The latest and cheapest Ada GeForce GPU goes on sale today, and we'll be keeping an eye out for the best places to buy one.
The Nvidia RTX 4070 is out today, on sale at 9am ET | 6am PT | 2pm BST. And, as the cheapest of the new Ada generation of graphics cards, the chances are that it’s going to be quite popular. I mean, given the fact that it’s essentially a cheaper, cooler, more efficient RTX 3080 with access to DLSS 3.0 and Frame Generation, I’m guessing a fair few people will be eager to get their hands on the latest GeForce GPU.
Nvidia has been quite insistent that it will have enough stock on shelves at launch to satisfy demand, with the claim that anyone who wants a reference-priced card should be able to find one. That reference price is $599 (£589) and there does indeed seem to be a bunch of such GPUs being listed already.
I’ve spoke to some retailers and there is apparently a lot of stock ready for launch, with more already on the way. That’s a markedly different situation than the one we found around the RTX 4080 launch, and may well mean Nvidia’s confident boasts about availability might actually come to pass.
Where to buy an RTX 4070
In the US
Nvidia – buy Founders Edition cards direct from the sourceBest Buy – also offering Founders Edition cardsNewegg – third-party cards, including reference-priced versionsB&H Photo – reference priced cards and overclocked versions
In the UK
Nvidia – the home of the Founders EditionScan – all kinds of third-party cards on saleEbuyer – reference-priced and overclocked versionsOverclockers – one of the biggest ranges of third-party cardsBox – lots of factory overclocked RTX 4070 cardsCCL – small range of OC cards
Nvidia RTX 4070 Founders Edition verdict
(Image credit: Future)
✅ You always wanted an RTX 3080: With the same effective performance, a lower price, and DLSS 3.0 support, the RTX 4070 is a great replacement for the retiring GPU.
✅ You’re building a tiny gaming rig: The RTX 4070 is cool, quiet, and supremely efficient. It’s also a lot smaller than any other card of similar performance.
❌ You already own a decent RTX 30- or RX 6800-series GPU: At ~20% higher performance than the RTX 3070 Ti, and similar performance to the RX 6800 XT, spending another $600 so soon isn’t worth it just for Frame Generation.
The RTX 4070 is like a proper graphics card. It’s not some monstrous hulk of PCIe socket-rending GPU, it’s a modest card the size of its RTX 3070 forebear. That makes it a rather cute-looking thing. Well, in terms of scale anyways; that brushed aluminium Nvidia Founders Edition frame still looks pleasingly serious.
And that’s more than aesthetics, too. The size of the card hints at the efficiency of the 4nm Ada GPU quietly thrumming away inside of it. If you want a powerful, but low power card, the RTX 4070 fits the bill. Which will no doubt make it the darling of the small form factor PC brigade, and deservedly so.
That’s certainly one of the benefits I was alluding to earlier in the RTX 4070 vs. RTX 3080 debate, but the key one is the fact the Ada card has access to DLSS 3.0 and Frame Generation. And when that comes into play it’s a game changer, especially for titles that otherwise would struggle at ray-traced 4K settings.
The obvious drawback is that Frame Gen is not widely available. Even so, getting a $100 discount on a cooler, quieter, and far more efficient RTX 3080 has got to feel like a win when you’ve got that extra potential perf bump in the back pocket.
The RTX 4070 Founders Edition is the version of the new Ada GPU that you ought to be coveting. It’s the best-looking and the quickest of the reference-priced cards, too. But given the efficiency of the AD104 chip at its heart, the RTX 4070 doesn’t need a beefy cooler, massive heatsinks, or high-end VRMs, so a basic reference-priced card from a third-party manufacturer is still a great second option.
I’ve tested the PNY RTX 4070 Verto and while it is a little slower, it’s only ever by a handful of frames per second, and really nothing that you’d notice side-by-side in-game.
Here’s a list of reference-priced cards in the UK that will go live at 2pm:
Asus GeForce RTX 4070 Dual | £589 at Scan | £589 at EbuyerGigabyte GeForce RTX 4070 Windforce OC | £589 at Scan | £589 at EbuyerMSI GeForce RTX 4070 Ventus 2X OC | £589 at Scan | £589 at EbuyerZotac GeForce RTX 4070 Trinity | £589 at Scan | £589 at EbuyerPalit GeForce RTX 4070 Dual | £589 at Ebuyer
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