For several weeks, AMD has been claiming that graphics cards with 4 GB of VRAM remain a good choice in the budget segment. The 8 GB version of the Radeon RX 9050 will go on retail sale, while the 4 GB VRAM model will only be available as part of pre-built PCs.
Hardware Unboxed called this approach a "deception of players." According to the authors, pre-built computers are primarily purchased by inexperienced users who may not be aware of the limitations of such a graphics card.
Since PCs with the RX 9050 4 GB have not yet gone on sale, journalists tested the Radeon RX 6500 XT with 4 GB VRAM, whose performance should be comparable.
The results were weak. In Borderlands 4, the card delivered about 25 FPS at 1080p on low settings with FSR. Crimson Desert ran at approximately 30 FPS on minimum graphics. Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced showed about 25 FPS, and Indiana Jones – only 18 FPS with settings resembling a mobile game.
The authors note that using FSR at 1080p resolution, especially FSR 3 and older versions, significantly degrades image quality in motion.