I recently sold my ROG Ally Z1 Extreme to help fund a new small-form-factor PC. The case can only accommodate graphics cards around 200mm or shorter, which limits my options. I found an RTX 5060 8GB for about $350, but I'm considering returning it for an RX 9060 XT 16GB Reaper that also fits and costs roughly $500.
This will mainly be a secondary, portable gaming and streaming PC for working through my backlog. I don't expect to play many modern AAA games, and it will mostly replace what I was using the Ally for. Given that use case, is the extra $150 for the 9060 XT and its additional VRAM worthwhile, or would the cheaper, lower-power 5060 be the better choice?
4 Answers
For a secondary system focused on older games and lighter titles, I’d keep the 5060. It should be a substantial upgrade over the Z1 Extreme, uses less power, and Nvidia’s streaming features are useful. The 16GB card is more future-proof, but you may not actually benefit from it with the games you plan to play.
If you were building a main gaming PC for current AAA games at 1440p, I’d strongly favor 16GB. Eight gigabytes can become a limitation with high-resolution textures and newer releases. However, for a light-gaming and streaming machine, 8GB is still perfectly usable if you’re willing to adjust settings.
I’ve been using an 8GB 5060 for games like Destiny 2 and Fortnite and it has been great for that kind of workload. I’d only pay for 16GB if you expect to move into newer, more demanding games.
The 5060 should handle 1080p easily and can also do 1440p with sensible settings, upscaling, or frame generation. Just don’t treat frame generation as a substitute for actual GPU performance, and keep texture settings under control when a game starts exceeding the card’s VRAM. For your stated use, I’d save the money and keep the 5060.
The 9060 XT is the stronger card and the extra VRAM gives it more breathing room, but $500 seems like a lot for this particular build. If you don’t need the extra performance right now, the $350 5060 is the more sensible buy. You can always upgrade later if your backlog turns into newer games.
I agree that 16GB is preferable for longevity, but paying an extra $150 only makes sense if the rest of the system and your games can take advantage of the faster card.
That’s where I’m leaning. I’ll test the 5060 once the rest of the parts arrive, and I can still return it if performance or VRAM becomes an issue.