It has been confirmed by no less than by its maker, AMD, that the much-anticipated 7nm Navi GPU will be introduced in the third quarter of 2019, possibly launching as early as July. The next-gen graphics architecture, which will replace the two-year-old Vega GPU, is said to hit the store shelves bearing a relatively cheaper tag price.
The graphics solutions when released will not exactly come cheap. AnandTech said AMD has made sure that the Navi GPU will sport a lower price, likely to be marked below $699. The tag is the launch price for the company's Radeon VII, which the same report said is the priciest GPU card issued by the giant chipmaker.
Citing the same announcement made by AMD on its earnings call, the tech site indicated that the upcoming GPU, which has been the subject of speculations in the past two years, will debut as a family of GPU cards. This means that the specific card model that AMD will first sell is still unknown at this point.
In the same way, since Navi is but a codename for the new GPU the exact card label will likely be different when the retail versions begin the selling phase. Again per AnandTech, the Navi GPU dropping soon could signal the long-awaited refresh of AMD's entire lineup of graphics card. The picture taking shape is that Navi will render Polaris and Vega architectures obsolete.
Earlier, gaming enthusiasts have been speculating of a Navi GPU intro via the 2019 Computex that will kick off at the end of May. The guesswork further gained steam when it was revealed that Dr. Lisa Su, AMD CEO, will attend the event as the keynote speaker.
Reports, however, are saying that the best Dr. Su will provide on Navi could boil down to tease or mean mention of the new GPU. It is argued that the Navi launch is happening in a more appropriate setting or occasion, a big gathering for gamers that the Computex is not.
The perfect launch pad then would be the E3 2019, where AMD can present the new GPU line before a perfect audience, which will be composed by gamers of all breed. Should this estimation proves correct then the Navi GPU will be unpacked to full glory no later than July 7.
Likely on the same floor for E3 attendees, gamers will likely experience first-hand the power packed by AMD with the Navi GPU, which according to the latest leaks will heat up the gaming scene with considerable boost afforded by the GCN architecture.
