What a time to be a PC gaming enthusiast, right? As if the crypto boom and pandemic shortages weren’t enough, we now have an AI-fuelled memory crisis causing upgrade costs to spiral. Graphics card prices had only just returned to MSRP, and price hikes are once again on the horizon. A slew of cards have already gone up in cost as a result of memory shortages, and word on the grapevine is that further increases await in 2026.
It’s for that reason we’ve identified the Sapphire Pulse Radeon RX 9070 XT 16GB as a viable last-ditch graphics upgrade before the year is through. Currently listed for £559 / $649 at Amazon, it’s one of few powerful cards from the latest generation to remain close to the price we want to pay.
Sapphire Pulse Radeon RX 9070 XT
“Radeon RX 9070 XT keeps pace with its closest competition and even punches above its weight, becoming all the better with FSR 4, making for a great graphics card for the midrange market.” Read our Nitro+ review.
There’s no crystal ball to tell us what 2026 has in store, but market forecasts are certain the memory shortage is here to stay. That being the case, don’t be surprised if the RX 9070 XT soon becomes hard to find for under £600.
To recap, RX 9070 XT is the flagship from AMD’s current-generation Radeon crop, and touts 4,096 stream processors on a 357mm2 die carrying a whopping 53.9bn transistors. The chip can hit a boost clock of nearly 3GHz and packs forward-looking upscaling and frame generation features that have been bolstered through the release of FSR Redstone.
Long story short, it’s a cracking graphics card well suited to high-quality QHD gaming. Factor in tried-and-trusted Sapphire build quality, and you’re looking at a purchase that should see you through until that fabled time when the market calms down.
It won’t arrive in time for Christmas, but once you’ve had your fill of turkey and mince pies, you could be gaming on shiny new hardware at the weekend.
