The end of retail scalping? RX 6600 XT launch prices were much better than expected
The end of retail scalping? RX 6600 XT launch prices were much better than expected
Even 30 minutes after AMD’s launch, we could purchase RX 6600 XT graphics cards at MSRP through Scan, and we found that no RX 6600 XT models reached the dreaded £500 mark at any major UK retailer, though CCL got awfully close.Â
With previous graphics card launches, GPUs with MSRP prices practically disappeared as soon as they become available. Demand was high, and supply was low, creating a situation where pricing soared, and products were being resold on eBay for absurd prices.Â
Was AMD’s £329/$379 SRP the right price?Â
While we would all like AMD to select a lower SEP for their Radeon RX 6600 XT, we must remember that today’s hardware market is under a lot of strain. Component prices are higher, silicon wafer prices are higher, and cardboard and shipping costs have gone through the roof. AMD’s SRP price needs to be doable within today’s constrained market. Beyond that, AMD doesn’t want to create a situation where no product is available at their suggested retail price. Â
We all know how much flack Nvidia’s getting for the state of their RTX 30 series product line. Graphics cards at Nvidia’s official prices are practically non-existent, aside from the sporadic release of RTX 30 series Founders Edition graphics cards.Â
In an ideal world, AMD would not be able to sell their RX 6600 XT for £329. £329 is not mid-range pricing, and we would like to see the latest products offer gamers more value than their predecessors. That said, AMD’s MSRP RX 6600 XT models are selling out fast, confirming that AMD has selected the right price for their RX 6600 XT in today’s market. We may not like it, but this is what the world of business looks like.
RX 6600 XT Pricing Rundown
At launch, we had a look at most major UK components retailers and documented the launch prices of all the RX 6600 XT models that we could find. Today, we found prices for AMD’s RX 6600 XT ranging from £329.99 to £494.99. That’s a huge range of prices in percentage terms, with the most expensive RX 6600 XT having a 50% price premium over AMD’s SEP.Â
AMD’s success today is that they managed to ship RX 6600 XT graphics cards in large enough quantities to prevent retailers from setting their prices too high, at least for the most part. As we have said before, we could purchase an SEP Radeon RX 6600 XT at Scan 30 minutes after launch, which is something that hasn’t been possible for any graphics card for the past year.Â
| Radeon RX 6600 XTÂ | Overclockers UK | Scan UK | CCL | Novatech | Ebuyer |
| Asrock RX 6600 XT Challenger ITX |
£419.99 |  – |  – |  – |  – |
| Asrock RX 6600 XT Challenger Pro OC |
£439.99 |  – |  – |  – | – |
| Asrock RX 6600 XT Phantom Gaming D OC |
£479.99 |  – |  – |  – | – |
| ASUS RX 6600 XT Dual OC |
£329.99 | £329.99 | £439.99 |  – | – |
|
ASUS RX 6600 XT |
£439.99 | £479.99 | £494.48 | £449.99 | – |
| Gigabyte RX 6600 XT Eagle |
£399.95 |  – | – | £399.99 | – |
| Gigabyte RX 6600 XT Gaming OC |
£419.99 | – | – | £419.99 | – |
| Gigabyte RX 6600 XT Gaming OC PRO |
£449.99 | – | – | £449.99 | – |
| MSI RX 6600 XT Gaming X |
£419.99 | – | £419.99 | £419.99 | – |
| MSI RX 6600 XT MECH X2 OC |
£398.99 | – | – | £399.98 | – |
| PowerColor RX 6600 XT Fighter |
£329.99 | £329.99 | – | – | – |
| PowerColor RX 6600 XT Hellhound |
£419.99 |  – | £419.99 | – | – |
| PowerColor RX 6600 XT Red Devil |
£428.99 | £429.98 |  – |  – | – |
| Sapphire RX 6600 XT Nitro+ |
£399.95 | £384.98 | £419.99 | £399.99 | £389.99 |
| Sapphire RX 6600 XT Pulse Gaming |
£374.99 | £369.98 |  – |  – | £369.99 |
| XFX RX 6600 XT QICK 308 |
 – |  – |  – |  – | £329.99 |
| XFX RX 6600 XT MERC 308 |
 – | £478.99 |  – |  – | £359.99 |
Is the graphics card market starting to return to normal?Â
Things are slowly getting better for the GPU market; the availability of the latest graphics cards is increasing, and GPU prices are starting to lower within the second-hand GPU market. That said, it will be a while before things are “normal” within the world of PC gaming.
Material costs are still higher than normal, and shipping costs remain inflated. Until these factors normalise, they will remain a factor that pushes prices up. Beyond that, we need product availability to improve to prevent retailers and eBay resellers from taking advantage of consumers with inflated prices.Â
The good news about AMD’s RX 6600 XT launch, at least in the UK, is that AMD shipped enough RX 6600 XT graphics cards to keep retail prices close to their SEPs. Things are getting better, slowly…Â
You can join the discussion on the RX 6600 XT’s launch day pricing on the OC3D Forums.Â
