Stock of all the R9 280x and R9 290 and quickly disappearing at all the major Australian distributors and re-sellers. Asus, Gigabyte, MSI, Sapphire and XFX distributors are all out of stock of these particular SKUs, with some completely removing the SKU from their catalogs.
With a rumor (now confirmed) that 8GB versions of the R9 290X was due in the coming weeks, we are guessing the R9 280x and 290 will be getting some sort of refresh also. With no known replacement on the horizon for these disappearing cards it’s unlikely they have been completely discontinued. Industry & enthusiast forums speculate the refresh will replace the current Tahiti GPUs with TONGA based GPUs.
The TONGA GPU would be more efficient, run cooler and even possibly allow for a lower price point. At this stage we can only wait and see as we cannot find any official statements regarding the current shortage. Rumors of the GPU swap originally broke in July from a Chinese website, VR Zone attributed only to ‘reliable sources’.
In the meantime until AMD get their act together and get stock out to Australian distributors, local customers will have a limited line up to choose from if they want a mid range AMD card.
Stay tuned for updates.