Is the new RTX 5070 really as fast as Nvidia's previous flagship RTX 4090 GPU? Turns out the answer is yes. Kinda.

HardwareGraphics CardsIs the new RTX 5070 really as fast as Nvidia’s previous flagship RTX 4090 GPU? Turns out the answer is yes. Kinda.When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

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(Image credit: Nvidia)

Nvidia RTX 5070 graphics card

The Nvidia GeForce RTX 5070 was only fully revealed this week at CES 2025, but already the GPU is causing quite a stir. Though arguably the least powerful of the just unveiled 50-series, the RTX 5070 has been the subject of a number of headline-worthy claims. Alas, most folks will have to wait until the 50-series launches this February to see if it’s worth the hype—but tech journalists aren’t most folks.

Case in point,PCGamesNhas already seen theRTX 5070in action and has since shared its findings. So, what’s the truth behind Nvidia’s CEO Jen-Hsun Huang on-stage claim that the RTX 5070 will offer"RTX 4090 performance at $549"? Turns out, there’s a lot to that—but not without caveats.

First, the good news: while playingMarvel Rivals, PCGamesN journalist Ben Hardwidge found that the RTX 5070 doesn’t just offer comparable performance, but actually eclipses theRTX 4090, what was once Nvidia’s flagship card. However, the not-really-bad-news, but more I’m-not-sure-how-to-feel-about-this-news is that we have the GPU’s new Tensor cores and their support of Nvidia’s just announcedDLSS 4 Multi Frame Generationto thank.

It’s hardly a surprising move. Nvidia has been calling time on raster graphics renderingfor years, with Huang himself memorably sayingback in September 2024, “We can’t do computer graphics anymore without artificial intelligence. We compute one pixel, we infer the other 32. I mean, it’s incredible.”

To be clear though, the name of DLSS 4’s game is most impressively frame generation. With regards to the RTX 5070, DLSS 4 uses AI and in-game data to generate up to three full frames between more traditionally rendered frames. To put it a little crudely, DLSS 4 is what’s giving you that extra bang for your buck.

All of that said key tech specs, such as which CPU was used for these comparison builds, remain unclear, so it’s hard to say conclusively just how replicable those numbers are. It also perhaps goes without saying but the older card doesn’t support DLSS 4’s multi frame gen, so one could quibble about how valuable a comparison this truly is.

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Furthermore, even Nvidia stressed that this comparison point is a bit of an outlier, as Marvel Rivals appears to be particularly well-optimised for the RTX 5070; when tested on titles thataren’tMarvel Rivals, there’s apparently a much smaller performance gap between the two cards.

Still, that suggests performance that once cost over a grand and a half for the RTX 4090 is now within reach for much less. Provided DLSS 4 is involved, of course.

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