AMD published a blog yesterday highlighting the importance of having sufficient VRAM for 1440p gaming. The short summary is that it suggests you need 12GB or 16GB to get the most out of 1440p gaming. It's an interesting take, because we still don't have AMD RDNA 3 architecture GPUs with 12GB or 16GB of VRAM. We're specifically talking about the Navi 32-based parts, the RX 7800 (XT) and RX 7700 (XT), which at this point are long overdue, leaving the previous generation parts to vie for a place on the best graphics cards.
There are reasons for AMD to not launch another series of GPUs yet, of course. Like the absolute bloodbath that's taking place in sales of dedicated graphics cards right now — the last quarter saw the lowest number of units sold in decades. Ouch.
Previous generation AMD RX 6000-series GPUs are still sitting in warehouses and on retail shelves, even at greatly discounted prices. It's all reminiscent of the RX 500-series parts sitting around at rock bottom prices back in 2018–2019, and in fact that surplus wasn't resolved until the 2020 GPU shortages finally wiped out stock of every GPU.
At the same time, AMD would have ordered wafers and planned for the launch of new Navi 32 GPUs well over a year ago. There are probably chips sitting around, just waiting for a perceived good time to launch. AMD can try to play the waiting game, but, at some point, it's going to need to push out the new generation Navi 32 GPUs.
Currently, AMD has the RX 7900 XTX and RX 7900 XT, originally priced at $999 and $899 but now selling for around $950 and $780. The next step down for the RX 7000-series is a massive plunge all the way down to the RX 7600 and its $269 launch price. Everything in between and even below the RX 7600 is still being serviced by previous generation parts — one of the biggest complaints about the RX 7600 was that it only matched the existing RX 6650 XT in performance while costing $40 extra.
