AMD Announces a New 9050 GPU….. Is it worth it?
AMD announced a new GPU recently, the 9050. They announced two versions of the same card, an 8GB and 4GB VRAM variants.
Let’s deal with the 4GB version, in my opinion this isn't something I would ever put into a gaming setup. Everything we've seen so far suggests this will be an OEM-only card.
Originally I was going to rant about how this isn't acceptable in this day and age, and while I still think this is the case, while I was thinking about this card I looked across at my TV. Not at the TV itself, but at what was sitting next to it, my Plex server. It was at that point I realised what this would be used for. Media servers, office PCs, education PCs etc etc.
Now let me be clear this is not me approving of a card like this, just me pointing out I can see where it could be used. Personally, the 4GB version, in my opinion, isn't worth picking up at all. If you are severely budget limited I would recommend going the used route and picking up a used card for a similar price.
Now let’s move on to the 9050 8GB variant. Oh AMD, I have one question, WHY?
I ask this for two reasons,
Firstly why now? And secondly the price, why $279?
Part one of that from AMD’s side would be simple, they have a lot of 9060’s and 9060xt’s cores that didn't pass spec for those cards so they have an inventory of CPU cores sitting there. So for AMD they can repurpose these cores for this 9050 card. So I can see WHY AMD released this card, and honestly I can applaud the fact that AMD aren't just throwing things out and sending it to landfill.
Part 2, the price.
This is where my applause stops. I get that everything just gets more expensive but $279 for this card is about $80 too much for me. Comparing this to the 6500 card AMD launched in 2022, which launched at $199, launching the newest version of it at $279 feels painful.
Now comparing the 9050 to the 6500 is a little disingenuous because that was a while ago now. So let’s compare it to its direct competitor the 5050 from Nvidia. The 5050 launched at $249, so in terms of launch cost the 5050 is a better deal, not by much though.
But what is the price of the 5050 now? Looking at pricing the cheapest I found was $209. Even at today's pricing, it still doesn't make me think, 'That's the card I'd recommend.'
But when looking at budget cards there is another card that should be looked at as a competitor to both of these cards, the Intel ARC B570. This card launched at $199 which seems a lot BUT the B570 comes with 10GB of VRAM, and this is the thing that makes it a much much more appealing option for budget limited gamers. However the current pricing for the B570 has increased to $299 which for me rules the card out.
What does this say about gaming?
To me, this shows that budget gaming is in a difficult spot. Prices have risen to the point where getting into PC gaming feels harder than it has in years.
Budget gaming hasn't disappeared.
It's just become harder.
Five years ago you could spend £200 on a graphics card and feel like you'd bought something that would last.
Today that same budget often feels like the starting point rather than the destination.
That's why, for people on a genuine budget, I think the used market deserves far more attention than it gets.
But I don't think that's the end of the story.
There is another way.
Used hardware
Buying used isn't about buying old technology.
It's about getting more gaming performance for the same budget.
When I was building setups for friends who were on a tight budget I would always lean towards used.
Here in the UK there are a few options to pick up second hand parts that will come with warranties. Places like CEX and GPUsed are 2 that I have used many times to get parts that I wanted, especially if I wanted something to have a warranty. Facebook and eBay are other options that can really make the budget world viable.
This approach would also mean that older parts that would end up in the bin get another life! For around £160 you can still pick up a GTX 1080 Ti with 11GB of VRAM. It's an amazing GPU that will still play most modern games with ease. No, it won't do ray tracing, but for games like CS2 or Fortnite, it's still an excellent choice.
So while the newer architecture cards will give you access to the newest FSR, DLSS and ray tracing this comes as a cost, most gamers aren't going to use these features for a lot of the games they play.
So is the 9050 worth it? For us at Rebel PCs, the answer is no.
If someone came to us with this budget, we'd rather build them the best gaming PC we could than insist every part has to be brand new. In many cases, that means recommending an older or second-hand graphics card instead.
As for the 4GB card? No. For me, this isn't a graphics card gamers should be buying in 2026.