Last week we have shown you a review on the R9-290X model of AMDs new impressive flagship graphics cards. This week we will have a look at its little brother, as we review the AMD Radeon R9-290. The new second to best flagship product has been long awaited and anticipated. Where the X model stays in line with the competition's GeForce GTX Titan, the more regular Radeon R9-290 will compete with Nvidia's GeForce GTX 780. Now we have all seen the very competitive pricing from AMD with the X model, 499 EUR incl VAT is roughly what AMD is aiming for. That however might be a hundred EUR too steep for many of you. As such the R9-290 will be the more affordable enthusiast class product. Priced at 399 EUR it is going to command and conquer. Yes these cards are beasts in terms of price, performance and product positioning. This in-depth review will cover the Volcanic Islands GPU architecture, Hawaii for the 290 series, we'll benchmark these cards with FCAT Frametimes, Ultra High Definition and of course we'll check out game performance with the latest games next to power consumption and heat levels as well.

Before we begin with the new graphics cards the first thing that you guys will need to get used to is the new naming scheme. AMD ended with the Radeon HD 7000 and 8000 series graphics cards in 2013. Logic dictates that AMD would have continued with a series 9000. But hey now, we already have had the Radeon 9000 series many years ago (2003), oh and who doesn't remember the Radeon 9800 Pro right? As such it was time to bring in a new naming scheme, a bit more in line with AMD's APUs. R9 will be high-end and R7 will be mainstream and inevitably R5 being entry level. After that you'll notice products being tagged as 250, 260X, 270X, 280X and the coolest two of them all are the Radeon R9 290 and R290X.