Here are four graphics cards that I think are still worth purchasing this Black Friday.
Black Friday is usually the best time to buy a new graphics cards. Black Friday graphics cards are available for almost every GPU in the current generation. Some of them are very tempting, especially if your GPU has been the same for several years. Nvidia's GeForce GTX 10 series, for example, produced the GTX 1080 Ti, which is still very powerful today, but lacks the fancy ray tracing technology and DLSS in the latest RTX model.
We're not too far away from seeing the next generation of GPUs coming out from AMD, Intel and Nvidia. The first and the last are expected to show off RDNA 4 and Blackwell in January at CES, and there's a rumor that Intel will try and get an early start with a Battlemage release in December.
Do you think that it is worth your while to buy a GPU during the Black Friday sale? Let me help you with that.
Quick Links
- AMD Radeon 6650 XT at Amazon -$210
- AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX - $820 at Newegg
- Nvidia GeForce GTX 4060 –$285 on Amazon
- Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 - $470 at Newegg
RX6650 XT
This is an RDNA 2, which was first released in 2022. Why would you buy something so old when AMD will be launching its RDNA 4 line in just two months?
Two reasons: 1) GPU vendors tends to announce and release their high-end models first. The more budget-friendly options come much later. (2) The RX 6650XT is an incredibly small GPU for a very low price.
This Radeon is a budget 1080p graphic card, but if you have been using a Radeon RX 480, or a GeForce GTX1060, it will blow them away. You shouldn't ever submerge your gaming PC, of course.
You'll be on the right track if you think of it as a slightly faster RX 7600, but at a $40 discount. The RDNA 3 card has better ray tracing, but you won't be using it with a budget GPU.
AMD is unlikely announce a RDNA 4 GPU that is really cheap at CES, so if you're looking for a cost-effective upgrade to your gaming PC, then the RX 6650 XT would be the best choice.
RX7900 XTX
AMD's RX XTX was hard to find heavily discounted below its MSRP. There are now some great deals on this high-end GPU. We'd be happy to accept a substantial discount. The Radeon RX7900 XTX card is incredibly fast, and there are many good cooling designs available for this card." data-widget-type="deal" data-render-type="editorial">
You may think I'm crazy if I suggest that you buy AMD's top gaming GPU in its portfolio. But hear me out.
Team Red is expected to focus on the midrange market to improve its bottom-line.
This means that there's a good chance you won't be seeing a 24 GB RDNA card anytime soon, if at all. You won't run into any memory issues with your games for a long time. The 7900 XTX may not have the ray tracing power of a GeForce RTX equivalent, but it's still a pretty good card.
This is a cheaper option than Nvidia’s 24GB VRAM.
When you disable ray tracing, it's more expensive but performs better. At $820, the RTX4080 Super is significantly cheaper. It's a great GPU for the price.
It's still a lot to pay, and I'd bet there's a good chance that an RDNA 4 will be just as fast (or with better ray-tracing capabilities). I must admit, though, that I do have a soft spot in my heart for AMD's behemoth.
Buy one now while you still can and get a monstrous Radeon.
RTX 4160
This RTX-4060 is the cheapest option if you want to own Ada Lovelace. The RTX 4060 is faster than the RTX 3060, but at a price that suggests it should be better. It does come with the full DLSS 3.5 Suite, however, and is pretty good at encoding videos for streaming. We still prefer AMD's RX7600 or the last-gen RX6700." data-widget-type="deal" data-render-type="editorial">
You're better off waiting for Nvidia to announce the next generation of Blackwell-powered GeForce graphics cards at CES, which is expected to take place in January.
If you don't have the patience to wait, or you think the RTX-50-series will be expensive, I would only recommend buying two of the RTX-40-series models during the Black Friday sale.
I don't think the rest of them are rubbish - far from it - but, like AMD, we won't see a budget Blackwell card until well into 2025. The cheapest Ada Lovelace product is, of course the little RTX 4160.
This triple-fan monster is hardly small. You shouldn't have any trouble keeping it cool.
One could argue there is no such thing as bad GPUs, only bad GPU prices. In the case of RTX 4060 it is very much the latter. It's an entry-level graphics cards that has all the features, except for VRAM, of its larger siblings.
We've curated the best Black Friday PC Gaming deals right here
Many people argue that 8 GB VRAM is not enough. They back up their claims with performance numbers of cards that are unable to maintain frame rates because they're hitting a VRAM limitation.
It's the fault of the card and not the game. A memory management system can be implemented in games to track the amount of VRAM available, and not exceed it.
DLSS is the best feature of the RTX 4060 for me. The AI-powered upscaling and frame generation combined with the ray tracing denoiser is a remarkable combination of technology. In the right game, this can turn a sluggish grinding into a whirling frenzy of frame rates without a single visual glitch.
If you pit an RTX 4160 against a GTX1060, the fight is over before the game even loads.
RTX 4700
It's hard to find the RTX 4070 at a discount. However, it is important to remember that it is now much cheaper than when it was launched. This card offers performance that is almost as good as the RTX 3080, but with all of the nice RTX40 features. This model uses an 8-pin PCIe connector rather than the 12VHPWR, making it easier to upgrade." data-widget-type="deal" data-render-type="editorial">
You're right, it's the RTX 4070. Not the Super nor the Ti Super. You can also forget the 4080s and even 4090s. This is the one worth your money.
My reason is simple: it's a GPU that's not just good for the money. I have two of these in my office, and I am always impressed by how well they handle today's most demanding games. We're bringing RTX 3080-level pixel pushing to a lower power consumption, and with the full DLSS package.
At $470, that's $120 less than the ridiculous launch price. It's also a great deal. The RTX 4070 is a superior GPU, but it costs over $100 more. I don't think Nvidia will release a Blackwell card for this price that can beat the 4070.
I've already made the case that 8 GB VRAM is not as bad as some people make it out to. But if you're still not convinced, or want a graphics card that lasts for many years, this 12 GB should help ease your doubts.
Intel?
You can't believe I haven't recommended any Intel graphics card. Newegg has an Arc A770, the best of the Alchemist group, for only $230.
The performance of all Arc GPUs can be inconsistent and unpredictable. In some games, they'll perform well. In others, they'll be terrible. It's partly due to drivers, but mostly because the architecture of AMD and Nvidia isn't as well-honed for gaming.
Intel is expected to showcase Battlemage in December, the next generation Arc graphics cards. While they won't cost as much as the current generation, they will perform better.
As soon as we find out, we'll let you all know.
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