Radeon R9 290X vs. GeForce Titan vs. GTX 780

Some idea it was incommunicable, but there'south no doubt the Radeon R9 290X is every scrap as fast every bit the mighty GeForce GTX Titan. There were few extremes: Nvidia's offer conspicuously won in Far Cry iii and Tomb Raider, while AMD's claimed an piece of cake victory in Crysis 3, Sleeping Dogs and Metro: Last Calorie-free. But the two heavyweights were separated by less than 5% in Battlefield 3, Clay iii, Max Payne 3, Medal of Honour and Hitman: Absolution.

What'southward particularly impressive virtually this comparison is the R9 290X'south shockingly low price of $550. That's 15% cheaper than the GTX 780 despite being 10% faster, in improver to costing 45% less than the GTX Titan.

In example that didn't click: you lot're basically getting Titan-level operation for nearly one-half off. It'south worth noting that dual GTX 660 Tis are 5% cheaper and 2% faster at 2560x1600, merely we'd withal prefer the simplicity of a unmarried-GPU setup.

Similarly, the R9 290X was 16% slower than a pair of Hd 7950 Heave cards, which are too 5% cheaper at $520. This advantage disappears when measuring frame time functioning however, where the R9 290X was 9% faster.

Meanwhile, although AMD's newcomer was 30% faster than the HD 7970 GHz Edition, information technology costs over lxx% more. It's as well worth highlighting the fact that it'south 25% slower than the dual-GPU HD 7990 while costing 9% more than.

To be clear, nosotros're not trying to brand the R9 290X await bad with those numbers, just it's worth emphasizing that while the carte du jour'southward asking price seems too expert to be true when you compare it to the GTX Titan's $1,000, the 290X'south pricing makes plenty of sense when you lot look at the rest of AMD's lineup. Unmarried-GPU flagships e'er come up at a premium so it seems reasonable enough that the R9 290X isn't the all-time value Radeon bachelor, though information technology might exist the nearly attractive offering of the bunch.

Part of what made the GTX Titan then astonishing was its power to remain cool while handling massive loads. For all its complexity and unrivaled power, the card never exceeded 300 watts or 81 degrees -- and fifty-fifty at that temperature, it wasn't overly noisy. Since the Hard disk 7970 already rivals the Titan for power consumption, nosotros didn't expect the R9 290X to be fuel-efficient, simply it beat the Titan in Crysis 3 and Sleeping Dogs.

Estrus, unfortunately, may be a business organisation for some. Nether load, the R9 290X reference sample was the hottest bill of fare we've tested lately at 95 degrees, and information technology never got below 44 degrees at idle. We'd expect AMD's lath partners to improve those results with custom coolers, but until and so, the company has assured u.s. 95 degrees isn't excessively hot. The R9 290X can happily live a full life at that temperature.

Besides, it'south not Fermi hot anyhow. In case you didn't notice, the GTX 480 ran slightly warmer in the same tests. When running Sleeping Dogs, for case, Nvidia'due south reference board hit 97 degrees while consuming 318 watts. Despite AMD's reassurance about the R9 290X's temp, we wouldn't be too surprised if the R9 290X found itself in the GTX 480'south company unless board partners become things under control.

Nosotros're impressed with the R9 290X'south performance and even more so with its price. AMD has finally given Nvidia a reason to discount its peak tier products and that's enough to be grateful for. There's something to appreciate in watching healthy competition between two seasoned rivals. If you've been eyeing the Titan, it seems well-nigh time to pull the trigger, whether y'all take advantage of pending toll cuts or settle for the R9 290X now.

Pros: Similar performance to the GTX Titan at about half the cost -- a gutsy play that should provoke a response from Nvidia.

Cons: It's hot plenty to remind the states of Fermi and it'due south still priced similar a premium carte du jour compared to more mainstream Radeons.