AMD Gets a Handle on Production, Pricing for Radeon R9 Graphics Cards No Longer Infla

[[Coi] Mr.CLuBBeR]

It's time to go GPU shopping again

Have you put off upgrading your graphics card because you're interested in AMD's R9 series but didn't like the inflated price points (compared to MSRP)? Well, good news, folks -- apparently that's no longer going to be a concern. AMD is reportedly putting the word out that its entire line of R9 video cards is available, in stock, and with street prices back down to where they should be.
The news comes from Forbes, which says it received the communication direct from AMD's headquarters in a "very carefully" worded manner so as not to come right out and blame the shortage of parts (and subsequent price hikes) on virtual coin mining. However, it's no secret virtual coin mining is the root cause -- AMD's newest GPUs are simply better than Nvidia's at mining cryptocurrencies like Litecoin and Dogecoin, and miners were quick to gobble up inventory.
Regardless, R9 cards are now back in stock and priced appropriately. For example, one of the lowest priced Radeon R9 270 graphics cards on Newegg currently is the PowerColor model that sells for $170 (and comes with two games). Much higher on the totem pole is a Sapphire Radeon R9 290X graphics card for $522 shipped -- it comes with three games.
In any event, if it's been some time since you last checked AMD GPU pricing, give it a look -- you might be surprised.
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