Sapphire Radeon R9 290X Vapor-X OC with 8 GB memory in store

Anyone looking for a new graphics card gets another option when Sapphire begins deliveries of what may very well be the first consumer-grade graphics card with 8 GB of video memory. The latest in the lavish Vapor-X series is a Radeon R9 290X with twice as much memory as normal.

Running with a 1060MHz core clock and with memory clocked at 5600MHz makes this card absolutely perfect for a 4K setup, even more so with a pair or three of these in Crossfire. That means you could play games like Skyrim with expansion packs at 4k resolution and still not run out of VRAM.

The new graphics card is called Radeon R9 290X Vapor-X OC and is in addition to the doubled amount of memory also an overclocked model. The Hawaii XT graphics processor is pushed from 1,000 to 1,060 MHz while the memory frequency is increased from 5,000 to 5,600 MHz GDDR5.

This includes the sturdy radiator Vapor-X with three fans and steam chamber and a rear protective plate of metal. On the connection front you can see two 8-pin PCI Express for the power supply and video outputs for two DVI, HDMI and Displayport.

At the British dealer Overclockers UK, the Sapphire Radeon R9 290X Vapor-X OC with 8 GB of memory costs 599.99 pounds or about 6,875 kronor with Swedish VAT. That is almost SEK 1,400 more than for the corresponding model 4 GB of memory, which can be obtained for around SEK 5,500 including VAT.