As we’ve discussed before, AMD didn’t really talk about its RDNA 4-based graphics cards at CES 2025, despite briefing the press on the topic. The company gave a vague “Q1 2025” release window for the cards, but given that product has already started showing up at retailers, many have expected that the GPUs would be released this month.
Not so, apparently. AMD’s Corporate Vice President and General Manager, David McAfee, just announced on Xwitter that that he “can’t wait” for the launch of the cards in March. Indeed, that means that we’re still a little under six weeks (40 days) away from retail availability of AMD’s next-generation graphics cards.
We went straight to the source and asked AMD for further comment about the release, but the company was coy with details. We were told that “launch preparations are underway,” and that “more information [is] coming soon.” That echoes AMD’s statements last week where the company asked press and partners to “stay tuned” in a “Meet the Experts” webinar.
If we were to speculate, there could be all kinds of reasons that AMD isn’t ready to launch the new GPUs. Despite what McAfee says, it’s possible that the drivers aren’t fully baked yet, and it’s also possible that AMD is wheeling and dealing to get the new AI-powered FidelityFX Super Resolution 4 into more games.
Alternatively, AMD may simply be holding its horses to build up stock; if the cards are good and the rumored pricing holds true, these GPUs could be in high demand. By all accounts—including AMD’s—the goal with this launch is to build market share, but you can’t build market share without products for the market to purchase. This launch timing should also give AMD some time to see where performance and street pricing fall for the GeForce RTX 5080 and 5070 / Ti.
Ultimately we won’t know more for sure until AMD tells us, so all we can really do is hang tight and wait for March.