MSI releases Radeon R9 270X for Mini ITX

Compact and powerful constructions are growing in popularity among home builders and are not least a hot potato thanks to concepts such as Steam Machines. Graphics cards adapted for the form factor Mini ITX have so far been dominated by Geforce GTX 760 from Asus and MSI, of which the latter is now releasing a model based on the Radeon R9 270X.

The MSI Radeon R9 270X Gaming 2G ITX is built around the Curacao XT graphics processor with 1,280 stream processors clocked at a maximum of 1,070 MHz and a 256-bit memory bus with 2 GB of GDDR5 at 5,600 MHz. The graphics card’s TDP is specified at 161 watts and the power is supplied via a single 8-pin PCI Express connector.

The graphics card measures in at 170 millimeters and has a cooler similar to the GTX 760 model. This means a tailor-made cooling solution with a steam chamber that has direct contact with a graphics processor. The package is in turn cooled by a cylindrical aluminum heat sink and a “Radax” fan, which combines the features of a radial and axial fan.

The new graphics card has a recommended sales price of SEK 1,780 and is expected to be available on store shelves at the end of May.