Nvidia selling their RTX 3000 (being the mid-range to entry level range now) series concurrently to the RTX 4000 series are any true, it would seem that these $200-250 graphics cards wonder will always end up being one generation late. With the supposed release of new variants of the 3060, 3060 Ti and 3070 Ti, I wouldn't be surprised if they decided to sell both generations at the same time with the 3000 series being the low to mid-range, and the 4000 series being the higher-end until they release mid-range models in mid to late 2023.

    Unless Intel really brings their A game and manage to push AMD and Nvidia midrange pricing down, but they still have to manage a few things like idle power usage to really catch on.

    I think that every gamer wants lower priced graphics cards that are competent enough, but we haven't seen that since Pascal, partly due to raytracing units in gaming products.
    Reply