US retailer B&H (via VideoCardz) confirms that it will begin taking pre-orders for AMD's Radeon RX 9070 series on March 23. The same retailer suggested that RDNA 4 was slated for launch on January 23.
However, it seems plans at AMD saw a few last-minute changes, which leaves us hanging for two more months as AMD wants to maximize performance ahead of launch. Ironically enough, an official AMD ad on Reddit teases an "imminent" RDNA 4 launch; they likely forgot to update the ad. However, remember that release dates have shifted before, so take this one with a grain of salt.
The Radeon RX 9070 XT, AMD's RDNA 4 flagship, matches Nvidia's RTX 4080 Super per leaked benchmarks, at least in raw raster performance. Navi 48, a nearly 390mm2 chip that's almost two times smaller than Nvidia's monstrous GB202 on the RTX 5090, is powering the GPU.
At CES, AMD spared a few minutes for its RDNA 4 unveil and left out many key details. It was later revealed that AMD didn't go much in-depth due to a time constraint as they couldn't slot in an RDNA 4 showcase in a limited 45-minute timeframe. David McAfee, AMD's corporate VP, confirmed that RDNA 4 will officially launch in March as Team Red looks to optimize drivers and scale FSR 4 to more games.
New preliminary listings at US retailer B&H include a slew of Asus RX 9070 series cards, for which pre-orders will begin on March 23. It is important to note that the same retailer scheduled these GPUs for January 23 (a two-month delta), so the listed date could be subject to change. A handful of vendors already have their hands on these GPUs and are waiting for AMD to greenlight them. This could create room for exciting situations where retailers start selling these GPUs prematurely. However, there's only so much you can do without official drivers.
Moreover, users on Reddit reported that they've come across several official ads from AMD reading (translated): "With the immediate performance of the AMD Radeon™ RX 9000 series graphics cards, every game becomes a success." The key word here is "immediate," tying in with the listings mentioned above and suggesting that AMD initially planned for RDNA 4 to launch this month.
Based on what AMD said, they probably want a mature software stack before RDNA 4 hits shelves. Maybe AMD is waiting to see how the RTX 5070 holds up before pricing its GPUs accordingly, but that's speculation. All we can do now is wait for AMD or leakers to share more details, whichever comes first.
