XFX Radeon RX 5500 THICC II: 8-pin power, possible TDP

Earlier today, the reputable tech site Videocardz published photos of a custom Radeon RX 5500 graphics card from XFX. Here it is: the XFX Radeon RX 5500 THICC II.

The graphics card's design mirrors that of the previously released Radeon RX 5700 and RX 5700 XT, but its appearance isn't what caught our eye.

These days, an 8-pin auxiliary power connector on a graphics card is hardly noteworthy; even budget solutions feature them. What is noteworthy is that AMD itself states the Radeon RX 5500 and RX 5500 XT cards consume up to 110 watts.

Given this, and recalling the launch of the RX 400 series, we can only speculate on two possibilities:

The first and most straightforward explanation points to standard improvements by AIB partners for custom cards. XFX, for example, might have included the 8-pin connector to enable higher frequencies when overclocking.

The second option isn't as optimistic, but it's entirely realistic. It's possible the RX 5500, much like the RX 400 series before it, simply doesn't strictly adhere to the stated 110W TDP, and its power consumption could spike up to 150 watts. In that scenario, an 8-pin connector would be essential to prevent potential damage to the motherboard (though such cases are extremely rare and typically only affect ultra-budget motherboards).

Naturally, it's too early to draw definitive conclusions based on a custom sample. But past unpleasant experiences with AMD GPUs do prompt these thoughts.

Source: WccfTech