Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 Ti Review
Another mid-range graphics card contender from Nvidia
Verdict
The Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 Ti is an upper mid-range graphics card that packs a lot of power, but comes with a high price tag. It thrives in both Full and Quad HD gaming but performed reliably in my 4K tests, with the added benefit of DLSS 3 bringing a big boost. Anyone who owns an RTX 30 Series card may find that the RTX 4070 Ti isn’t worth the upgrade, but if you own anything lower, then the RTX 4070 Ti is a leading option.
Pros
- Support for DLSS 3
- Solid 4K gaming performance
- Great power efficiency
- Reliable option for content creators
Cons
- Expensive
- Not a huge upgrade on RTX 3000 cards
Key Features
- Support for DLSS 3DLSS 3 can provide a massive boost for the frame rate in supported titles.
- Ray tracing capabilitiesRay tracing allows games to look more lifelike and immersive due to improved lighting and shadow effects.
- Quad HD performanceThe RTX 4070 Ti was consistently able to hit above 70fps in a majority of games when running in Quad HD.
Introduction
The Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 Ti is one of the more expensive graphics cards in the latest RTX 4000 Series, but an impressive performance, capable of even 4K gaming, makes it a tempting option.
The RTX 4070 Ti is not available as a Founders Edition card, meaning that you cannot directly buy the card from Nvidia itself. This puts its price range in a bit of a grey area, but it can be found for $799/£799 from a couple of third-party sellers. I’ve been testing the Gigabyte OC 12G iteration of the card, which is available from £829.99/$779.99 at the time of writing.
Despite not being as affordable as the $399/$389 RTX 4060 Ti, it’s still more accessible than the flagship RTX 4090, which has a $1599/£1679 starting price. That positions it in mid-range territory, but with a sky-high price that few will be able to afford as an impulse buy, is the RTX 4070 Ti worth the investment? After testing the graphics card for several weeks, here are my thoughts.
Specs and design
- Features new Lovelace architecture
- Increased CUDA Core count
- Dimensions will depend on the manufacturer
The Nvidia RTX 4070 Ti runs on Ada Lovelace architecture which is built on a 4nm process node. This is a big improvement over the last-generation 8nm Ampere architecture, allowing Nvidia to cram even more transistors onto the latest chip to further boost performance.
Lovelace improved ray tracing by introducing 4th-Gen Tensor Cores. These cores brought about compatibility with the latest DLSS 3 solution; DLSS 3 improved on DLSS 2 by using artificial intelligence to add extra frames to supported games to improve performance.
Ray tracing has also seen a boost from the new 3rd-Gen Ray Tracing Cores, enabling more realistic in-game lighting and shadow effects. Both of these features have been the backbone of Nvidia RTX cards since its launch, and have only gotten more efficient over time.
Nvidia opted to increase the CUDA Core count on the RTX 4070 Ti, at 7680 compared to the RTX 3070 Ti’s 6144. The boosted clock speeds also saw a jump, not only thanks to the upped CUDA Cores but also the latest architecture. The clock speeds have jumped massively, all the way up to 2.61GHz on the RTX 4070 Ti, while the RTX 3070 Ti tapped out at 1.77GHz. The RTX 4070 Ti comes with one memory configuration, 12GB GDDR6X.
| Nvidia RTX 4070 Ti | Nvidia RTX 3070 Ti | Nvidia RTX 4080 | Nvidia RTX 3080 | Nvidia RTX 4060 Ti | Nvidia RTX 3060 Ti | |
| Architecture | Ada Lovelace | Ampere | Ada Lovelace | Ampere | Ada Lovelace | Ampere |
| CUDA Cores | 7680 | 5888 | 9728 | 8960 / 8704 | 4352 | 4864 |
| Boost clock speed | 2.61 GHz | 1.73 GHz | 2.51 GHz | 1.71 GHz | 2.54 GHz | 1.67 GHz |
| Video memory | 12GB GDDR6X | 8GB GDDR6 | 16GB GDDR6X | 12GB GDDR6X/10 GB GDDR6X | 8/16GB GDDR6 | 8GB GDDR6/GDDR6X |
| Ray Tracing Cores | 3rd Generation | 2nd Generation | 3rd Generation | 2nd Generation | 3rd Generation | 2nd Generation |
| Tensor Cores | 4th Generation | 3rd Generation | 4th Generation | 3rd Generation | 4th Generation | 3rd Generation |
| Graphics card power | 700W | 650W | 750W | 750W | 550W | 600W |
Since this is not a Founders Edition card, the design of the RTX 4070 Ti will depend on the seller. The Gigabyte model here has triple-fan design, with blue highlights adding a little personality.
An extended heatsink has been added to the rear to enhance airflow, while Asus has even added custom RGB lighting to the Gigabyte logo at the top. There’s no question that this is a good looking graphics card.
In terms of ports, the RTX 4070 Ti comes with an HDMI 2.1 as well as 3x DisplayPort 1.4. This allows support for up to 4K at 120Hz and 8K at 60Hz.
Nvidia opted to kit out the RTX 40 Series with a 12-pin power connection rather than the traditional 8-pin format. Don’t worry if this won’t work with your existing PSU cables, as Nvidia bundles a 12-pin adaptor, but just make sure you don’t lose it.
Features
- DLSS 3 provides a massive performance boost over DLSS 2
- Ray tracing abilities have been improved
The standout feature of the RTX 40 Series is DLSS 3. It offers a significant performance boost over its predecessor, DLSS 2, which featured in the RTX 30 Series. DLSS was initially introduced to use artificial intelligence to create additional pixels to reduce the overall workload of your GPU.
DLSS 3 improved upon this by generating entire frames instead of just individual pixels. This has caused a massive uptick in performance for compatible games, allowing gamers to experience titles with a higher resolution and boosted frame rate.
To see how this card handled games with DLSS 3 enabled, I ran some tests in Cyberpunk 2077 and F1 22 with ray tracing activated. The RTX 3070 Ti in this test is using DLSS 2 and the RTX 3070 Ti is using DLSS 3, giving us a broader idea of how this new AI technology affects performance. The tests all had ray tracing activated and were set to a 1440p resolution with balanced settings in both DLSS/FSR.
The RTX 4070 Ti beat out its predecessor in both tests, but was outpaced by the RX 7900 XT in the F1 22 test.
In Cyberpunk 2077 in Quad HD, activating DLSS 3 resulted in an incredible 189% performance boost, with the average frame rate jumping from 44fps to 127fps. In the same test, the RTX 3070 Ti saw a 172% increase thanks to DLSS 2, boosting the average from 22fps to 60fps. That highlights that DLSS 3 is more efficient at boosting performance.
I also tested these cards in 4K, to see if high-end gaming was possible. With ray tracing and DLSS 3 enabled, Cyberpunk 2077 ran at 70fps. Without DLSS 3 it only managed 18fps.
F1 22 also saw improvements with DLSS 3 activated, but the jump was not as large as in Cyberpunk 2077. In Quad HD, DLSS 3 provided a 32% uptick in performance. DLSS 2 – via the RTX 3070 Ti – saw a much larger boost at 82%. This proves that not all games will be equally impacted by DLSS 3, but does show that in a vast majority of cases, the RTX 4070 Ti delivers consistently higher frame rates than its predecessor.
An important caveat for DLSS 3 is that not every game is supported; Nvidia claims that there are over 35 games that support DLSS 3, including Hitman 3, Microsoft Flight Simulator and The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. But not every game is guaranteed to get support, more so if it is an older or indie title.
The RTX 40 Series also brought about some positive changes to ray tracing. Ray tracing is a light rendering technique that better simulates lights and shadows. This makes gameplay look more realistic and immersive, with interest in the technology spiking within the last few years.
The RTX 4070 Ti comes with new RT Cores that boost the efficiency of the technology to reduce performance loss upon activation. In the same vein as DLSS 3, not every game has support for the technology. However, the implementation of ray tracing on the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X has helped to make it more widespread.
Performance and benchmarks
- Best suited for Quad HD gaming but can reliably achieve 4K
- Impressive content creation scores
- Can play modern games with ray tracing activated
Nvidia has improved upon the RTX 3070 Ti with the RTX 4070 Ti, but its impact varies depending on the game or workload. I tested these cards alongside other popular graphics cards from the RTX 40 and RTX 30 Series, alongside one of the most powerful cards from AMD.
In order to make my tests as fair as possible, I ensured to use the same PC configuration throughout all of my graphics card tests. You can see the breakdown of the rig I used below:
- Motherboard: Gigabyte Technology X670E AORUS Master
- CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 5600X
- SSD: PNY CS3140 1TB
- PSU: Corsair HX 850
- Cooler: Corsair Hydro Series H150i PRO RGB 360mm liquid cooler
- OS: Windows 11
Firstly, I benchmarked all of the graphics cards with industry-standard tests, including 3DMark Time Spy Extreme and Blender.
The 3D Mark test is a synthetic benchmark that evaluates overall gaming performance. It’s a good indicator of raw power. The RTX 4070 Ti beat out every card in this test other than the behemoth RTX 4090 and RX 7900 XT. Unlike its predecessor, it managed to hit over 10,000, making it markedly more powerful.
Blender, on the other hand, tests the GPU’s rendering performance. This benchmark is more notable for content creation and gives an idea of how this card handles video editing or 3D animations. The RTX 4070 Ti consistently outmatched every RTX 40 card I tested other than the RTX 4090.
To see how the RTX 4070 Ti handles gaming I ran several tests in a variety of games. These scores give an indication of how many frames a GPU can generate per second.
The RTX 4070 Ti is best equipped for Full HD (1080p) and Quad HD (1440p) gaming, but it was able to consistently hit at least 50fps in 4K in every game I tried.
The older RTX 3070 Ti was occasionally able to beat out the RTX 4070 Ti, but it mostly occurred in older titles, such as Horizon Zero Dawn and Dirt Rally, where there probably hasn’t been a graphics driver update to optimise performance.
This was not the norm, with the RTX 4070 Ti providing an improved performance for every other game on test. In Returnal, the RTX 4070 Ti outpaced the RTX 3070 Ti in all three resolutions; it outperformed its predecessor by 45fps in Full HD, 34fps in Quad HD and 19fps in 4K. Similar results were found in Borderlands 3, with the RTX 4070 Ti outmatching its predecessor by 56fps in Full HD, 43fps in Quad HD and 21fps in 4K.
On average, my tests show that you can expect around a 15fps to 22fps performance boost in 4K when upgrading from the RTX 3070 Ti to the RTX 4070 Ti. I personally don’t think that’s enough of a performance jump to justify an upgrade from the 30-Series generation.
It’s also worth pointing out that the AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT graphics card consistently posted superior scores, sometimes seeing more than a 30fps improvement over the RTX 3070 Ti. AMD’s card is admittedly more expensive, but not by a huge extent, arguably making it the better value option if you’re willing to switch from Nvidia.
I’d recommend upgrading to the RTX 4070 Ti if you’re currently using an RTX 20 Series or GTX 10 Series card. The AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT is a tempting alternative with higher scores, but Nvidia’s superior ray tracing performance and inclusion of DLSS 3 still makes this a worthwhile option.
Power consumption
- Requires at least a 700W PSU
- Similar power consumption to the RTX 3070 Ti
Nvidia recommends using at least a 700W PSU for the RTX 4070 Ti, while the RTX 3070 Ti only requires a 600W PSU. However, my results showed that the RTX 4070 Ti actually consumed less power than its older sibling, making it an impressively efficient graphics card.
During my tests, the Nvidia RTX 4070 Ti hit a peak power consumption of 436W, which is lower than its predecessor, the RTX 3070 Ti, at 452W.
| Nvidia RTX 4070 Ti | Nvidia RTX 4060 Ti | Nvidia RTX 3070 Ti | Nvidia RTX 3060 Ti | RX 7900 XT | |
| Peak Power Drawer | 436W | 318W | 452W | 367W | 485W |
During my tests, the RTX 4070 Ti required a lot more power than its younger sibling, the RTX 4060 Ti, but it did guzzle up less power than the juggernaut AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT. So while AMD’s card may offer a better performance, it also requires more power to do so.
Latest deals
Should you buy it?
You want an upper mid-range card with a lot of power: The Nvidia RTX 4070 Ti hit over 100fps in both Full HD and Quad HD games and consistently performed well in 4K.
You already own an RTX 3000 card: The Nvidia RTX 4070 Ti failed to achieve a large performance gain over the RTX 3070 Ti and RTX 3080 Ti. If you already own a high-end RTX 30 Series card, this might not be worth the $799/£799 price tag.
Final Thoughts
The Nvidia RTX 4070 Ti is an upper mid-range graphics card that packs a lot of punch. The inclusion of DLSS 3 allows for supported games to be played at a high frame rate, even for 4K gaming, and ray tracing has been improved compared to the RTX 30 Series.
The main downside of the RTX 4070 Ti is that it comes with a high price of $799/£799 and minimal upgrades over the RTX 3080 Ti. If you do own a high-end RTX 30 Series card, it may not be worth the high price. The AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT offers better value for money for raw performance too, but you will miss out on the excellent DLSS 3 by switching over to AMD.
There’s no doubt that the Nvidia RTX 4070 Ti is a powerful graphics card, but if you want maximum value, you may be better off waiting until the next generation of Nvidia cards. Otherwise, I recommend checking out our best graphics card roundup for even more options.
How we test
Every graphics card we review is run through a series of synthetic and real-world benchmarks to gauge its performance, power efficiency and potential for overclocking.
Tested with in-game benchmarks
Power consumption checked
Compared against other cards we’ve tested
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FAQs
The RTX 4070 comes with 12GB GDRR6X memory.
Yes, the RTX 4070 does support DLSS 3, which is the latest version of DLSS from Nvidia.
Full specs
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Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
