RX M 9070 XT vs R9 290X
Head-to-head specifications
| Metric | RX M 9070 XT | R9 290X | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3DMark Time Spy | 8,038 | 1,970 | +308.0% |
| Avg FPS @ 1080p | 73 | 33 | +121.2% |
| Avg FPS @ 1440p | 44 | 18 | +144.4% |
| Avg FPS @ 4K | 25 | 9 | +177.8% |
| FP32 compute (TFLOPS) | 19.1 | 5.6 | +240.0% |
| VRAM | 16 GB GDDR6 | 4 GB GDDR5 | — |
| Memory bandwidth (GB/s) | 448 | 448 | — |
| TDP (W) | 169 | 290 | — |
- RX M 9070 XT averages 44 fps at 1440p versus 18 fps — about 144% faster.
- RX M 9070 XT draws less power (169W vs 290W).
Verdict: RX M 9070 XT or R9 290X?
RX M 9070 XT advantages
- 1440p gaming (+59%)
- 4K gaming (+64%)
- Synthetic benchmark performance (+75%)
- Video memory (+75%)
- Power efficiency (+42%)
R9 290X advantages
- No decisive advantage on the tracked metrics.
Which should you choose?
- Choose the RX M 9070 XT if you game at 1440p.
- Choose the RX M 9070 XT if you game at 4K or drive a high-resolution display.
RX M 9070 XT vs R9 290X: which should you choose?
RX M 9070 XT — AMD desktop graphics card (2025, RDNA 4) with 16 GB of GDDR6, averaging 44 fps at 1440p.
R9 290X — AMD desktop graphics card (2013, GCN 2.0) with 4 GB of GDDR5, averaging 18 fps at 1440p; launched at $549.
RX M 9070 XT vs R9 290X: RX M 9070 XT is faster for gaming. RX M 9070 XT averages 44 fps at 1440p versus 18 fps — about 144% faster. RX M 9070 XT draws less power (169W vs 290W).
1080p, 1440p and 4K
At 1440p — the most common enthusiast resolution — the RX M 9070 XT averages 44 fps against 18. At 4K (25 vs 9 fps) VRAM (16GB vs 4GB) and memory bandwidth matter more.
Power and value
Board power is 169 W versus 290 W, which affects PSU headroom, case cooling and noise.
The verdict
Both are credible choices in the graphics card comparison space; the specification table above lays out every metric so you can weigh the trade-offs that matter to you. Pick the one whose strengths line up with how you will actually use it.
Frequently asked questions
Is the RX M 9070 XT better than the R9 290X?
RX M 9070 XT is the clearly stronger overall choice, winning most of the dimensions that matter. RX M 9070 XT averages 44 fps at 1440p versus 18 fps — about 144% faster.
What is the main difference between the RX M 9070 XT and the R9 290X?
RX M 9070 XT averages 44 fps at 1440p versus 18 fps — about 144% faster. RX M 9070 XT draws less power (169W vs 290W).
Which should I choose?
Choose the RX M 9070 XT if you game at 1440p. Choose the RX M 9070 XT if you game at 4K or drive a high-resolution display.
Methodology
Graphics cards are compared on 3DMark Time Spy scores, average gaming frame rates at 1080p/1440p/4K, FP32 compute throughput, VRAM capacity and type, memory bandwidth, board power (TDP) and launch MSRP — plus AI workload throughput (Stable Diffusion iterations/s and local LLM tokens/s) where measured. Vintage and server GPUs without modern benchmark results are compared on specifications only, clearly labelled. Frame rates are averages across a game suite at high settings; specific titles vary.