Hands up, how many of you thought AMD's Radeon HD 7900-series product range looked a little too pricey? Quite a few of you, we imagine, now, hands again, how many of you thought prices would tumble if the GeForce GTX 680 proved to be faster than any single-GPU Radeon?
Well, put your crystal balls away as you're right on both counts. Starting today, AMD is slashing the cost of the range-topping Radeon HD 7970 and HD 7950 cards, and sweetening the deal by throwing in a trio of free games.
The promotion, expected to run for a limited time, is being dubbed 'Three for Free' and will offer buyers a chance to download DiRT Showdown (released in May), Nexuiz (released in May), and Deus Ex: Human Revolution (available now) for free.
A couple of games might prove enticing, but it's the price cuts that have been eagerly anticipated. Effective immediately, Radeon HD 7970 pricing has been slashed from a US MSRP of $549 to $470, while the Radeon HD 7950 falls from $449 to $399. Further down the ladder, it seems the Radeon HD 7770 will also see a price reduction, moving from $159 to $139, though 7700-series cards aren't participating in the Three for Free promotion.
The price cuts don't change our performance evaluation - NVIDIA's GeForce GTX 680 is still the best high-end GPU available right now - but AMD's putting forward a compelling argument; Radeon HD 7970 will be roughly £50 cheaper than the top-of-the-line GeForce, and it includes three free games. Decisions, decisions.
[Update] UK retailers are responding quickly. Radeon HD 7970 is now available for £369.95 and Radeon HD 7950 has dipped down to £299.99.
[Update 2] MSI's Radeon HD 7970 is now available for £350* at Scan Computers. That's almost £100 cheaper than January's launch-day price.
*UK-based HEXUS community members are eligible for free delivery and priority customer service through the SCAN.care@HEXUS forum.
