AMD’s Radeon RX 6000 series of graphics cards offer a tempting next-generation gaming experience – the problem for many gamers has been stock, and as a knock-on effect, price.
While the flagship RX 6800 XT and 6900 XT are still hard to come by at RRP, AMD is rumoured to be working on a new graphics card that could circumvent most of the stock issues plaguing the market right now.
It’s called the AMD Radeon RX 6500 XT, and rumours suggest the entry-level 1080p gaming-focused graphics card could be released as soon as January 2022. Here’s all there is to know right now.
When will the AMD Radeon RX 6500 XT be released?
Rumours are currently pointing towards a release in early 2022, with a CES 2022 debut looking likely.
The main source of information comes , which spotted a post on Chinese forum Bilibili from a user it describes as having a “good” track record of leaks, suggesting that the Radeon RX 6500 XT will be revealed in January 2022. The leaker also detailed another budget AMD card – the RX 6400 – which will be released in March 2022.
With AMD in which it’ll be demonstrating how it’ll “make 2022 an unforgettable year for gamers”, it seems like the perfect time for the company to lift the lid on the budget graphics card.
How much will the AMD Radeon RX 6500 XT cost?
The price of the AMD Radeon RX 6500 XT will largely depend on the specs, but if the rumoured entry-level 1080p gaming-esque specs rumoured below are true, it’s safe to say it’ll be more affordable than the flagship graphics cards – even with all the component shortages.
While it’s easy to be sceptical and speculate that the Radon RX 6500 XT will skyrocket in price as supply dwindles, there is hope for the upcoming GPU. If the specs are to be believed, the limited 4GB of VRAM isn’t very efficient for mining cryptocurrency, so it should only be gamers buying the GPU.
Coupled with the entry-level specs, it might be easier to manufacture at scale, translating to more stock at regular prices. It won’t be an 8K gaming monster, with specs seemingly focused on 1080p gaming, but it should suffice for entry-level gamers on a budget.
With a rumoured January launch, it seems we won’t have to wait too long to find out specifics.
Rumoured AMD Radeon RX 6500 XT specs
As well as confirming the existence of the RX 6500 XT, the Bilibili leaker also provided top-level specs for the upcoming entry-level graphics card. Per the leaker, the RX 6500 XT will offer 4GB of GDDR6 VRAM, and it’ll be based on the Navi 24 architecture.
Weeks later, Lenovo seemingly listed the graphics card early, giving the keen-eyed a glimpse at specs before being taken down shortly after. It was long enough for Twitter user @Komachi_Ensaka to screenshot and share online though:
👋
— 遠坂小町 (@KOMACHI_ENSAKA)
December 11, 2021
It seems that Lenovo’s specs line up with those of the Bilibili leaker, also suggesting 4GB of GDDR6 memory, but it includes other interesting details.
For one, there will be just two display connectors – a HDMI 2.1 and DP 1.4 – suggesting a focus on single-monitor gameplay, and there’s also mention of [email protected] support. While it might be technically possible to run at 8K, it certainly won’t be able to play games at that resolution – even the RTX 3090 struggles to do that.
While not confirmed by Lenovo’s leak, other whispers suggest the AMD Radeon RX 6500 XT could feature a (rather disappointing) 64-bit bus and 1,024 GPU cores, all pointing towards an entry-level 1080p-focused GPU.
