AMD Radeon HD 6790 Pro Reviews

The HD 6790 brings new levels of gaming pop to cards around $150, but it’s also big and power-hungry. Most users will be better off with the slightly pricier HD 6850 or Nvidia’s GeForce GTX 550 Ti.

Ultimately though, the new Radeon HD 6790 seems to do exactly what AMD intended, it fills the price gap between the Radeon HD 5770 and 6850 and competes favorably with NVIDIA’s recently released direct rival, the GeForce GTX 550 Ti. All of these initial pricing questions will be answered in the near future and what we’ll all be left with is a more competitive battle in the sub-$150 GPU market, which will only benefit budget conscious gamers in the long-run.

AMD's new Radeon HD 6790 1GB graphics card based on the Barts GPU design is a great choice for users looking for a ~$150 graphics card for their next budget build. The competition between AMD and NVIDIA in this particular space is interesting, with AMD's move to use a single GPU for as many SKUs as possible (Barts and Cayman basically cover the entire 6000-series spectrum with two GPU spins) and NVIDIA's tendency to make a large GPU for their flagship card and slowly spin out new designs for the changing price segments (GF110, GF114, GF116). Both offer advantages and disadvantages but it seems that AMD's flexibility has allowed it to undercut NVIDIA in many ways while maintaining performance levels and pricing that customers demand. The only question for AMD long term is how that affects their profitability.

For the time being there’s not much going for the 6790 to recommend it. Throw some rebates on the Radeon HD 6790 to get it down to $130 and we can talk. Until then the GeForce GTX 460 768MB or the Radeon HD 6850 are both much better products.

AMD's release of the Radeon HD 6790 marks the introduction of the cheapest 6000-series GPU for the retail market. Launched as a mid-range card and designed to slot in to the gap between 18-month-old Radeon HD 5770 and the impressive Radeon HD 6850, AMD's new GPU arrives with a retail price of £120. Performance, as expected, falls between a Radeon HD 5770 and HD 6850, though it's closer to the last-generation GPU. Looking across to NVIDIA, Radeon HD 6790 is competitive against the also-new GTX 550 Ti, and this may be AMD's express aim with this introduction.

In terms of performance, the new Radeon HD 6790 is the perfect foil to NVIDIA’s GeForce GTX 550 Ti. In most instances, the Radeon comfortably beats the GeForce GTX 550 Ti while operating at moderate temperatures and consuming slightly less power. But is it the perfect mainstream card? Unfortunately not, let us explain why. The main problem with it is its price. Its launch price of US$150 means AMD has targeted it squarely at the GeForce GTX 550 Ti, which is now going for around US$149 in the market. And if you were to compare the two, then the Radeon HD 6790 certainly provides more bang for buck as it is markedly faster than the GeForce GTX 550 Ti.

The unfortunate truth is that, for $149, the 6790 is kind of a raw deal. A graphics card without a cause, really. Head to Newegg right now, and you can grab a Radeon HD 6850 for $164.99—that's before a $20 mail-in rebate that'll bring the card down to just $144.99, as long as you eventually get that check in the mail. The 6850 produces much higher frame rates across the board, draws about as much power, and may actually emit less noise. No matter how hard I try, I just can't think of a situation where I'd recommend the 6790.

The AMD Radeon HD 6790 turned out to be a very nice card and it gives the GeForce GTX 550 Ti a good old fashioned beat down!

Radeon HD 6790 is AMD's answer to NVIDIA's GTX 550 Ti. Both cards sit in the $150 segment which is key for budget gamers who don't want to shell out $200 for their card. HD 6790 delivers solid gaming performance for all resolution up to 1680x1050. 1920x1200 can work too, but depending on the game you might have to reduce the details setting.

Respectable gaming performance for those on a strict budget

Starting at $149, the AMD HD 6790 has got a terrific-sounding price, but with some comparison shopping it?s easy to do better without spending more.

In the final analysis, AMD's Radeon HD 6790 brings 6000-series features like Blu-ray 3D acceleration and five-output Eyefinity support down to the $150 price point, with solid performance to boot. AMD’s new card looks like a real winner in a market where the GeForce GTX 460 768 MB may not exist to compete for very much longer.

In many ways, the HD 6970 acts as a perfect bridge product between the HD 6850 1GB and the HD 5770 within AMD’s lineup. While there are alternatives available, they never steal the limelight in an overly convincing form. Its performance may not carry the excitement of higher end products but in our opinion, the HD 6790 is good card at the right price in an overly saturated GPU market.