AMD’s RX 8000 new graphics playing cards are coming in scorching, with leaks suggesting we may see 4 shiny new GPUs earlier than the yr is out. However these aren’t the playing cards I’m right here to speak about at present, no sir: Taiwanese producer Biostar has inexplicably simply unveiled a brand new mannequin of the Radeon RX 580, which initially launched again in April 2017.
The RX 580 was (and nonetheless is, frankly) a wonderful alternative of GPU for 1080p gaming on a funds. We gave it 4 stars in our evaluation, noting that – on the time – it stole the funds gaming crown from Nvidia’s competing GeForce GTX 1060, a card that held the highest spot on Steam’s most-used GPUs for a protracted, very long time.
However as a lot as I favored the RX 580, on the finish of the day, it’s a seven-year-old GPU; six years outdated if you wish to be particular, since this mannequin technically makes use of the marginally new 2048 core structure model of the chip, which launched in 2018. Why launch a brand new mannequin now?
All the things has its place
Whereas Biostar itself hasn’t been publicly forthcoming about why it has chosen to revive this once-popular GPU (I’ve reached out for a remark, naturally), a have a look at the present state of the GPU market could possibly be slightly enlightening.
AMD’s current statements about backing down from the flagship GPU battle, mixed with a renewed give attention to AI for the corporate, imply that the top-end card in its preliminary next-gen RDNA 4 lineup may simply be an RX 8700 XT, with no RX 8900 XTX in sight. In the meantime, large canine Nvidia is raking within the AI money and forging forward with plans for high-powered RTX 5080 and 5090 playing cards. Proper now, sticking to the low- to mid-range house may truly be a really sensible concept.
Apart from, plenty of PC avid gamers don’t have a great deal of cash to blow on the very finest graphics playing cards proper now. We’re in a time of nice financial inequality, and many individuals seeking to break into PC gaming or construct their first customized PC to interchange a dated laptop computer may profit from an inexpensive 1080p card like this.
RelatedPosts
Though Biostar hasn’t launched any pricing information simply but, we are able to fairly assume that this card will debut someplace across the $100 / £100 / AU$200 mark, primarily based on present RX 580 pricing area to area. That’s a really agreeable worth for anybody seeking to assemble a funds gaming rig.
There’s one draw back right here: AMD is technically not supporting the RX 580 in its major driver replace department, with its focus shifting to the RDNA sequence (which began with the Radeon RX 5000 playing cards in 2019). These older GPUs will nonetheless obtain some updates, but it surely ought to be famous that they’ll’t actually be thought-about ‘future-proof’ at this level – however then once more, if you happen to’re searching for a GPU to play older video games at 1080p, this could possibly be an important alternative.
